Fans of Bethesda’s iconic RPG The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion were thrilled when whispers of a remastered edition began circulating earlier this year. The promise of revamped visuals, modernized mechanics, and enhanced performance sparked nostalgia and excitement. However, newly surfaced technical analyses now cast a shadow over the release, revealing significant performance issues—even on high-end PCs and consoles.
According to an exclusive leak by GSMGotech, the remaster, titled Oblivion Remastered, was poised to deliver 4K resolution, ray-traced lighting, and updated textures. Early screenshots showcased lush forests and sharper character models, reigniting hype for the 2006 classic. But as the game’s launch approached, players and critics began reporting erratic frame rates, stuttering, and crashes, particularly in densely detailed areas like the Imperial City and Oblivion Gates.
A deep dive by GSMGotech highlighted that even systems equipped with NVIDIA RTX 4090 GPUs and AMD Ryzen 9 processors struggled to maintain a stable 60 frames per second (FPS) at ultra settings. The analysis noted that background processes, such as dynamic weather and AI pathfinding, appeared to strain the engine unexpectedly. “It’s baffling to see a remaster of this caliber buckle under the weight of its own ambition,” the report stated.
The criticism gained traction after Digital Foundry’s in-depth technical review, which dissected the remaster’s performance across multiple platforms. On Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5, the game allegedly suffers from frame pacing issues and sudden drops to sub-30 FPS during combat or spellcasting. The YouTube video, which has amassed over 500,000 views in 24 hours, compares the remaster unfavorably to fan-made mods that achieve smoother performance on older hardware.
Community backlash has been swift, with Reddit and Twitter flooded with complaints. “How does a 2025 remaster run worse than the original?” one user lamented. Others speculate that Bethesda’s focus on upcoming projects, like The Elder Scrolls VI, may have diverted resources from polishing Oblivion Remastered.
As of publication, Bethesda has not addressed the performance concerns or announced plans for patches. For now, players eager to revisit Cyrodiil may need to temper expectations—or keep their modding tools handy.