I became obsessed with the smoothest feature of the Xbox Series S.
After buying the console at a bargain price, I did what many new Xbox owners would do: subscribe to Xbox Game Pass and download an inordinate number of games that far exceeded what I could reasonably afford. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Doom Eternal, Sniper Elite 5, even Fable, and a bunch of other classics from the 360 era. My half-finished backlog of games.
But that's it, I ran between them. Not changed, not exchanged, not waiting too long to load each one. With the Xbox Series S' quick resume feature, he was switching between them at the rate that Lee Van Cleef could unload six hits, in a matter of seconds.
Hardly the sexiest feature on the console, and even appearing in stripped down form on Xbox One, Quick Resume quickly became the standout ingredient in Xbox Series X|S quality of life. With this feature, you can automatically save up to three games in a suspended state, allowing you to pick up exactly where you left off. There's no need to sit on your loading screens or navigate your main menus - starting a suspended game will get you right back into the action, almost immediately.
It sounds pretty mundane, but it solved one of the most annoying aspects of console gaming. Loading screens can sometimes offer gameplay tips or feature interesting concept art to look at, but they're not half a mood killer.
When I played Mass Effect 2 on PS3 almost 10 years ago, the initial loading screen was so long that I read almost all of Gary Larson's Far Side comic anthologies during my playthrough. While the Normandy's crew fretted over the Illusionary Man's ulterior motives, I kept thinking about anthropomorphic cows and surreal single-panel puns.
More likely to jump into a quick round of Fall Guys to complete a game session
But Quick Resume not only put my game library at my fingertips, it changed the way I interact with it. I'm more likely to jump into a quick round of Fall Guys to complete a game session, knowing I won't have to wait half the time for the game to load because I'll be going through a raid course. Now I barely have time to read my WhatsApp messages before the game loads, let alone think about the new costume I'm going to wear.
I have yet to reach the zenith of fast-charging video games. As an investigative Xbox gamer discovered earlier this year, you can remap the Xbox controller's share button to open multiple games of your choice. Reassign it to open games you've paused with Quick Resume, and you've got an easy way to instantly switch between your favorite games, all at the tip of your thumb. Really, gaming hardware has increased.