Hogwarts Legacy fans surprised by how well the PS4 port runs

While some fans have been enjoying Hogwarts Legacy since February, those using last-gen hardware have had to wait a few extra months. Fortunately for those playing on PS4, the wait appears to have been worth it.

The magical Harry Potter spin-off launched on PS4 just today, and players have been quick to share how pleasantly surprised they are by its performance

Twitter user @SynthPotato describes it as a "great port", adding that "it actually runs shockingly well, holding a locked 30FPS throughout!"

A YouTube video by ElAnalistaDeBits, which you can check out below, gives you a visual indication of how the PS4 and PS4 Pro compare to the PS5 in terms of resolution, draw distance, lighting and shadow effects, reflections, textures and more. Obviously, the PS4 and PS4 Pro don't quite offer the same quality regarding visuals or performance as their bigger brother, but the difference isn't as glaring as you might expect.

As the video shows, the PS5 has a native resolution of 1800p in Quality Mode, while the PS4 Pro runs at a native 1080p, and the vanilla PS4 version runs at a native 900p. As for FPS, the PS5 can run at 60 FPS in Performance Mode and a solid 30 FPS on both the base PS4 and the PS4 Pro. Unlocked, it can reach around 50 FPS on the base console and 60 FPS on the enhanced model. 

In the comments, players praise the developer for putting in the effort for those playing on PS4. One writes, "Very impressive. Massive respect for the devs for not releasing it along with the current gen version. Looks like the extra time working on the last-gen version paid off."

Another adds, "This is a feel-good story. A developer actually taking the time to ensure previous-gen versions of a clearly current-gen game function properly instead of shoving it out day and date with the other versions. And it's a good game at that. Good on you, Avalanche and WB."

A third says, "The months delay really came to fruition, they did a great optimization on the PS4, I didn't expect it to be able to keep locked 30FPS let alone have a performance mode with unlocked frame-rate (and I think it's amazing that it stays very close to 60FPS a few times) the team really did a great job."

Sadly it's not all good news as the loading times exceed 40 seconds on the last-gen versions while PS5 fans need only wait around 5 seconds to get back to the action. Yet, all things considered, it's an impressive display for a console that first launched ten years ago. 

The release of Hogwarts Legacy has been the subject of criticism and debate due to J.K. Rowling's public stance on gender identity, which continues to challenge the inclusivity at the heart of the Harry Potter community. Here is our explainer on the Hogwarts Legacy controversy.