Digital Foundry Article Technical Discussion [2022]

[BRiT]

New Year, New Thread.

Old Thread @ https://forum.beyond3d.com/threads/digital-foundry-article-technical-discussion-2021.62207/


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[Phantom88]

a big'un

 

[Shortbread]

a big'un

Excellent video!

 

[iroboto]

a big'un

A great recap, I don't think they missed anything in particular, touched all or most of the controversy topics etc.

 

[snc]

Nice 1.5h recap talk

 

[Jay]

Was intresting look back.

The XSS discussion was good also.
Start of video sounded rather negative as wasn't really placed in context.

End of video when placed in context of people who will actually be playing it, future facing metro and matrix sounded more positive.

Are there any titles first half of year that aren't cross gen?

 

[snc]

Are there any titles first half of year that aren't cross gen?

stalker 2, forspoken

 

[cheapchips]

stalker 2, forspoken

The later isnt visually interesting to date. Stalker will issue in a new era of videogame teeth by the looks of it.

 

[PSman1700]

Most anticipated games are still cross-gen, give it a year or two more before we see true next gen games (like UE5 demos).

 

[BRiT]

Forspoken thread @ https://forum.beyond3d.com/threads/forspoken-project-athia-ps5-pc.61802

 

[rabbit]

Will DF take apart the latest Hellblade 2 trailer?

 

[Riddlewire]

Will DF take apart the latest Hellblade 2 trailer?

They mentioned it in DF Direct #41. But I believe they just don't have enough information right now to do any kind of analysis.

 

[Shortbread]

A smaller scale game that's caught the attention of many, The Gunk leverages Unreal Engine 4 to impressive effect. Here's Oliver Mackenzie with a look at how the game looks and runs on Xbox Series consoles.

 

[Nesh]

I love the art style of this title. Its amazing

 

[Shortbread]

Microsoft choosing to release a lower power Xbox Series console coupled with a prolonged cross-gen transition period has led to a fascinating head-to-head as the vintage 2017 Xbox One X manages to hold its own in some regards up against the brand new Xbox Series S. Just how close is the contest, and can adding an SSD to the legacy machine help? Oliver Mackenzie delivers this deep dive.

Edit: Article link added.

https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/...ross-gen-face-off-xbox-series-s-vs-xbox-one-x

The results are intriguing and in many way controversial - but this could apply to the whole concept of launching Series S in the first place in a world where a prior generation Xbox exists with more GPU horsepower, more RAM and much higher levels of memory bandwidth. Of course, we have Series machines replacing One equivalents and it's Xbox Series X that is the successor to Xbox One X - the clue's in the name. And by extension, we also need to be aware that One X and Series S target very, very different markets: we're talking about a machine designed for the hardcore up against a console designed for a more mainstream audience, less likely to desire the clarity delivered by 4K resolution and higher-end rendering features.

In the meantime, the comparisons between One X and Series S are intriguing. Guardians of the Galaxy, for example, is an impressive-looking game, but the Series S version undoubtedly disappoints. We're getting a 1080p30 version of the game on S with a temporally stable but soft quality image. An option to unlock the frame-rate is available on S, but only offers limited gains to the point where sticking with the 30fps cap is probably the best option - and Xbox One X has the same 30fps cap with a much higher rendering resolution. We're talking about a 1440p to 1890p image that holds up well on a 4K display. Series S has an edge in shadow and texture quality, but Xbox One X undoubtedly produces a better-looking result.

Halo Infinite? There's the sense that the game was designed to get the most out of Xbox One X as it has both 30fps quality and 60fps performance modes. On the resolution side of things, quality mode is a clear Xbox One X win - dynamic 4K plays dynamic 1080p running at 30fps, albeit with frame-pacing problems on both systems. Series S enjoys some asset quality boosts, but ultimately, Halo Infinite looks better on One X. With the 60fps performance mode, again, One X is the clear resolution winner with a dynamic 1440p facing off against a dynamic 1080p. Likely owing to its far more capable CPU, Halo Infinite runs more smoothly on Series S, but again, resolution is lower. Xbox One X can see combat dip into the 40s and 50s, but it's still holding up well taken as a whole.

We still have concerns about the Series S spec but it is delivering on its promise to run next-gen games. Microsoft Flight Simulator is a stunning, extremely detailed game that transforms satellite data into a convincing visual approximation of commercial flight. The Matrix Awakens is an unbelievably high-fidelity glimpse into the future of real-time rendering. Neither game looks as amazing on Series S as they do on Series X, of course, but they do run on Series S and they're still visually impressive. These are titles that will never see a version on any last-gen console, including Xbox One X - unless you're happy to stream via the cloud.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

I bet power consumption wise, the XSX trounces the XOX though...

 

[Shortbread]

Summary lifted from Era..

"summary incoming

• on paper the One X's gpu > Series S's gpu; more memory and higher bandwidth
• however Series S cpu > One X's cpu, so One X is limited to 30fps but at higher resolutions
• Guardians of the Galaxy
  • Series S - 1080p/30, better shadows and textures
  • One X - 1440p-1890p/30
• Forza Horizon 5
  • SS - 1440p/30 or 1080p/60 (both dynamic); 4x msaa; quality has higher object detail
  • OX - 2160p/30 (dynamic), 4x msaa; object detail similar to performance mode on SS
• Halo Infinite
  • SS - 1080p, 30 or 60; 30fps has framepacing issues
  • OX - 2160p/30 or 1440p/60; 30fps has framepacing issues, 60fps has framerate drops
• Far Cry 6
  • SS - 1224p/60fps, dynamic
  • OX -2160p30fps, dynamic
• CoD Vanguard
  • SS - 1440p/60 or 1080p/120, dynamic,
  • OX - 2160p/60, dynamic, lots of visual effects downgraded; cutscenes are 40-50
• CoD Warzone
  • SS - 1080p/60, actually Xbox One mode
  • OX - 2160p/60, dynamic, actually 45-55
• Cyberpunk
  • SS - 1080p-1440p/30, better pedestrian density
  • OX - 1440p/30, driving dials fps to low 20s
• Metro Exodus
  • SS - 1080p/60 (lower internal res), full ray traced GI
  • OX - 2160/30
• pretty even so far for Oliver
• loading (OX HDD, OX SSD, SS)
  • Vanguard: 24.4, 11.8, 3.5
  • FH5: 85.5, 42.9, 24.3
  • Halo: 61.3, 27.8, 14.1
  • the Ascent: 128.9, 30.8, 30.3
• Backwards Compatibility
  • Final Fantasy 13 -
    • SS - 1152p, 2x msaa
    • OX - 1728p, 2x msaa
  • Mirrors Edge
    • SS - 1440p/60, has drops
    • OX - 2160p/30
  • Series S has Auto HDR, better loading, and 60fps on some 360 games
  • some One series games don't have One X enhancements on Series
  • Doom 2016
    • SS - 1080p
    • OX - 2160p
  • Red Dead Redemption 2
    • SS - 864p
    • OX - 2160p
  • Far Cry 4
    • SS - 60
    • OX - high res, 30
  • Prey
    • SS - 60
    • OX - high res, 30
• One X is better with older games
• Series S has some fps boost for some games, faster load times, also has new hardware features
• One X is competitive in recent titles and very much in older titles, but will struggle more with 60fps
• One X will be unsupported eventually while Series S will be support alongside the Series X"

 

[Deleted member 11852]

It would be fascinating to see a version of The Matrix Experiencing running on One X.

 

[cheapchips]

It would be fascinating to see a version of The Matrix Experiencing running on One X.

They'd have to fall back on the pre ray traced hardware depended version of Lumen. Is that still knocking about I wonder?

 

[iroboto]

It would be fascinating to see a version of The Matrix Experiencing running on One X.

The One X is lacking a lot of hardware features that could be required for Matrix Experience. I doubt it would run particularly well at the same fidelity. My general thought here is that CPU and SSD requirements would already stop it from running on One X, the GPU may do alright, but the lack of DX12U features would likely make it perform worse.