Tech analysis slams The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered performance for frame rate drops on top hardware

The original The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion taxed consoles and PCs when released in 2006. However, a Digital Foundry tech analysis revealed that the remastered edition doesn't fare much better. Constant stutters detract from the more detailed textures and realistic lighting, even when using the best CPUs and GPUs. Alex Battaglia found that The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered performance ranks it as "one of the worst running games he has ever tested."

A recent Oblivion Remastered patch removed DLSS, FSR, and other graphical settings on the PC Game Pass version. Even with upscaling restored, the game fails to achieve a consistent frame rate and posts a disappointing frame-time graph. Digital Foundry conducted tests using an Nvidia RTX 5090 GPU with a Ryzen 5 3600 or Ryzen 7 9800X3D processor. At 1080p with DLSS performance settings active, stutters were frequent on both the low and high-end CPUs.

Oblivion Remastered is unusually CPU and GPU-intensive. In enclosed areas, the gameplay is often smooth on a wide range of hardware. Like the original, the massive open world immerses players but comes at the expense of choppy visuals. Unfortunately, lowering sliders like Ray Traced-based Lumen global illumination has limited benefits. The RTX 5090 with Ryzen 7 9800X3D produced frame rates well above 60 fps, but noticeable stutters persisted.

The analysis recommends starting from the High preset and lowering the hardware lighting mode. Still, after tweaks, the reduced graphical fidelity isn't worth the marginal gains. Digital Foundry concluded that The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered performance desperately needs a patch to improve optimization.

Despite wavering frame rates, Oblivion Remastered has attracted more than four million players. Even so, the stuttering is one memory nostalgic players wish Bethesda had left in the past.