On October 27, 2020, Capcom drew a quiet but consequential line in the sand of next-generation gaming: Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition would bring ray tracing to Xbox Series X but withhold it entirely from the more affordable Series S. The decision was not a hardware impossibility but a publisher's calculation — and in that distinction lies a question that will follow budget consoles for years: when affordability becomes the price of admission, what exactly are players being admitted to?
Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition Won't Support Ray Tracing on Xbox Series S
Some developers would simply decide their console wasn't worth the effort.
Mark
Why does ray tracing matter so much that players would feel genuinely disappointed about missing it?
Mimi
Because it's become the visual signature of this generation. It's what makes the jump from last-gen feel real. When you see light behaving naturally in a game, you feel the difference. It's not just a spec sheet item—it changes how the world looks.
Mark
But the Series S is $100 cheaper than the PS5 Digital Edition. Shouldn't people expect some trade-offs?
Mimi
They should, and they do. But the problem is that other developers are supporting ray tracing on the Series S. So when Capcom doesn't, it feels like a choice, not a limitation. It raises the question: if Capcom can skip it, will everyone else?
Mark
Is the Series S actually underpowered, or is this just about developer priorities?
Mimi
It's underpowered compared to the Series X and PS5, sure. But it's not so weak that it can't handle ray tracing—other games are proving that. This is Capcom deciding the effort wasn't worth it for their audience.
Mark
What happens if this becomes a pattern?
Mimi
Then the Series S stops being a genuine next-gen console and becomes a last-gen experience at a next-gen price. The whole point of buying in early is to play the new games. If the new games are systematically stripped down for your hardware, you've made a bad bet.
Mark
Could this actually hurt Xbox's market position?
Mimi
It could, if enough players start seeing the Series S as a compromise that isn't worth compromising for. The console wars aren't won on specs—they're won on the games people actually want to play, fully realized.
El Pulso
- Capcom confirmed via tweet that ray tracing — the marquee visual feature of next-gen gaming — would be absent from the Xbox Series S version of Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition, despite arriving on Series X.
- The gap between Microsoft's own two consoles suddenly felt less like a price tier and more like a platform divide, with Series S owners holding a ticket to a show missing its headline act.
- The sting deepened when it emerged this was a choice, not a ceiling — other developers like Ubisoft had already committed to ray tracing support on the same hardware.
- Series S owners, who accepted the trade-offs of a $299 entry point, now faced a harder question: if a major publisher cuts features once, what stops the rest from following?
- The console's entire value proposition — affordable access to next-generation gaming — begins to erode the moment 'next-generation' becomes a feature reserved for those who paid more.
On October 27, 2020, Capcom drew a quiet but consequential line in the sand of next-generation gaming: Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition would bring ray tracing to Xbox Series X but withhold it entirely from the more affordable Series S. The decision was not a hardware impossibility but a publisher's calculation — and in that distinction lies a question that will follow budget consoles for years: when affordability becomes the price of admission, what exactly are players being admitted to?
When Capcom announced Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition for next-generation consoles, it promised something close to definitive: a new difficulty tier, turbo mode, Vergil as a playable character, 120 fps support, enhanced audio, and faster load times across both Xbox Series consoles. For players who had chosen Microsoft's cheaper hardware, it sounded like a genuine upgrade worth celebrating.
Then came the caveat. On October 27, 2020, Capcom clarified that ray tracing — the technology that makes light behave realistically, casting shadows and depth across game worlds — would arrive on Xbox Series X as a downloadable update, but would not come to Series S at all. The announcement exposed an uncomfortable gap between Microsoft's two consoles, one that price tags alone hadn't fully communicated.
The Series S sits in a strange position: $100 cheaper than the PS5 Digital Edition, yet lacking 4K resolution and now, in this case, a feature widely considered central to next-generation gaming. What made Capcom's decision particularly pointed was that it appeared to be a choice rather than a technical limitation — Ubisoft and others had already committed to ray tracing support on the same hardware. Capcom had simply done the math and drawn a line.
For Series S owners, the larger worry wasn't this game alone. It was the precedent. If a studio of Capcom's stature was already trimming features from a major franchise launch, the console's promise — affordable entry into next-generation gaming — risked becoming something narrower and less certain with every similar decision that followed.
When Capcom announced Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition for next-generation consoles, players who had already committed to Microsoft's cheaper hardware found themselves facing an uncomfortable choice: accept a diminished version of the game, or wonder if they'd backed the wrong horse.
The Special Edition, arriving on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S, promised to be the definitive way to experience the 2019 action game. Capcom loaded it with features fans had requested—a new difficulty tier called Legendary Dark Knight, a turbo mode that speeds up gameplay, and the ability to play as Vergil, a character central to the story. Both Microsoft consoles would get high frame rates up to 120 fps, enhanced 3D audio, and faster loading times. On paper, it sounded like a genuine next-generation upgrade.
Then came the caveat. On October 27, 2020, Capcom clarified its ray tracing plans in a tweet: the feature would arrive on Xbox Series X as a downloadable update, but the Series S would not support it at all. Ray tracing is the technology that makes light behave in games the way it does in the physical world—bouncing off surfaces, casting realistic shadows, creating depth and atmosphere. It's become a marquee feature of next-generation gaming, the kind of visual enhancement that justifies the leap to new hardware.
The decision stung because it exposed a widening gap between Microsoft's two consoles. The Series X and PlayStation 5 share similar high-end specifications and compete directly. But the Series S, priced at $299, occupies a strange middle ground. It costs $100 less than the PS5 Digital Edition, which retails for $399, yet lacks both 4K resolution support and now, in this case, ray tracing. For players who chose the Series S for its affordability, the message was clear: some developers would simply decide their console wasn't worth the effort.
What made the situation more complicated was that Capcom's choice appeared to be just that—a choice. Other developers, including Ubisoft, had already committed to supporting DirectX ray tracing on the Series S. The hardware could technically handle it. Capcom had simply decided not to implement it, perhaps weighing the development cost against the install base or the visual impact on a lower-resolution display. The distinction mattered: this wasn't a technical ceiling the console had hit, but a line a major publisher had drawn.
For Series S owners who had been hyped about Devil May Cry 5, the announcement raised a larger question about the console's future. If Capcom—a heavyweight studio with a major franchise—was already cutting features, what would happen when other developers faced the same calculus? The Series S had been positioned as an entry point to next-generation gaming, a way to play new games at a lower price. But entry points only work if the games you want to play are actually there, fully featured, waiting for you. If publishers began treating it as a secondary platform, a place where features got trimmed and corners cut, the entire value proposition could collapse.
Citas Notables
While ray tracing will be available as a downloadable title update on the Xbox Series X, Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition will not support ray tracing on the Xbox Series S.— Capcom, via official announcement
Quieres la nota completa?
Lee el original en Essentially Sports ↗
Economy & Finance