Oblivion Remastered performance worsens after patch, leading to stutters and mixed Steam reviews

When Bethesda shadow dropped the RPG, Oblivion Remastered performance issues spoiled some of the excitement. A Digital Foundry member went so far as to call it "one of the worst running games he has ever tested." Unfortunately, frame rate drops and crashes have only become more common since the July 16th 1.2 update.

As noted by TheGamer, there has been a barrage of recent negative Steam reviews. Among English reviews, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered still sits at an 80% Very Positive rating. Still, 61% of the evaluations over the past month have trended in the wrong direction for Bethesda.

Patch notes for the 1.2 update mention numerous fixes for crashes and inconsistent frame rates. Even so, many Steam users claim the performance is now worse. One gamer notes that the game ran at 50-75 fps before the patch, but now the frame rate in city areas has plummeted to 30 fps. Other players report that the choppiness increases during gameplay, forcing reboots.

Finding the cause of poor Oblivion Remastered performance

Part of the frustration for Oblivion fans stems from Bethesda's lack of urgency. Despite never-ending complaints, there have only been two major patches since its April 22nd release date. Some fans speculate that the developers, Virtuos, can't address the problems without a complete overhaul.

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered depends on two game engines, which may be responsible for the poor performance and optimization. The much-criticized Unreal Engine 5 provides a major upgrade for textures and lighting. However, a tweaked Gamebryo engine used in the 2006 release handles game logic. When the two systems conflict, it can result in stutters and critical failures.

The dual engine approach may have allowed Bethesda to rush the remaster to market. Regardless of the cause, the charm of the original game has worn off for many Steam users.