Doom Lead Director Argues 4K Gaming on Xbox Scorpio is a “Waste of Resources”

The Xbox Scorpio has been touted as the most powerful console ever created and capable of delivering a true 4K experience. In contrast to this, the PS4 Pro employs a checkerboard tactic in the majority of cases to upscale games. According to Microsoft, the Xbox Scorpio’s 6 Teraflops of computing power will be ample to drive 4K gaming without compromise. This probably means 30 frames-per-second though and it seems resolution is being prioritised over the frame-rate. Recently, Doom’s leader programmer weighed in on this focus and argued that it’s a “waste of resources”:

yes, even more on on tvs/consoles where player sits at distance. 4k is a waste of resources

— Tiago Sousa (@idSoftwareTiago) June 15, 2016

This is a sensible argument because the higher resolution isn’t as noticeable when sitting a large distance away from the screen. Therefore, it doesn’t appear the correct decision to focus on 4K gaming at the expense of the frame-rate. 4K might be the focus because it’s better for marketing terms to easily showcase the console’s performance compared to the previous generation unit. It’s important to note that developers will be able to choose how they use the Xbox Scorpio’s power and it would be advantageous to support two modes. One for 4K gaming and another for those with a 1080p screen who prefer a more fluid frame-rate.

Do you think the Xbox Scorpio is pushing for 4K gaming too soon?