https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2019-kingdom-hearts-3-plays-best-at-60fps
Kingdom Hearts 3 plays best at 60fps - but which console gets closest?
Every version tested.
We've been waiting for this one for quite some time. It's been just over 13 years since Kingdom Hearts 2 debuted on PlayStation 2, before continuing its journey via a range of handheld releases. But a full-blooded home console sequel? That only arrived yesterday, with Square-Enix deploying the strengths of Unreal Engine 4 to deliver a new series entry with a far wider scale and scope compared to the originals. Not only that, but the new title aims high with a peak 60fps frame-rate. The question is, which console is most successful at locking to it? The answer is surprising.
The truth is that alongside recent releases like Resident Evil 2 Remake, Just Cause 4 and Ace Combat 7, there's another firm divide in the quality of the experience depending on the console you play. If you're gaming on an enhanced machine, you're in for a good time, while the base machines can't really compete - a situation that's exaggerated owing to a key limitation in the game: its inability to deliver a capped 30 frames per second with consistent frame-pacing.
The main dividing factor though is, of course, resolution. Perhaps inevitably, sitting at the top of the pile is Xbox One X, delivering a native, locked 2560x1440. PlayStation 4 Pro follows up, with a 2304x1296 pixel-count, around 81 per cent of the X's output. There's a big gap that follows, with the vanilla PS4 dropping down to 1600x900, while Xbox One S languishes at a disappointing 720p. Image clarity drops according as we descend the console power ladder, with the drop in resolution also impacting the quality of both texture filtering and anti-aliasing. The standard PS4 just about holds up, but it's not a great turnout, while Xbox One definitely suffers. Beyond that, the only difference in terms of cross-platform comparisons comes down to ambient occlusion - the base consoles look rather dithered here, while the enhanced machines deliver this aspect in a more attractive manner.
On all systems then, our recommendation would be to leave the game at its default performance setting. On the base machines, you essentially get frame-rates between 30fps to 60fps, depending on the load. It's not ideal, but it's definitely preferable to the borked stable mode. Curiously, while the standard PS4 and Xbox One have similar outputs here, it seems to be the Microsoft machine that has a small advantage in testing like-for-like scenes. Also surprising is the fact that the PS4 Pro actually runs slower than both of them, and noticeably so. At the top of the pile sits Xbox One X, handing in its native 1440p presentation mostly in 50-60fps territory.
