A Plague Tale: Requiem looked awesome in the trailers, kind of like The Last of Us with more fantasy and a better story. But now we're close to release, and sadly, we're stuck with another game that can't break 30 FPS on next-gen consoles.
I want to preface this article by saying that the concept of Plague Tale: Requiem is refreshing and exciting, and I hope the studio iis able to improve the disappointing performance in a later patch. I really want this to be a good game.
If you don't know anything about Plague Tale: Requiem, here's a very brief overview. The game is set in Southern France during the Black Plague (1346–1353). We play as an older sister, who must protect her younger brother (Joel and Ellie style) and search for a cure to his disease, while fleeing the soldiers of the Inquisition. The main character, Amicia de Rune, can fight, but she relies more on stealth.
An awesome idea, or at least, I think so. And the game does look very pretty in screenshots. But when you see it actually trying to run on next-gen consoles... oof.
Plague Tale: Requiem Disappoints Next-Gen Users
In a technical comparison of A Plague Tale: Requiem on different platforms, it was revealed that the game can only run at 30fps on next-gen consoles, with the PS5 even experiencing drops in frame-rate. So it is at least slightly better for Xbox users (who seem to be winning the console war right now), but it's far from impressive. And especially for a game with such visually compelling environments, we were really hoping for a clean 60 FPS.
To be clear again, I'm hoping that a future patch can improve the technical performance. By all accounts the other elements in the game are worthy of praise, and its story might even be able to challenge that of 2022's Game of the Year. So we can at least assure you this game isn't a dumpster-fire like Gotham Knights. If you want to pick up a copy and see for yourself, here's a link to buy Plague Tale: Requiem .
Hopefully Plague Tale succeeds, but there's strong competition this month: