Despite the enthusiastic iOS gaming community knowing the wealth of riches that smartphones possess, there’s always been a bit of a stigma towards mobile as a video gaming platform from ‘core’ gamers. If a number of huge ports and original games couldn’t convince the cynics, Epic Games’ release of Fortnite (Free) has certainly put the haters in their place. While obviously certain limitations between the versions of the game exist, the mobile version of Fortnite has been a truly phenomenal port of a full console experience to the smaller screen, and cross-play support has only emphasised the technological feat that Epic have pulled off in such a short time. People have begun to make comparisons between the console and mobile iterations of the title, but we finally have the expert opinion of the analytical wizards at Digital Foundry to set the record straight, as the website has today made an in-depth video comparison the Xbox One X, iPhone X and (mercifully) iPhone 6S versions of the game for our viewing pleasure.
While you can watch all fourteen minutes of Digital Foundry’s video, or read their extensive analysis on Eurogamer, the gist of their coverage is that Fortnite on the iPhone X is a mightily impressive port of the game for mobile devices. While many of the minor details such as draw distance, shadows and even the way grass flows in the wind may be omitted for performance reasons in the iPhone X version, the mobile iteration really is the ‘full fat experience’ of the game, and ‘the first time a popular game has appeared quickly and completely in mobile form’. A 30fps frame rate may not be as slick as its console counterparts, but it’s equally as consistent (and therefore very playable), which is in stark contrast to the likes of PUBG Mobile (Free). Predictably, the iPhone 6S version is far less polished, and is such a downgrade it’s practically a different game in comparison to the iPhone X’s phenomenal visuals, but it’s still a serious technical feat to get such a game at a constant frame rate on an antiquated device.
It doesn’t take a genius to make these sort of discoveries when you’ve played both the console and mobile versions of Fortnite, but it’s only when you see the two next to each other that you really appreciate the job that Epic have done this time around. When MFi controller support comes, the top-end Fortnite mobile experience is probably the closest to console parity we’ve seen on the platform, and that’s an incredibly exciting prospect for the future. Will Fortnite on the iPhone X convince you to finally pack that PS4 Pro away? Let us know on our official TouchArcade #Fortnite Discord server.
[via Digital Foundry]
