Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720p

[Icemage]

I think the tweets speak for themselves...




Yikes. Microsoft's PR is about to get really, really, really busy if this is true.


Icemage

[Malacite]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

Yep I heard about this from Red Dragon on Youtube the other day.

Doesn't surprise me, given the difference in specs. Apparently a lot of developers are also publicly saying it's much easier and faster to design games for the PS4 over the XB1, kinda like how the 360 much was much easier than PS3 - only difference is, this time around the system with the better tech is also the one that's easier to develop for so it's more than just a reversal.


Now, for a lot of folks this probably won't matter a whole lot, but for me it's just 1 more knock against Microsoft. There's a pretty big difference being running in native 1080p, and up-scaling from 720. I'm not sure how much of a difference that could make in CoD, since that game's largely just reacting to what's immediately around you, but there's a hell of a lot more going on in a game of BF and being able to see it all in perfect clarity at 60 fps is sweet.

[Firewind]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

IIRC, there aren't many XBox One games that run at 60FPS. Ryse is confirmed as being at 30FPS which is pretty bad for a Dynasty Warriors style action game with has an insane number of things going on at once. CoD and BF4 running at less than 60 is just puzzling.

FIFA and Forza at 30 would be pretty bad too given they are sports games where you really do need to react to things instantly, though I'm not sure what they are running at.

Honestly though, all the games on the list are the type that benefits from having no FPS cap on them. I can't for the life of me fathom why consoles are still this far behind. Dyasty Warriors 8 being capped at 60FPS is a great example because the game really does slow down a lot when there is a huge number of soldiers onscreen while things are burning around you and siege weapons are launching missiles at the players and enemies.

Arbitrary framerate caps are one of the many reasons why I'm seeing console gaming as less and less attractive.

[cidbahamut]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

I think people put too much stock in FPS and resolution. If the hardware and software can support it then great, go for it; If not, it's not the end of the world.

[Firewind]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

For a number of genres, FPS doesn't matter. But for Action, Sports, Racing, FPS, Fighting and any game that needs fast reactions, every frame helps.

[cidbahamut]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

I disagree on the basis that 30 FPS was the standard for quite some time and we had spectacular games during that era. Fighting games are probably the only genre you could make a solid case for the frame rate being crucial, but that's because they're designed with individual frames of animation in mind right from the start.

[Icemage]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

I disagree on the basis that 30 FPS was the standard for quite some time and we had spectacular games during that era. Fighting games are probably the only genre you could make a solid case for the frame rate being crucial, but that's because they're designed with individual frames of animation in mind right from the start.

Any game that requires twitch timing benefits from higher frame rate. Rhythm games like DDR/Rock Band/Beatmania live or die on their frame rate, high intensity racers like WipeOut or F-Zero need that high frame rate.

That said, these tweets are talking about game rendering resolution, which is fairly important in FPS games due to the benefits of getting headshots. The easier it is to see where a target is and the earlier you can resolve the detail of an approaching enemy, the better your reaction time will be.


Icemage

[Firewind]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

You can make an argument for MMOs as well since being able to identify an enemy at a glance, and being able to react to that quickly, can mean the difference between winning and wiping. Especially in PvP.

Also why exactly do we insist on 30 being the standard anyway? PC monitors can display frame rates in the hundreds and have done for years. TVs are also way ahead of 30 with 60 being the standard and TV's slowly reaching the rate of PC monitors.

Refusal to take advantage of new technology because "It worked in the past" is just one of the many reasons why the games industry is stagnant and there is very little true innovation going on.

[Armando]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

That said, these tweets are talking about game rendering resolution, which is fairly important in FPS games due to the benefits of getting headshots. The easier it is to see where a target is and the earlier you can resolve the detail of an approaching enemy, the better your reaction time will be.

Even there I'd argue the game's aesthetics play a bigger role than the difference between 720 and 1080p, which may not even be recognizable depending on the size of your screen and your distance from it. For instance, every class in TF2 has a distinct silhouette, and the teams are color-coded. You won't be able to distinguish classes or teams as easily in your typical gray-and-brown military shooter no matter what resolution it's running at.

[Firewind]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

Not sure about Icemage but I was speaking from a more broad term and not just with Modern Military Shooters. Plus you won't be able to play TF2 at a sub-20 FPS regardless.

[Etra]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

Let me just make this argument easier.

xBox One is supposed to contend with the PS4, but costs more and is less powerful.

Argument closed.

[Icemage]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

Even there I'd argue the game's aesthetics play a bigger role than the difference between 720 and 1080p, which may not even be recognizable depending on the size of your screen and your distance from it. For instance, every class in TF2 has a distinct silhouette, and the teams are color-coded. You won't be able to distinguish classes or teams as easily in your typical gray-and-brown military shooter no matter what resolution it's running at.

But we're talking in the context of multiplatform games (specifically Call of Duty: Ghosts and Battlefield 4). The art style should be more or less identical for both PS4 and Xbox One, other than minor differences in the implementation of environments, shadowing, textures, shaders, etc. As such, art style doesn't really come into this part of the conversation.

What I mentioned above as being a problem for Microsoft is that Sony has confirmed that CoD:G is definitely running at native rendering 1080p/60 on PS4. While it's not going to sway ever buyer, or even most, unless this gets patched on or shortly after day 1 to improve performance, you're going to start seeing people say "Hey wait, why does your PS4 version look better than my Xbox One version at home when my box cost $100 more?"


Icemage

[Malacite]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

And then the revolution begins!

[cidbahamut]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

Refusal to take advantage of new technology because "It worked in the past" is just one of the many reasons why the games industry is stagnant and there is very little true innovation going on.

"true innovation" doesn't come from increasing or decreasing frame count.

[Firewind]

Re: Jeremy Conrad (former IGN editor): Xbox One version of BF4 and CoD: Ghosts is 720

Don't take the post out of context, the context being a criticism of the games industry on the console side being reluctant to try out new tech in general which is a part in it being held back across the board due to console limitations.

I mean we are still using DVDs, a storage media that is smaller than the majority of Micro SD Cards for storage, for fuck's sake!