Xbox One X Enhancements For Skyrim, Fallout 4, Wolfenstein 2, More Bethesda Games Revealed

Like many other publishers, Bethesda will release free updates for a number of its games to take advantage of the Xbox One X's additional horsepower. Just ahead of the console's release, Bethesda has offered a rundown on what to expect from a number of its biggest games.

Unfortunately, the details at this point are somewhat vague, though the list does let us know which titles are getting attention. Bethesda's most recent game, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, will support 4K and dynamic resolution. It's unclear if the game will run at 4K natively at any point or, if it does, how often it will hit that mark; supporting dynamic resolution means the resolution will fluctuate, which has become a common technique.

The same improvements are also true of Skyrim: Special Edition and Fallout 4, although the latter also boasts enhanced god ray effects and draw distance (for NPCs, objects, grass, and trees). The Evil Within 2 sees a removal of the 30 FPS framerate lock and a higher framerate overall, as well as an "upgraded" resolution--though Bethesda was non-specific about what the targets are for either of those.

Both Dishonored 2 and Dishonored: Death of the Outsider will feature 4K and dynamic resolution support, as well as 4K textures, "improvement framerate stability," and improvements to shadow quality, anti-aliasing, geometry, and draw distances.

Finally, an update for The Elder Scrolls Online is on the way next week that adds native 4K and HDR support (which suggests the other games will offer neither native 4K nor HDR, at least for the time being). Additionally, the view distance has been increased, and water reflections and shadows (with SSAO) have been "upgraded."

We'll report back as we learn more about exactly what these updates do and when they'll be released. (Notably absent from this list is Doom, which we know will receive enhancements.) Although we know many of the games being improved--see all the Xbox One X-enhanced games in our full list--the actual specifics of how many games utilize the system's power remain unclear. For an idea of what to expect from the system itself, check out our Xbox One X review.

Bethesda Xbox One X Game Enhancements

Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus

• Supports 4K Resolution
• Enhanced features include:
  • Dynamic Resolution

Fallout 4

• Supports 4K Resolution
• Enhanced features include:
  • Dynamic Resolution
  • Enhanced draw distance for trees, grass, objects and NPCs
  • Enhanced God Ray effects

Skyrim Special Edition

• Supports 4K Resolution
• Enhanced features include:
  • Dynamic Resolution

Dishonored 2 & Dishonored: Death of the Outsider

• Supports 4K Resolution
• Enhanced features include:
  • Dynamic Resolution
  • Improved framerate stability
  • 4K textures
  • Improved geometry/draw distances
  • Improved anti-aliasing
  • Improved shadows quality

The Evil Within 2

• Enhanced Features include:
  • Upgraded resolution
  • Higher framerate
  • 30 fps lock removal

The Elder Scrolls Online

• Supports Native 4K Resolution and HDR
• Enhanced features include:
  • Increased view distance
  • Upgraded shadows with Screen Space Ambient Occlusion
  • Upgraded water reflections