Comparing Xbox360 to PS3 graphics [Archive]

sims

May 11th, 2006, 09:54

There has been alot of comparison of the two consoles in terms of online strategy ,hardware specs, and game selections. I browse gamespot E3 coverage and looked at the screenshots of games that many would consider the best looking for each system. For Xbox360 that would be Halo3. And the PS3 is Metal Gear Solid 4.

Lets take a look. I took five shoots from each game. Clearly Halo3 has nothing aside from a nice looking master chief. The terrain is empty and there are hardly any shadows. The environment design look boring and unimaginative.

MGS4 without a doubt has better effects. Solid Snake, unlike MC, look realistic. He has wrinkle skins, flowing hair, self shadowing, and better animation. MC just look like a robot you find in any First person shooter game since DOOM3.

That's where the difference between PS3 and XBox360. The game design. Maybe they can both do the same effects, but the developers aren't imaginative enough to make anything outstanding with the Xbox360. Can you honestly say Gears of War look any different from Quake4 or other DOOM3 style game. Whereas I can find no current game that look like MGS4.

refraction

May 11th, 2006, 09:58

To be fair so far they both look reasonably the same in terms of graphics quality (not style), you have to remember Halo 3 is far from finished so the flat terrain might be improved. but all in all both games look outstanding.

nothing beats Crysis on the pc tho :lol:

industrian

May 11th, 2006, 10:35

Apart from the fact that this thread has "flame war magnet" written all over it, I've got to the stage where I'm in a state of disbelief at just how incredible EVERY console's graphics in next gen games are. I'm like a 70 year old man in 1946 seeing a jet engine for the first time.

Plus, as refraction put it, Halo 3 has just been announced. Give it time to breathe. Metal Gear Solid 4 just looks incredible - like a CGI movie. But to me the MGS series is more than just about graphics (Twin Snakes sucked :p). It's about every element (graphics, sound, story, gameplay, etc) coming together and creating an experience. BOTH the X-Box 360 and the PS3 (and quite possibly the Wii, don't leave that one out) are at the level where emotions and true human behavior can be recreated.

Plus at this stage it would be like comparing the graphics of Battle Arena Toshinden and Virtua Fighter back in 1994. :p

And to be totally ontopic: From what I have read, the difference between the PS3 and the 360 is that both can do pretty much both the same, except the PS3 can have more effects at once and can display at 1080p.

nothing beats Crysis on the pc tho :lol:

I knew it was gonna be something with the screens I've been seeing for months now. But actually in motion?! Jesus, it looks totally fandabidozi.

refraction

May 11th, 2006, 10:52

I knew it was gonna be something with the screens I've been seeing for months now. But actually in motion?! Jesus, it looks totally fandabidozi.
hell yeh! the demo Crytek showed on the MS conference it looked like you were almost playing in the film, sound/visual environment was perfect, explosion/fire/smoke effects all perfect, how everybody moved perfect!

imo it would have been the most realistic game ever if theyd spent a little longer working on the indoor textures, they are the only thing that doesnt look real!

industrian

May 11th, 2006, 11:00

imo it would have been the most realistic game ever if theyd spent a little longer working on the indoor textures, they are the only thing that doesnt look real!

Woah, it's not finished yet. ;) The Crytek guys know what they are doing. In an interview with Edge a couple of months ago they were completely open about everything. Believe me, Crytek are doing and will do EVERYTHING they can to make Crysis a game that will go down in history. Thank god it's not a Vista exclusive. :D

karlus

May 11th, 2006, 11:30

its amazing to see how quickly Crytek have become one of the most important games creators in the world. I mean, today everyone admires their work and expects great things from them and a few years ago no one knew them.

industrian

May 11th, 2006, 11:33

refraction

May 11th, 2006, 11:44

Woah, it's not finished yet. ;) The Crytek guys know what they are doing. In an interview with Edge a couple of months ago they were completely open about everything. Believe me, Crytek are doing and will do EVERYTHING they can to make Crysis a game that will go down in history. Thank god it's not a Vista exclusive. :D

hey i didnt say it was finished! they only have 2 test levels to show so i know its not finished ;P

but certainly glad its on XP and Vista and not exclusively Vista, didnt want to have to upgrade for this, but i will certainly be buying it!

Metalmurphy

May 11th, 2006, 13:03

nothing beats Crysis on the pc tho :lol:

Amen to that. The lightning effects and reflections when a lightning strikes was simply unbelievable oO And when the spaceship hits the bridge of the boat oO The explosions were amazingly realistic oO. Btw i wouldn't use MGS4 to compare it with Halo. I would use this:

http://img83.imageshack.us/img83/2504/thegetawayps320060117010032078.th.jpg (http://img83.imageshack.us/my.php?image=thegetawayps320060117010032078.jpg)

D.D.

May 11th, 2006, 14:36

but that would be unfair to ps3 though because Getaway was rendered using just the CELL processor

refraction

May 11th, 2006, 15:31

but that would be unfair to ps3 though because Getaway was rendered using just the CELL processor

who cares? the game is comming out on the PS3, i dont think its on the XBox 360 is it?

D.D.

May 11th, 2006, 15:43

who cares? the game is comming out on the PS3, i dont think its on the XBox 360 is it?

people who want to make a comparison might care. i would care if a game that good looking was rendered using "just" a cpu and was "far from finished" as well.

also, none of these games discussed were coming out as multiplatform so i dont see the point in bringing the discussion in that direction. it has been shown more than once that multiplatform games aren't the best in showing the truth capabilities of any platform.

project_ydna_68

May 11th, 2006, 15:50

Devon

May 11th, 2006, 16:58

"D:\untitled 3.bmp"tekken tag

Devon

May 11th, 2006, 17:02

Well I always like the PS2 Bcz they make good game, I just have to get a ps3

Cid Highwind

May 11th, 2006, 17:31

"D:\untitled 3.bmp"tekken tag
lol
This only works if you put an URL in between with the " thingies ;)

segun

May 11th, 2006, 17:36

i thing what sims said is right ps3 rocks with grahpics story and game play

Player-X

May 11th, 2006, 17:38

last time xbox beat ps2 with graphics overall performence ect. but this time it the complete opposite ps3 is looking way better then xbox360 and i was never a playstation fan but ps3 is just going to blow everything else out of the water.
Sony might as well say they already lost if they actuaily followed with thier current price plan.

"D:\untitled 3.bmp"tekken tag
We can't see your pic on your harddisk

Cid Highwind

May 11th, 2006, 18:05

i thing what sims said is right ps3 rocks with grahpics story and game play
I am terribly sorry for laughing at you but that is one really stupid comment.

It's Sony, MS and Nintendo creating the console, in other words: The Hardware.

Then there are other teams, also known as game developers, who will make the games, A.K.A. the Software.

If you don't even know the difference between those two, please don't even bother posting in threads where consoles are being compared.

Ryos

May 11th, 2006, 20:14

I don't think it's really fair to judge a system's quality of graphics until a system has time to settle down. It also helps to compare games in a similar state of completion (such as they're out). I am of the mind that both systems have essentially similar graphics, although I do think the PS3 will be capable of slightly higher demands in certain areas once developers take advantage of the Blu-ray medium. Even with the optional upgrade Microsoft will be offering to compete with this, developers will have their hands tied because I highly doubt every Xbox 360 owner is going to run right out there and buy the HD-DVD upgrade.

Metalmurphy

May 11th, 2006, 20:33

HD-DVD add-on for the 360 will never be used for games, only for movies.

dpence

May 11th, 2006, 20:33

Master Chief

May 11th, 2006, 21:01

DVD9 is still fine in my opinion. Most Xbox 1 games didn't even use the full capacity of the disk. Hell, they used a lot less. If they included an internal HD-DVD drive, then wouldn't that raise manufacturing costs? Who said HD-DVD was going to win the format war? IMO, Microsoft is still unsure of what to do when it comes to formats.

refraction

May 11th, 2006, 21:40

remember game developers tend to scale the quality of their games to the size of the media.

most ps2 games at least 3/4 fill a DVD, the same happened with CD, so i imagine the same will happen with Blu-Ray and HD-DVD if people decide to use it. Technology will never hit a wall, so as time goes on, games will need more and more space.

who woulda thought jumping from a PS1 (CD) to PS2 (DVD) would fill a whole DVD? even DVD5 was a "thatll never get filled" situation. One of the largest games on the PS1 (FF7) only took up 3 discs, FF9 was 3 or 4 as well, but thats barely a DVD5, nevermind a DVD9 which is required for games such as MGS2

May 11th, 2006, 23:01

You have to remember that a lot of large games are filled with junk data as well these days, another useless anti-piracy measure. It's not all game content. And on consoles other than the Xbox (where game data starts on the outside of the disc), some games have junk data to decrease load times.

I think developers will try to use Bluray, such as encoding in-game movies in hi-rez H.264 or MPEG-2, or in something like GTA's case perhaps hours upon hours of radio station music, but I can't fathom huge games taking up 25GB by themselves.

Exodus

May 11th, 2006, 23:53

but I can't fathom huge games taking up 25GB by themselves.
Neither can I, unless they have a mind to have a crap load of FMVs in them. That's the only way I could see it happening.

Metalmurphy

May 12th, 2006, 00:03

People said the same thing about DVDs before yet no one is using CDs now. :p

Exodus

May 12th, 2006, 00:59

Maybe... but during that time was the entry of FMVs. Lots of PSX games were multiple CDs before DVDs became mainstream. But, who knows... maybe they'll find something else to fill data with.

refraction

May 12th, 2006, 01:15

People said the same thing about DVDs before yet no one is using CDs now. :p

exactly, once upon a time games people thought looked "amazing" could fit on a 1.44mb floppy, encrypted with dummy files etc. Hell once upon atime they use to fit on a tape! granted without the encryption or dummy files tho.

i can guarentee 1 day games will fill Blu-Ray discs, maybe not soon, but in the future ;)

Metalmurphy

May 12th, 2006, 01:17

I believe HDR data uses alot of space, Phill Harrison said so in the Getaway demo, he also stated that the detailed world they're building would be impossible to do without the Bluray (of course it can all be lies :p). But if i remember correctly the HL2 Lost Coast HDR demo was 1GB alone for a small area of gameplay.

But even so, we can have extras with it, and extra everyone wants like Japanese voices on FF games xD

D.D.

May 12th, 2006, 01:26

from what i remember this is pretty much the first gen where the media hasnt been upgraded over last generation....

heres a link that in a way points out some problems:

http://greggman.com/edit/editheadlines/2005-08-17.htm

also, we have to consider that redundancy is going to be lowered, possibly leading to seek delays and such, causing problems with hitches in gameplay. i believe this is seen quite easily in Oblivion for x360.

industrian

May 12th, 2006, 17:12

but I can't fathom huge games taking up 25GB by themselves.

Like Metalmurphy said about voices, this could eventually lead to dual (or even more) voice acting in games from Japan and subtitles for pretty much every language you can get, DVD style.

That is, if the developer isn't lazy. :p

Cid Highwind

May 12th, 2006, 19:27

HD-DVD add-on for the 360 will never be used for games, only for movies.
Has that been confirmed or might they be pulling a Sega?

I think developers will try to use Bluray, such as encoding in-game movies in hi-rez H.264 or MPEG-2, or in something like GTA's case perhaps hours upon hours of radio station music, but I can't fathom huge games taking up 25GB by themselves.
While somewhat off topic, this just popped up in my mind: In case of GTA, couldn't they simply allow users to select a webradio they like, should be possible seeing how both nextgen consoles will have online services.

from what i remember this is pretty much the first gen where the media hasnt been upgraded over last generation....

Dreamcast didn't introduce a completely new format, but the 1gb GD-Rom. Most games fitted on 1 disc just fine, with a few exceptions such as Resident Evil CV, D2, Sakura Taisen and Shenmue.

Pretty impressive on how Shenmue 2 filled 4 discs without a single FMV :)

With the 360 I don't know if developers will get in trouble because of the space. I hope the dvd data reading rate isn't going to be a bottleneck. And as was the case in Shenmue, some audio, mainly voices, got a pretty bad compression.

Metalmurphy

May 12th, 2006, 19:34

Has that been confirmed or might they be pulling a Sega?

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6141930.html

While somewhat off topic, this just popped up in my mind: In case of GTA, couldn't they simply allow users to select a webradio they like, should be possible seeing how both nextgen consoles will have online services.

Now that is an awsome idea xD

industrian

May 12th, 2006, 19:37

Cid Highwind

May 12th, 2006, 19:43

I think with GTA not only could you fit an entire COUNTRY into a Bluray, you could also fit thousands of hours of radio. You may not need online radio, but it is an excellent idea.

Which brings up an important question:

If GTA4 exceeds, say, 10gb in size, how many disks will the 360 version have? (if what Moore says is true.)
They'd just compress here and there or cut down on a track or two per radio station.

Or the PS3 game will just not look as good as it can be just like how the PS2 has kept the quality of multiplatform games a bit lower.

And thanks for the link Metalmurphy :)

Seeing how it's Peter Moore who said it, I doubt he'll make the same mistakes as his former employer ;)

Exodus

May 12th, 2006, 21:10

That is, if the developer isn't lazy. :p
I'm not sure if it has as much to do with laziness as it does cost.

D.D.

May 12th, 2006, 21:20

industrian

May 12th, 2006, 21:25

I'm not sure if it has as much to do with laziness as it does cost.

Maybe that's the voice acting side of it. But seeing how the majority of Japanese companies use crap voice actors anyways, I'll think that they'll continue to pay peanuts and get monkeys for English or any other non-Japanese vocal work.

As for subs. I'm sure that there are dedicated fansub groups out there willing to work for pride. :p Either that or be frugal and just use Babelfish like me. :D

これを理解できれば訳者は働く

Anyone? ;)

Cid Highwind

May 12th, 2006, 22:08

i imagine a nextgen shenmue with free roaming like GTA would be a very nice thing to play :D. i also think that such a thing being implemented on DVD-9 could pose problems or at least cause certain sacrifices / compromises to be made...
That will be the decisive factor when I'd have to choose which console I'm gonna buy ;)

However, while the original Shenmue games already offered a nice feeling of walking around in a big city (Shenmue 2), I hope making it the size of a GTA city won't make the game feel a lot different.

But let's not worry about that, first we have to pray or whatever for the game to be announced.

Exodus

May 13th, 2006, 04:16

Maybe that's the voice acting side of it. But seeing how the majority of Japanese companies use crap voice actors anyways, I'll think that they'll continue to pay peanuts and get monkeys for English or any other non-Japanese vocal work.

As for subs. I'm sure that there are dedicated fansub groups out there willing to work for pride. :p Either that or be frugal and just use Babelfish like me. :D

They can mix the two ideas together. First, translate it using babelfish, then run it through the Microsoft Sam voice.

refraction

May 13th, 2006, 05:35

Maybe that's the voice acting side of it. But seeing how the majority of Japanese companies use crap voice actors anyways, I'll think that they'll continue to pay peanuts and get monkeys for English or any other non-Japanese vocal work.

As for subs. I'm sure that there are dedicated fansub groups out there willing to work for pride. :p Either that or be frugal and just use Babelfish like me. :D

これを理解できれば訳者は働く

Anyone? ;)

bablefish would be evil, because that translated into proper english its obviously going to look ugly if someone who speaks japanese reads it and think "ewww engrish", so bablefishing from jap to english would make it a joke of a game ;p

industrian

May 13th, 2006, 10:52

bablefish would be evil, because that translated into proper english its obviously going to look ugly if someone who speaks japanese reads it and think "ewww engrish", so bablefishing from jap to english would make it a joke of a game ;p

In all seriousness though, I'd cut costs just by hiring multilingual programmers/ artists/ etc to translate my scripts before the implementation phase. Or by getting university students to do it. The latter is probably cheaper than using Babelfish. :D "Here's some funsized Mars bars Pierre, make it French!"

With this generation of games you may actually see a new industry pop up. Professional subtitlers for games companies to outsource their work to. In actual fact, that doesn't sound like a bad idea at all. Hell, I might invest in that.

Exodus

May 13th, 2006, 20:43

It's the voice acting that is the issue, not the subtitles. Text is easy to do. Hell, they do it in PAL games already. When you start wanting talented voice actors is when it gets more expensive.

industrian

May 13th, 2006, 22:16

It's the voice acting that is the issue, not the subtitles. Text is easy to do. Hell, they do it in PAL games already. When you start wanting talented voice actors is when it gets more expensive.

I'm talking less of English/ French/ German/ Dutch/ Spanish, more of, Russian/ Swedish/ Norwegian/ Hebrew/ Danish/ Polish/ Portugese/ Greek/ Arabic/ Farsi/ Mandarin/ Cantonese/ Korean/ Gaelic/ Welsh/ Etc.

I don't really mind having the lack of multi-lingual voice acting, because IMO, it shouldn't deviate from the source. As in: if I'm playing a game set in fuedal Japan, I'd prefer to hear Japanese voices. Hearing English voice acting (and bad acting at that if you've ever played an Onimusha game) in those kind of games kills the mood in a second. A bit like a techno soundtrack would in a World War 2 game.

As you said, subtitles are easy. And like with DVDs they should add in the most possible choice. It'll help the industry to grow.

Failing that, I'm sure that Cam Clarke appreciates the work. :p

Exodus

May 14th, 2006, 13:41

industrian

May 14th, 2006, 14:08

But since this discussion is stemming off being able to actually fill 25gb media (and how voices could be the one to fill it), talking about something that takes little space like subtitles... but hey, you're right in what you are saying.

I'm sure that having 20+ different translations of a Final Fantasy game would take up a bit of space. :p Then again, most developers could get around this entire thing altogether by streaming them from a server. Subtitles I would say are small enough to realistically do that. Plus with being decentralised you could add/modify subtitles as you see fit.

In all honesty though, I think the point will come when developers will fill or nearly-fill a Blu-ray disk and we won't even notice it. Just like back in 1999 when all my friends told me that there was no way I could fill my 16gb hard drive (two years and a net connection later...).

One thing I'm not looking forward to is Square-Enix's Remake Department coming out with "brilliant ideas" such as bundling every Final Fantasy game on one Blu-Ray. ;)

Exodus

May 14th, 2006, 18:15

One thing I'm not looking forward to is Square-Enix's Remake Department coming out with "brilliant ideas" such as bundling every Final Fantasy game on one Blu-Ray. ;)
Heh heh, but people WILL buy them. ;)

May 14th, 2006, 19:24

http://theinquirer.net/?article=31681

industrian

May 14th, 2006, 19:37

In the same way that I wouldn't trust The Sun to properly report the War in Iraq, I don't trust The Inquirer to report properly on the PS3. :p

May 14th, 2006, 19:49

http://www.xbox-scene.com/xbox1data/sep/EEuZuAFpApoaQryFCF.php

industrian

May 14th, 2006, 19:54

A really neutral article that one.

Additionally, Microsoft sources who asked not to be mentioned by name, claimed the demo, hidden behind closed doors at E3, was running on an Xbox 360 using a third-party USB PlayStation controller.

The old "reliable un-named source" angle. Never gets old. :p

Lord Shishio

May 17th, 2006, 11:45

Well, I think they've both got their ups and downs, but as a whoole I'd say Sony.

D.D.

May 17th, 2006, 13:20

"charlie" of theinquirer really needs to shut up and get himself off the internet. he's a liar and a theft.

http://xbde3.blogspot.com/

EDIT: but you have to wonder who is the bigger idiot : the idiot who rights garbage or the idiot who reads what the idiot has to write ?

PLEASE no more links from the inquirer.

industrian

May 17th, 2006, 14:03

"charlie" of theinquirer really needs to shut up and get himself off the internet. he's a liar and a theft.

http://xbde3.blogspot.com/

That should make the fanboys STFU. Well, until the next hack with an agenda comes along.

but you have to wonder who is the bigger idiot : the idiot who rights garbage or the idiot who reads what the idiot has to write ?

PLEASE no more links from the inquirer.

The Inquirer comes across as being like The Sun or the Daily Star but without the titties. So there really is no point to it at all. :p