Digital Foundry Article Technical Discussion [2018]

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New video comparing RDR to RDR2 and how things have changed. It's really interesting how they kept the original places of RDR and made it believable.

A couple of things to note:

- native 4k makes a huge difference for RDR1 even compared to the PS4 Pro version of RDR2, RDR looks amazing.

- in some places I prefer the vegetation of the original RDR, there are more cactus.

 
The Hitman 2 tech analysis is interesting. They have full scene reflection using a reflection map trick. It's not as good as RT, but things like this can get use a lot of the way with rasterization especially if RT won't be fully utilized next gen.

 

DF Article is available here -- https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2018-red-dead-redemption-1-2-location-comparison

Rockstar's choice to revisit old towns, woodlands, and deserts in Red Dead Redemption 2 offers a rare opportunity in analysing graphics tech. Jumping from 2010 to 2018, it draws a clear line between two huge technical milestones of their eras. The first game is based squarely on last-gen technology, but maximised the potential of Xbox 360 and PS3 with a convincing open-world ode to the dying wild west. The sequel, appropriately, uses superior PS4 and Xbox One hardware to show an untamed wilderness - one where forests and deserts are replete with organic detail. What's also clear is Rockstar's trademark attention to detail is more often than not, consistent - and it's the stacking up of these small points that makes the picture complete.

Not every change makes sense in the chronology of Red Dead Redemption 2's lore, but as a technical pursuit it's astonishing to see the before-and-after. As a glimpse into the past using present-day technology there isn't anything quite like it.
 
The Hitman 2 tech analysis is interesting. They have full scene reflection using a reflection map trick. It's not as good as RT, but things like this can get use a lot of the way with rasterization especially if RT won't be fully utilized next gen.

Someone should tell the DF guys the industry standard name for that type of reflection is "planar reflection" so they don't have to use such long explanations every time.
And yeah, it's pretty cool that this game uses them so extensively. In fact, they are not new to the engine. I remember some mirrors in the first game rendering out full reflections too, but they weren't nearly as common.
 
[4K] Mass Effect Andromeda: Xbox One X vs PS4 Pro - Performance Improved on X

It's been a long-time coming but Bioware's creation now has Xbox One X support. Bolstered performance and visual upgrades - in shadows, ambient occlusion, and reflections - give it a clear edge over the PS4 Pro playback in the opening mission, as Tom and John discuss.

 
The Hitman 2 tech analysis is interesting. They have full scene reflection using a reflection map trick. It's not as good as RT, but things like this can get use a lot of the way with rasterization especially if RT won't be fully utilized next gen.

Article for Hitman2 -- https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/...ly-detailed-game-with-some-cool-tech-features

Hitman 2 is a stunningly detailed game with some cool tech features
Plus: analysis of all platforms.

18 years after the release of the original Hitman: Codename 47, the series lives on - yet it was arguably only with the release of the 2016 game that Danish studio IO Interactive perfected the formula. That game has been widely recognised for its remarkably complex, systematic world, engaging design and highly replayable missions - it's a remarkable achievement. Hitman 2, released last week, is a continuation of the work IO started on the 2016 game, with six new environments and new gameplay features and options.

From our perspective, however, the most exciting improvements stem from changes made to IO Interactive's in-house Glacier 2 engine. IO has spent years perfecting its engine technology to support this type of game and a few of the new features introduced in Hitman 2 are quite eye-catching.

In the video below, I walk through a couple of levels to give a detailed breakdown of Hitman 2's tech - and detail is an appropriate word to use, as this game boasts huge areas packed with intricate detail and dynamic elements. There's a lot to discuss, but a couple of features are particularly worth highlighting here.



In reality, every version of Hitman 2 has something to recommend it, right down to the wonderfully stable performance of the older console versions. If you can, though, opt for a higher-resolution output on PS4 Pro, Xbox One X or PC to experience IO's phenomenally detailed world at its best.
 
Despite the fact that the XBS runs the game at 900p, there's still a substantial framerate difference with the PS4 in GPU bound scenes. The technical gap between these 2 consoles is defitinely higher than the difference in Tflops alone... and it never closed as some people expected (if we exclude the 1080p/720p scenario).

Also, another game running at 4K on XBX while being 900p on XB1. It's impressive but not worth it in this game due to the framerate imo.

But with RD2 in mind, i still have the impression that with the right optimization native 4K with even better performances than on regular consoles would have been possible on XBX.
 
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https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/...st-cause-4-performance-tested-on-all-consoles

Just Cause 4 performance analysis: every console tested
The game's massively more ambitious than JC3 - but do frame-rates hold up?

Can Avalanche get the Just Cause franchise back on course? The arrival of the latest series entry this week sees the developer scaling up its ambitions for the game: even more insane physics, more diverse tasks, more action-packed missions and the arrival of adverse weather conditions spread across four different biomes. Bearing in mind how much the last game struggled on consoles, has the developer bitten off more than it can chew? It's against the odds perhaps but the truth is that Just Cause 4 pulls it off - the game is far more challenging on console hardware and yet the performance delivered is a night and day improvement over its predecessor.

What we like about the series remains in effect here - the open world is vast and Rico Rodriguez can explore it as he sees fit, meting out his own particular brand of explosive justice - but far more of an effort is made to push the game's systems to even more spectacular effect. Boosters, airlifters and retractors add more utility to the grapple system and not only up the ante in terms of destruction, but also open the door to some basic puzzling. New weapons show some Insomniac-level imagination, and this time iron sights are open right from the beginning, adding some much-needed precision to the blasting. Vehicle handling? That's been a focus for Avalanche too, with much improvement over the last game.

The arrival of adverse weather conditions is a highlight too - twisters can rip through towns, cities and bases, smashing through bridges, ripping all destructible scenery and vehicles from the ground, while high-speed winds during a sandstorm up-end gameplay and enhance the destruction still further. And depending on the console you play, everything runs without a hitch - for the most part. Yes, Square-Enix did promise an emphasis on smooth performance during development, but bearing in mind just how much of a battering frame-rate could take on Just Cause 3, and just how many times gamers have been let down by poor CPU performance from the current-gen Jaguars, it's easy to be pessimistic about the sequel's chances here, especially with the physics system pushed so hard.

 
That's promising. Tbh I though JC3 took a bit too much flack for its performance issues - sure, the framerate dips were a bit annoying, but nowhere near game breaking, and only common when blowing up everything in sight. That was on a base PS4 btw.

Cool that they've improved basically everything though. Just a pity that I'm completely broke this month, and next month's wage is already spoken for.
 
That's promising. Tbh I though JC3 took a bit too much flack for its performance issues - sure, the framerate dips were a bit annoying, but nowhere near game breaking, and only common when blowing up everything in sight. That was on a base PS4 btw.

Cool that they've improved basically everything though. Just a pity that I'm completely broke this month, and next month's wage is already spoken for.

Well other than the fact the whole point of JC is to blow stuff up (;)) the XBO version was much worse suffered drops in the low 20s. Even the X didn't 'fix' it - it made it better though.

This does look a good result and whilst the Pro just edges performance I think the resolution advantage will be worth it on pro.
 
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