- A foundation for sustainability in all titles.
- A prioritization checklist for sustainability planning.
- A consistent standard so players know what to expect.
Passive vs. opt-in features
Preparation
Request a Certification Sustainability Power Report
Late-stage or released titles can request a bespoke power report from the Certification team. Contact your Microsoft point of contact.Validated: Yes · Impact: N/A
Use Partner Center sustainability telemetry
For released titles, view average power consumption, global energy footprint, and global carbon emissions over time. Use to monitor the impact of content updates. See Partner Center sustainability data for step-by-step instructions on downloading the dataset.Validated: Yes · Impact: N/A
Access GDK tooling
- Review case studies for experimentation practices.
- Step-by-step configuration for testing.
- Use the Power Monitor UI in XBOX Manager.
- Request 1:1 onboarding from the XBOX Sustainability working group.
Validated: Yes · Impact: N/A
Graphics
Lower frame rate in animated menus
Most menus do not need 60+ FPS.
Pause menus rarely need more than 30 Hz. Engine-dependent — some engines won’t run menus at 30 FPS. Requires per-menu control.
Validated: Yes · Type: Passive · Impact: High
Lower internal resolution in menus, lobbies, and leaderboards
- Drop internal resolution by 10–20% before upscaling.
- Console upscaler can keep the menu output at 2160p.
- Keep UI at native resolution for legibility.
- Use modern upscalers aggressively: AMD FSR, NVIDIA DLSS, TSR, TAAU, Intel XeSS.
- If opt-in / opt-out, default the feature on.
Validated: Yes · Type: Passive or Opt-in/Opt-out · Impact: High
Lower resolution / frame rate on an idle timer
If the title detects no input for ~30 s or more in a navigable area, reduce resolution and / or frame rate.- Players often leave the game running in front-end screens between matches.
- GPU load in lobbies can approach gameplay load. Front-end scenes are simpler, so they have headroom.
- Streamers may want to opt out; provide a toggle.
Validated: Yes · Type: Passive or Opt-in/Opt-out · Impact: High
Use 2.5D for menus and lobbies
A 2D backplate with camera-correct perspective, plus a 3D avatar or model in the foreground.- Case studies show ~30% power savings vs. fully 3D menus.
- Load times improve.
- FX particles still deliver depth.
- Backplates author cleanly in any DCC tool (Unity, Unreal, Maya).
- Lock dynamic resolution to extract the full savings.
Validated: Yes · Type: Passive · Impact: High
Detect controller disconnection
If the primary controller is disconnected for an extended period, reduce resolution / frame rate.- On average, games spend ~11% of duration with a controller disconnected message visible.
- Provide opt-out for streamers.
Validated: Yes · Type: Passive or Opt-in/Opt-out · Impact: High
Lower frame rates on non-interactive loading screens
If the player can’t interact, cap the frame rate.Validated: Yes · Type: Passive · Impact: Low
Reduce off-screen object updates
Existing culling, LOD, and update-frequency optimizations also save energy. Examples:- LOD animation by camera distance for small objects.
- Update some systems every Nth frame.
- Physics collision and audio typically still need every frame.
Validated: Yes · Type: Passive · Impact: Moderate
Design architecture
Adopt Dynamic Power States (DPS)
Lets the driver dynamically scale GPU power level based on workload.Validated: Yes · Type: Passive or Opt-in/Opt-out · Impact: High
Player-facing Power Saving Mode, on by default
A visible toggle:- Gives players control and acclimates them to the concept.
- Lets streamers temporarily disable for live broadcasts.
- Signals sustainability as a studio value.
Validated: No · Type: Opt-in/Opt-out · Impact: Moderate
Collapse static menus into 2D backplates
If there is no 3D camera or scene motion, render menus as 2D — saves CPU and GPU.Validated: Yes · Type: Passive · Impact: Moderate
Split base install from high-quality assets
Use Intelligent Delivery Features and Recipes:- Make modes (campaign, multiplayer) independently addable / removable.
- Ship 4K and 8K asset tiers as separate installs — most players cannot use 8K.
Validated: Yes · Type: Passive · Impact: LowSee Intelligent Delivery for the implementation guide.
Process
Time-shift job queues to off-peak / cleaner grid hours
Schedule updates and downloads when grids have more renewable energy. Some non-profits provide APIs to query emissions intensity by region.Validated: Yes · Type: Passive · Impact: Low
Coming soon / opportunities to validate
Save energy during the Constrained life-cycle state
When the game enters Constrained (Guide opens, TCUI appears, user returns to Home, focus is lost):- Pause gameplay, drop computational demand.
- Remain paused until the player resumes.
Validated: Yes · Type: Passive · Impact: Moderate