Panzer Dragoon Orta is leaving Xbox Game Pass on September 30, but there are a number of other ways that you can play the fourth episode of the Panzer Dragoon series on Xbox consoles.
Microsoft has announced that Panzer Dragoon Orta will be leaving their Xbox Game Pass subscription service on September 30. The original Xbox title was added to Game Pass in October 2019 although not in every region. Since there’s still a number of days left in September, now is the time to download the game and give it a try if you’re a Game Pass subscriber.
How can you play Panzer Dragoon Orta after September? There are a number of ways. Of course you can boot up an original Xbox console and play using a DVD of the game. The Xbox 360 is backward compatible with the disc and since the game breaking bug was patched in 2018 it should be fully playable on the second Xbox console. You can also play the game via a disc or digital purchase on any Xbox One console. If you have an Xbox One X it will run at 4K/60fps, making this the definitive way to play the game.
Will Panzer Dragoon Orta be playable on the next generation of Xbox consoles? It’s looking increasingly likely that this will be the case. Microsoft has announced that both the Xbox Series S and X will run thousands of older Xbox titles via their backward compatibility program, with some recent details added on how games will work on the lower budget Series S:
We’re happy to share that backward compatible titles will be coming to Xbox Series S as well as Xbox Series X. To deliver the highest quality backwards compatible experience consistent with the developer’s original intent, the Xbox Series S runs the Xbox One S version of backward compatible games while applying improved texture filtering, higher and more consistent frame rates, faster load times and Auto HDR. As for next generation titles, Xbox Series S was designed to be the most affordable next generation console and play them at 1440P at 60fps. We’ll be sharing more details on backward compatibility for both Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X soon.
This means that if you want to play Panzer Dragoon Orta in 4K, you’ll need to get either an Xbox One X or Xbox Series X. To play the game at 1080p or 1440p, an Xbox Series S will be sufficient. In practice I’ve found 4K to be more of a “nice to have”. Games still look great running at 1440p, with HDR and an improved framerate offering a more noticeable benefit than going higher than this resolution.
It’s unclear at this time whether the new Xbox consoles will offer other improvements to Panzer Dragoon Orta such as Auto HDR and 120fps support, so we’ll have to wait until more details are revealed about specific titles. Nevertheless, with both Crimson Dragon and Panzer Dragoon: Remake expected to be playable on the Xbox One and Series S / X, now is a good time for Panzer Dragoon fans to get back into Xbox gaming.