XBox vs. PS2 on Technical merits (1 Viewer)

[Bergan Peters]

I searched for both, I haven't seen ANYTHING since launch that speaks about 1080i whatsoever, I'd like some reputable links as well (hell, ANY links at all)

 

[Sean Oneil]

Yes, a HD signal (1080i) is 16x9 format (1080x1920). If you have a 4:3 HD ready set as opposed to a 16x9 HD ready set, then you will/should get black bars above and below the image area. It should look similar to a 1.85:1 letterboxed DVD except with better resolution.

 

[Ike]

If I can do the anamorphic squeeze trick, will it look better than having the normal bars?

 

[Butch Smith]

As an example, they are suping up the new "TEST DRIVE" game much more for the XBOX than the PS@ version. Here is a clip from Gamespot.com when they were shown the latest build...
This is what I was hoping for. Game makers are not sitting by and being content with just the same game ported to all systems. This is a clip from Gamespot where some of the developers had shown them the newest version of Test Drive:
"The biggest difference between the Xbox and PS2 versions is in the graphics. Pitbull is working to ensure the graphics engine gets as much performance out of the Xbox hardware as possible. The game's graphics engine is being custom-made to get as many bells and whistles as possible. Fog, rain, environment mapping, are lighting are in, as are other Xbox-friendly features such as bump mapping and pixel and vertex shading."
This bodes well for the future. Not to mention this game is supposed to be in 720p or higher...

 

[Bergan Peters]

Butch-

You would think if the game was HD, they would mention it. The game looks like SHIT anyway, there is a scene of some fucking car FLYING in the air. I *WANT* HD, I just think it's too soon.

 

[Butch Smith]

This is the test Drive series, in the same bloodline as the previous games, where if you smack into a police roadblock doin 105 in a sportscar that weighs 90 pounds wet, the car will go into the air. I personally like a wild wide in a racing game, where if you bang and flip the car, it affects performance. I would have to say my favorite racing game was "Need for Speed: Hot Persuit". I just get really tired of games where the only point is to be 1st. Gimme a little chasing, wild slides and the like and I', a happy guy! I am really looking forward to "Wreckless: The Yakuza Missions"

 

[Morgan Jolley]

While some racing games are the most visually appealing, they don't do much in terms of graphics. Games like ICO make the graphics look better than they are and would benefit from the 1080i. There's not much on the screen for racing games other than a HUD and some cars. I would love to see a game like Final Fantasy X or ICO in 1080i because they are more visually appealing than racing games, IMO.

 

[Butch Smith]

I think racing games games benefit ALOT from great graphics and high resolution. the point of a racing game is to feel like you ARE there. With faster hardware, you can have higher res textures, more polygons, bump-mapping, ect.

There's not much on the screen for racing games other than a HUD and some cars.

Snuh?
In any other game, it could be argued that there is nothing more than scenery and some characters.
I think soon, in racing games the environments will look almost EXACTLY like reality. Half of the racing experience is to be able to say "WOW! It's like I really am there!" Even more so now that developers are mapping REAL streets and layouts.
I think it will be GREAT when the trees you drive by are bumpmapped, so that the leaves look 3D and will cast realtime shadows ('ala HALO textures), where the streets are realtime textured to LOOK like they feel in the rumblepads. Where you could take a screenshot, and tell people it's real, and they will believe you. One of the biggest factors in a game is realism/believability (besides the actual story )
But I am really curious as to how good the games will really work when in HD resolutions. As soon as one comes out, I'll post some screenies.
Also, as I said in another post, I am REALLY glad some Developers are looking at the individual hardware specs, and tailoring the games accordingly. I really don't want to see cookie-cutter ports.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

I agree with every point you made, but I don't think that a racing game in 1080i will be as amazing as, say, ICO in 1080i with top-notch X-Box graphics. Yes, both will look amazing, but racing games can be very limited in their size. Like a single track is not as large as some of the environments in other games, and if it is, not all of it is rendered at the same time, whereas it is in other games. Final Fantasy X has some epic moments where they show huge landscapes that stretch out with people all over them or require a ton of polys, and if they enhanced a scene like that for the X-Box and put it in 1080i, I just think it would create a better experience for showing off 1080i than a racing game. All IMO.

 

[Dave F]

I can't remember where I saw the 1080i mentioned for Test Drive, but I had read in a few different places. I did a brief Google search and found the Link Removed mentioning "HDTV and wide screen (16:9) support."
-Dave

 

[Butch Smith]

I think, with the advent of the new hardware, that there WILL be epic landscapes in racing games.

personally, I would LOVE to see the following in a great race game, complete with cops and traffic systems, and where rendering doesn't stop at the skybox:

Yellowstone/Yosimite national park, where you can see as far as the eye can see, mountains and all, rivers, guysers, ect.

Hawaii, complete with lush vegitation and scenery.

An accurate drive through NY, Boston, San Fransisco, Houston, Miami. And I mean people from there can find their way around in the game.

With great power, comes great possibilities (Blatant Spider-man Ripoff)

 

[Jason Harbaugh]

That is an interesting press release where they do mention HDTV support but with the way some magazines and studios toss that term around you have to question if they just mean 480p support like EVERY xbox game or true 1080i or 720p support. The widescreen support does offer more hope though. Screenshots look great. Can't wait to see it in motion.

 

[Sean Oneil]

Since the 'squeeze' trick requires an anamorphic signal, it would not work properly with a HD signal, as they are not anamorphic (generally speaking). The 'squeeze' trick is just a adjustment to the sets geometry which shows squeezed anamorphic material in the proper aspect ratio. A HD signal will be letterboxed on a 4:3 set, but it will still have superior resolution to an anamorphic DVD, so it should look sharper.

 

[Butch Smith]

I also think that it's annoying how magazines and sites never get farther than "It sounds AMAZING" and "It looks sharp"... EXPOUND, people! That's what you're paid for!

 

[Morgan Jolley]

Something interesting I saw in SSX Tricky (GameCube) was that there are options for 16:9 and Animorphic. I wonder if future games will offer both modes.