Digital Foundry head Richard Leadbetter believes that the hardware potential of the PS5 and Xbox Series has not yet been fully tapped, and there is no obvious reason to rush the launch of the PS6 and the next-generation Xbox. He cites GTA VI and Gears of War: E-Day as examples, demonstrating that current consoles can still achieve graphical effects that were previously rare.
Leadbetter stated that Gears of War: E-Day utilizes Unreal Engine 5 technologies such as Mega Lights dynamic lighting, Mega Geometry, and hardware-accelerated Lumen. These features were previously considered closer to next-generation hardware capabilities. The title is also described as capable of running at 60 frames per second on the Xbox Series S, though specific performance remains to be confirmed through final product testing.
He argues that development teams are gradually mastering more effective ways to utilize existing resources, meaning there is still room for further optimization on the same console hardware. Features like Lumen have long faced performance pressures, and Epic Games continues to improve its engine; Unreal Engine 5.8, for instance, introduced the less demanding Lumen Lite.
Future projects will test whether these optimizations can be widely implemented, with the new Witcher title targeting this generation of consoles serving as one case to watch. Leadbetter's comments are technical analysis and generational assessment, not official hardware roadmaps from Sony or Microsoft, neither of which has announced formal plans for their next-generation consoles in related content.