Hogwarts Legacy is launching this month for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S with last generation consoles coming in April, and the Nintendo Switch version near the end of July. Players with multiple current-gen platforms may find themselves wondering which is the best version to pick up. Hogwarts Legacy is a hefty game where players can pour dozens of hours into it, so platform preference is important. Here are some comparisons for the PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S versions of Hogwarts Legacy that can determine which you should get.
Graphics Comparison Among PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S
Hogwarts Legacy contains five graphical presets on PS5 and Xbox Series X where players can choose to prioritize between graphical fidelity and framerate, or find a balance between the two. The presets that put the emphasis on graphics are Fidelity and Fidelity With Raytracing, the latter which is not available for Xbox Series S.
Both the PS5 and Xbox Series X can sustain 30fps at 4K resolution under Fidelity mode, and there is the ability to turn off the frame cap to go above 30fps at an uneven pace. So either console can reliably look great with negligible differences between the two.
The PC version will depend on the hardware you have, with minimum requirements at a GeForce GTX 960 4GB or Radeon RX 470 4GB for 720p resolution at 30fps, and up to a GeForce RTX 3090 Ti or Radeon RX 7900 XT for 4K Ultra HD resolution at 60fps for the maximum.
Framerate Comparison Among PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S
The PS5 and Xbox Series X also contain two presets that focus on getting the smoothest experience out of Hogwarts Legacy with Performance and HFR Performance modes. Performance will give a solid 60fps at 1440p resolution, while the HFR Performance mode will push the consoles to 120fps if you own a television or monitor that supports HDMI 2.1.
The PC’s recommended specs suggest a GeForce 1080 Ti or Radeon RX 5700 XT for 60fps at 1080p resolution, and a GeForce RTX 2080 Ti or Radeon RX 6800 XT for 1440p at the same framerate. Although, the latter requires 32GB of RAM compared to the recommended specs of 16GB of RAM.
Exclusive Content Among PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S
The PlayStation versions of Hogwarts Legacy, both PS5 and PS4, contain a time-limited exclusive in-game quest called “Haunted Hogsmeade Shop.” It is a near-hour long quest that can be accessed fairly late in the game and revolves around buying a shop in Hogsmeade that is seemingly haunted.
The developers have said that the quest will reward players with “a shop of your own where you can sell items and gear at better rates than anywhere else” and a cosmetic set. Considering the quest is not unlocked until rather far into game, it does not seem like such a game-changer that would be worth solely switching to the PlayStation version.
Especially when the Haunted Hogsmeade Shop quest will be available on PC, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox consoles one year after the launch of Hogwarts Legacy at no additional cost.
Which Platform Should You Get Hogwarts Legacy For?
The ultimate decision on which platform you should get Hogwarts Legacy for comes down to personal choice and availability. Hogwarts Legacy is a strictly single-player game, so playing with friends on the same platform is not an issue at all.
The PC version can offer better graphics quality and smoother framerate if you have a more recent GPU, but either console version can be great if you want to simply sit down and play without fiddling with the graphics settings too much.
The choice is a lot easier if you only own one of the platforms. It is a little trickier if you are lucky enough to have a PC and console, two consoles, or all three. Hogwarts Legacy will be a great experience to play regardless of platform.
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