Sea of Thieves will launch with an optional 540p mode and 15fps lock

During the Microsoft presentation at last week's Gamescom, Rare announced that "no asterisk" crossplay is coming to Sea of Thieves at launch—an all-encompassing feature that'll let PC players face off against their Xbox counterparts.

[Genuine-User]

Why the fudge would anyone want to play this game at 15fps? What a weird thing request.

[freshslicepizza]

Some people don't upgrade their hardware. I wouldn't want to play at those settings but at least there is an option.

[HaveSumNuts]

Its like using 1 ply toilet paper and convincing yourself that your ass is clean.

[ProjectVulcan]

Potato mode. 540p and 15FPS should run on like a 10 year old PC lol

[ULTp0ltergeist]

Tablets?

[rainslacker]

I'm curious how old someone's hardware would have to be to run this resolution. 540 hasn't been a PC resolution in forever...or was it ever a common resolution? 1024x768 has been the lowest I've seen in the past 15 years at least. Before then it was 640x480. 540p makes no sense for TV's because it'd have to be 480p to be for those who haven't upgraded that, although most CRT or early panel TV's can support 520 with overscanning, and then it'd jump to at least 720p. 15fps makes absolutely no sense, as it'd just be prone to all sorts of animation glitches.

[PurpHerbison]

If you ain't using a bidet then your ass ain't clean anyway.

[dcbronco]

If that's where you are technologically get a console.

[4Sh0w]

"We've also added a 15 fps framerate lock because when we were talking to the community some people were like: I'm actually happy playing 15 frames per second." - Sea of Thieves PC design lead Ted Timmins

-This is silly, this game is gonna support from 4K 60fps all the way down to 540p 15fps, lol WHY?

I mean are they gonna put color prompts in it too so my Grandma can play it on her old black & white in the basement....oh and don't forget a Z chip, hangar and electrical tape so we can jerry rig a connection for a hdmi cable. pffft, sometimes you just got to say NO.

[PlayableGamez-]

15fps is not playable.

[Kornholic]

You have to be delusional to think your ass is clean after wiping it with a piece of paper. It's fucking disgusting. If your hands are dirty, do you wipe them with paper or do you wash them? Wash your asses, people.

[Sonic_Vs_Mario]

Doesn't drain your Surface or Laptop battery?

[DaGR8JIBRALTAR]

For those with tube tvs i guess...

[SierraGuy]

Some people like slideshows.

[Sam Fisher]

They might as well announce this for mobile and ios lmao, woult be awesome to play it on a phone

[modelgod]

Yeah I dont get it AT ALL!!

[LastCenturyRob]

I agree, but silly extras such as this just add to the overall package.

[RosweeSon]

Because they've just bought the all powerful X... 15FPS Haha.

[Gh05t]

If the option is cant play this at all, or can play this... most gamers would opt for the ability to play it.

[Bronxs15]

You're not a pirate so you don't get it. Only pirates understand this.

Pirates take a stance against the social norms. Society is moving toward more pixels and fps. Pirates maintain the old ways of life.

[Chocoburger]

Final Fantasy 14 also has a 15 FPS lock, its there for weaker notebook/tablet PCs, or if you want to conserve battery power while roaming the area (not dungeon raiding of course!). Having a 15 FPS lock as an option is not a negative feature.

[subtenko]

Because there may be more to this....the game fps might be unstable and this is there way to get some sneaky pr wording in maybe? Idk, we'll have to see why

[3-4-5]

This is requested by fans for some reason so I guess there really are that many people who can't or don't want to upgrade their PC.

I mean for $500-600 you could build a PC more than capable of playing the game.

[saiyajin99]

Huh? Who wants to play a game on 540p mode and 15fps ?, what does this even mean!

[Genuine-User]

So that people with low end hardware can play the game at 540p. But adding a 15fps option is kind of ridiculous.

[GTgamer]

If your hardware that bad you shouldn't be trying to play games on it.

[rainslacker]

I think if someone's hardware isn't capable of running this at at least 1024x768, then the overall game design is going to struggle on the rest of their hardware. Any PC with the horsepower to run the actual game code should have at a bare minimum a GPU which can support those resolutions at more than 15fps. We're talking hardware that's at least 15 years old, and computers that old have trouble running simple flash games most of the time, much less a online game with a lot of stuff going on in the game code.

This resolution is completely irrelevant to consoles and TV's, even if they're for some reason still on an old CRT TV, and they'd have converters to handle HDMI output anyhow.

Might make sense for some mobile devices, as 540 isn't uncommon for some of those that released in the past 7 years or so.

[The 10th Rider]

@rainslacker,

Maybe they're thinking of some older laptops that have integrated graphics? It's not unusual for someone to have a laptop with a 4 gen or newer I5, but a GPU is pretty atypical.

[bouzebbal]

fanboys will make comparison videos 4K vs 540p.
remember this post..

[BlackTar187]

Who would that even target? I don't see the fanboy value in that.

[MoveTheGlow]

It reminds me of the downgrading community that makes newer games playable (albeit weird) on crappy computers. It's largely a fix for gamers in developing nations. We're lucky to get the PCs we get here :) Glad they're doing some of the work for them in this case - they might actually get more of the global mobile gaming f2p community on board and monetize the fact that they're playing.

[zivtheawesome]

Switch ver confirmed :P
Well i understand it. It is for old pcs to run the game makes sense. Still sounds ridiculus though

[Bluemaster77]

LOL

[MrFisher21]

Lmao. I want a Switch. But that was too good.

[Kribwalker]

Bloodbourne edition confirmed :P

[dRanzer]

Ok

[OffRoadKing]

Well you made the effort anyway.

[LP-Eleven]

I've never heard of Bloodbourne, but hey, F is in the word effort, so do you. :P

OT: I'm sure this will help someone out there (though I can't imagine many..... it IS 2017, after all).

[BlackTar187]

We both know this game won't be as good as bloodborne

[Zeref]

That would be pretty cool actually. Maybe they should consider a Switch version with Crossplay

[Neonridr]

wow.. no offense but whoever has a PC that can only do 540p @ 15FPS might want to think about either A) upgrading or B) buying a console.

[KillZallthebeast]

Pretty sure even a 400 laptop could outdo these specs all day by miles

[XiNatsuDragnel]

Are they seriously trolling?

[DigitalRaptor]

I think they're just trying to be funny to distract attention away from the fact that their game is looking to be a walking disaster, and reminiscent of the way people questioned No Man's Sky: "just what do you do in this game"?

But you know, it's terrible humor, and I'm not surprised it passed Microsoft QA and marketing. That company has some weird double standards.

[StormLegend]

WTF lol

[ocelot07]

An all for including as many options and settings as possible for a PC game. So the 540p option for people on laptops or weak hardware is fine. Hell include 360p if you want to. But 15FPS lock is this a joke? 30FPS is the bare min of playability in my opinion.

If I really wanted to play this game I mean I desperately wanted to. Then 360p at 30FPS should be the absolute bare min. Anything less would surely be a horrible experience. Not only would it be a horrible experience at 15fps for the person having to play at that. But also the team mates as it would also sort of ruin there experience. Having to put up with someone who can't do much due to low FPS.

[CrimzonRazor]

This choice is to drive sales people with old hardware will see super low specs and say wow I can run this and buy it because its one of the few games they can.

[EddieNX]

Nice! This means I can play it on the microwave whilst waiting for unhealthy food!

[iDadio]

My microwave has two different defrost settings and I can manually change the power. Could easily reach 30fps np at all

[EddieNX]

😂😂😂 absolutely. We could get 720p on defrost no doubt

[ONESHOTV2]

lol good luck to those guys

[DrRobotnik]

Cool! Now let me go break out my Voodoo Radeon 9800 card and enjoy this game in all it's splendor.

[rainslacker]

Kind of an overpowered card for that setting isn't it? You PC gamers and your geeky overpowered hardware. Always trying to squeeze every last ounce of performance out of your games.:P

[windblowsagain]

hahahah 15fps. just fuk ur eyes up. that is bad.

[FallenAngel1984]

Why is this seriously a thing? It's like Rare is making fun of Xbox One's previous resolution limitations

[ThinkThink]

It's Rares Goldeneye64 mode

[Yohshida]

Getting those cutting edge features in SOT I see.

[jwillj2k4]

what the fuck lol... not trying to troll. but there is something wrong with intentionally releasing a game this broken.

[cfc83]

Average pc is a rowing boat compared to the xbox beast

[Sam Fisher]

What is the point of your statement? No shit it is.
Is there a point to it though?

[cfc83]

Yes. We're fed up of pc trolls stating that pc is the best format, when in actuality the statement is hardware dependent. You're welcome. Row on.

[Gority]

@cfc83
Your statement is idiotic. PCs will always be capable of doing more than consoles. Get over it? But hey, consoles get HDR and that's not really a good option on PC yet so there you go. How about, be happy with what you have or are going to have instead of worrying about PC people?

[uncleDAD]

wow this some next level shit

[VileBrute]

Lmao

[RommyReigns]

Who would want to play on 15fps? What is their target market?

[Sam Fisher]

Everyone lmao, honestly i own a ps4 and a old computer. I really wanted to play this game. Now i have my wish lmao

[bluefox755]

Games are unplayable at 15fps, like a slide show.

[Razmiran]

This is not true
Its not ideal, but games from the fifth gen used to run at those framerates

[franwex]

Well...in that case why not just release an xbox 360 version too

[OC_MurphysLaw]

Soooooooo..... Switch version confirmed? /s (couldn't help myself)

[letsa_go]

It is good to see they are still supporting the OG Xbox One! Just kidding ;)

[About30Ninjas]

540p 15fps what this supposed to be a Wii U game

[PiNkFaIrYbOi]

Just why do this?

[BadElf]

Huh? What are we ?

[Bobafret]

Ewwww

[Tedakin]

They should put out a video so we can see what this looks like.

[JackTheLiz]

Good god people, read the freaking article. The option is for those with weaker PCs, not everyone can afford a $1000 rig.

[4Sh0w]

JackTheLiz,

I read it, as I qouted the lead designer above. I think most of us understand they are trying to make the game accessible for the weakest hardware out there....but that's what's so silly about it.
I mean how many people who actually want to play Sea of Thieves has a 15yr old pc still working that's only capable of 540p? How is it even compatible with anything online?...and I don't even remember when pc's were topping out at 15fps.

I mean I'm and Xbox fan and Im all for supporting as many gamers as possible but this seems like a silly PR attempt which might actually help 2 gamers in Siberia rather than some really worthwhile news for 99.99% of those interested in Sea of Thieves.

[JackTheLiz]

You're probably right, but then again PCs are weird. You may be surprised by some out there.

[ajax17]

The resolution is understandable, but 15 fps? That's pretty stupid...

[slavish0]

This game will have a large community with being able to run on specs that low. Good for them for giving people options. I will be play at 4k minimum. I hope they add 8k and more options.

[Sciurus_vulgaris]

Both PD and Goldeneye 007, would often run at 15 fps or lower on the N64, at a resolution below 540p. It is almost like Rare, is referencing their older work.

[maybelovehate]

Will definitely help them sell more copies.. All those kids that their parents bought them cheap laptops for school can play.

[gamer7804]

this way they can easily port it to ps4 if need be so that it can still run :)

[Simmo3D]

If you need to run this game at 15fps, don't bother until you have the right hardware.

[BlaqMagiq1]

This is absolutely stupid. If your computer can't run this at a 720p/30fps at the very least then you need to upgrade.

[medman]

????????????????

[PistolsAtDawn]

I wonder if this is like an Easter egg thing to make it look like Monkey Island

[Imalwaysright]

15 fps... If I was drunk, I would have fallen of my chair. That's how hard I laughed when I read this.

[TheUndertaker85]

Holy shit people here are so narrow minded. Really shows they can't think beyond their own box of choice.

Little rocket science for individuals here I suppose. If the game can run anywhere from 540p/15 to 4K/60 what stops next to anyone from being able to play the game?

That's right. Nothing. They're effectively delivering a game that next to nobody will be left out of or have the choice of playing.

[LastCenturyRob]

SNES mode

[Good-Smurf]

Are they really that desperate for sales lol.
Pathetic move if true.

[boing1]

I want this mode on xbx.

[LordoftheCritics]

15 fps is lower than the frame rate of the first movies.

[OffRoadKing]

"I'm actually happy playing 15 frames per second." LOL, sure you are.

[WelkinCole]

The poaower of the oh wait

[NordicRainy]

???????

[aaronaton]

hopefully the Xbox One version will be around 540p 30fps, fingers crossed!

[Many-hat5]

Ha Ha..." We've actually added a 540p mode, so you can go below HD. We've also added a 15 fps framerate lock because when we were talking to the community some people were like: I'm actually happy playing 15 frames per second." Very funny !

[timotim]

I'm happy that Microsoft seems to be taking into account non-gaming machines/rigs when developing there first party games. It means more people can play them and they are able to sell there games to the highest possible amount of its users. Being about to play FM7 on a Surface Pro is amazing...Sea of Thieves will most likey run on my daughters 8" tablet, which again is amazing. I hope they keep this up well into the future...the more people that get to play your games, the better.

[-GreenRanger]

15 FPS? I wanna play!!!!!

[DafunkyRebel]

Since this is a coop online game, reducing the god past 30fps is pure stupidity

[chris235]

why would anyone want to play online?

[Takwin]

This is now the dumbest thing I've seen on N4G this year. Only 4 months left!

[Dragonscale]

So much for the power of scorpio.

Just kidding.

[subtenko]

True 4k!

[Yui_Suzumiya]

Hey processing, quit being so blast!

[CitizenFour]

Everyone seems to be taking this news in a negative light. I don't understand why.. Really its a good call on the dev's part. It's mostly a feature that nobody will use, but worst case scenario, its an option for people with crappy hardware which leads to more people playing there game.. How is that a bad move? The N4G mentality is unbelievable.

[dollison27]

No thanks....wow.....if this is all your PC can muster you need a new one.

[Gwiz]

15fps lock? 540p?lol well w/e rocks your boat :P