PS5 might not get as many 120fps games as Xbox Series X – here's why

PS5
(Image credit: Sony)

The PS5 might not feature as many games with 120fps support as the Xbox Series X, according to Rocket League's developer. 

While both consoles are more than capable of outputting at higher framerates – though you'll need an HDMI 2.1 compliant TV for 4K or 1440p at 120fps – developer Psyonix has stated that a PlayStation 5 game "requires a full native port", while the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S versions only require a "minor patch".

Rocket League is set to receive a next-gen update in the near future, which will add an 120fps option to the Xbox Series X and S versions of the game, but the PS5 will miss out. 

Speaking to Eurogamer, Psyonix shed some light on why this is the case.  

"Our team's main focus this year was our recent free to play transition and updating major features like our Tournaments system," Psyonix said. “Enabling 120Hz on Xbox Series X|S is a minor patch, but enabling it on PS5 requires a fully native port due to how backwards compatibility is implemented on the console, and unfortunately wasn’t possible due to our focus elsewhere."

The Xbox Series X already includes 120fps support for a wide range of titles, such as Gears 5, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, Halo: The Master Chief Collection and the Falconeer

Call of Duty: Warzone is another example of a game that runs at 120fps on Xbox Series X but not on PS5, though the latest Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War does have this option available.

Playing the long game

Microsoft originally added 120Hz support on Xbox One consoles, even though the console wasn't powerful enough to run games at that level. It's this forward-thinking update, though, that apparently makes it much easier for developers to patch in support. On PS4, meanwhile, Sony never added support for higher frame rates. 

While it may come as a shock to PlayStation 5 owners, 120fps is still arguably a luxury feature at this point. It's great if you enjoy playing competitive games such as first-person shooters, but you'll need a TV that supports 120Hz to enable it. 

For a PS5, which is more focused on single-player games over the Xbox's multitude of multiplayer games, this probably won't affect you too much if you're locked at playing in 4K at 60fps, though it's something that Sony will hopefully look to rectify. 

Either way, we'll still see more future PS5 games have support for 120fps, but it's a nice perk for Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S owners if developers choose to add it to older titles. 

Adam Vjestica

Adam was formerly TRG's Hardware Editor. A law graduate with an exceptional track record in content creation and online engagement, Adam has penned scintillating copy for various technology sites and also established his very own award-nominated video games website. He’s previously worked at Nintendo of Europe as a Content Marketing Editor and once played Halo 5: Guardians for over 51 hours for charity. He is now an editor at The Shortcut.