Tech experts report that The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered suffers from serious performance issues on all consoles, leaving players eagerly awaiting a critical update.
Oblivion Remastered launched to great success, attracting over 4 million players and earning a 'Very Positive' user review rating on Steam. Yet, persistent performance problems remain a significant concern.
Digital Foundry conducted a detailed analysis of the remaster across all console platforms, revealing widespread and substantial issues. DF's Thomas Morgan commented on Virtuos's Unreal Engine 5 rework:
No platform is immune: PS5, PS5 Pro, and both Xbox Series consoles all experience noticeable hitches when traversing the open world. Furthermore, frame rates consistently drop below 60fps, with performance seemingly degrading the longer you play—a potential sign of a memory leak. Finally, random freezes and crashes to the system dashboard when loading saves are the cherry on top.
What does this look like during gameplay? According to DF, a "charged" session with extended playtime performs worse than a fresh start. Cycling through save files in this state can also introduce bugs, Morgan noted. Interestingly, this can even cause the camera to sit too high while riding a horse—an issue fixed only by restarting the game.
The finding that performance worsens over time, likely due to a memory leak, is especially worrying. The repeated crashes when loading saves also present a major problem.
Players hope Bethesda will resolve these issues promptly, especially as more time invested in this expansive fantasy RPG increases the likelihood of encountering these performance flaws.
"It's a precarious situation for any remaster, and developer Virtuos must prioritize fixing the stability issues and crashes," Morgan added.
Digital Foundry's analysis raises difficult questions, even suggesting the remaster may have been "rushed to market." There also appears to be a patch discrepancy, with a hotfix released for Xbox Series X still unavailable for PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 5 Pro.
This is a harsh critique of the console version, but what about PC? DF had already reviewed the PC port, labeling its performance as "dire." It's worth watching their full analysis for more details.
Despite the technical problems, Oblivion Remastered is a commercial hit. It became the third best-selling game of 2025 in the U.S. after just one week, following its surprise release on April 22. It trails only Monster Hunter: Wilds and Assassin's Creed: Shadows on the annual sales chart.
Developed by remake specialists Virtuos in Unreal Engine 5, Oblivion Remastered boasts a long list of visual and gameplay enhancements. It runs at 4K resolution and 60 frames per second, as expected, but the more meaningful changes lie elsewhere. Everything from leveling systems and character creation to combat animations and menus has been refined. The update also adds substantial new dialogue, a proper third-person camera, and advanced lip-sync technology. These extensive changes have led some fans to argue the project feels more like a remake. Bethesda has, however, explained its decision to label it a remaster.
Now that the game is widely available, veterans of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered are advising newcomers to complete the Kvatch quest early before level scaling turns it into a nightmare. There's also a fascinating report about a player who managed to break out of Cyrodiil's borders to explore Valenwood, Skyrim, and even the rumored setting of The Elder Scrolls VI, Hammerfell.
Be sure to explore our comprehensive guide to everything in Oblivion Remastered, featuring an expansive Interactive Map, complete walkthroughs for the Main Questline and every Guild Quest, a guide on How to Build the Perfect Character, essential Things to Do First, a list of every PC Cheat Code, and much more.
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