Halo 3 Beta: May 16th - June 7th

If they are shooting for a 60fps game then the graphics are in line with my expectations. For a MP game I would take 60fps over 30fps with better graphics.

I'm curious now. What is special about being MP? If you are somehow worried about response time, lag will kill it anyway. So for me, MP games are the ones for which I would care less about 60fps.
 
I'm curious now. What is special about being MP? If you are somehow worried about response time, lag will kill it anyway. So for me, MP games are the ones for which I would care less about 60fps.

Mistakes in a competitive game have a bigger penalty than mistakes in a SP game. You never want to be denied your kill because of a performance issue. Pro gamers almost always play at about the lowest detail settings and at low resolutions just maintain constant fluidity.

MP games tend to be more chaotic and faster paced. Your searching around the screen a lot more, doing a lot more precision aiming, and generally the world moves around you a lot faster and more often. The more movement there is in your view port the more you notice the difference between 30 and 60.

Fast moving objects and projectiles also look much better at 60fps and MP games tend to have a lot of that going on.
 
I'm thinking MP will looks good, but not awesome when all is said and done because of the scale Bungie is going for in the SP game, and they need to keep things consistent across the game.
 
It's true, been discussed here before. I think it came from one of the weekly updates...
Yeah, I swear I read one of the Bungie guys say they were building off Halo 2's engine for multiplayer while creating a new engine for campaign, but I can't seem to dig up a souce to confirm it. Does anyone know in what weekly update or whatever that was stated? I recall hearing about it back when MS released the Halo 3 trailer at E3 and people insisting it wasn't game engine based on comparisons to early MP alpha shots.
 
Yeah, I swear I read one of the Bungie guys say they were building off Halo 2's engine for multiplayer while creating a new engine for campaign, but I can't seem to dig up a souce to confirm it. Does anyone know in what weekly update or whatever that was stated? I recall hearing about it back when MS released the Halo 3 trailer at E3 and people insisting it wasn't game engine based on comparisons to early MP alpha shots.

Frankie says it's the brand new spankin' Halo 3 engine. The alpha had a lot of Halo 2 place holders, however, and the art style has really remained unchanged.
 
Yeah, I swear I read one of the Bungie guys say they were building off Halo 2's engine for multiplayer while creating a new engine for campaign, but I can't seem to dig up a souce to confirm it. Does anyone know in what weekly update or whatever that was stated? I recall hearing about it back when MS released the Halo 3 trailer at E3 and people insisting it wasn't game engine based on comparisons to early MP alpha shots.

That's not possible, we didn't see Alpha shots until months AFTER that trailer. :LOL:
 
NOTE: All of the game footage in this doc was taken during the Alpha stage and isn’t even representative of what you’ll see in the Public Beta, let alone the final game. You will see frame rate skips, unfinished animation and graphical features that will change come Fall. All the footage is clearly marked Alpha. You’re looking at the features here folks, not the final quality bar – which we’ve set pretty high. Your next taste of that will be in May.

As per Frankie. Personally, Bungie always delivers so I am not worried. I just want the game to play FANTASTIC.
 
I am so disappointed in Halo 3 graphics I don't even know where to begin. I'm really hoping there's a HUGE turnaround from what we've seen. I mean look at this:

Halo 2:

562116_20040510_screen007.jpg

562116_20040510_screen005.jpg



Halo 3:

926632_20061130_screen002.jpg

926632_20061130_screen003.jpg



The lighting is vastly improved and slight improvement in textures but the models and geometry are practically unchanged. Not to mention the animation in the video looks straight out of Halo 1 and 2. :???:
 
I am so disappointed in Halo 3 graphics I don't even know where to begin. I'm really hoping there's a HUGE turnaround from what we've seen. I mean look at this:

*snip*

The lighting is vastly improved and slight improvement in textures but the models and geometry are practically unchanged. Not to mention the animation in the video looks straight out of Halo 1 and 2. :???:
That's because so much IS out of Halo 1 & 2 - the first person model, textures, sounds, animations - this is from a build a year old built primarily to be stable and to be subject to rigorous play testing. Even so, we can already see some impressive stuff. The Spartan models are fantastic, almost CG quality, which ironically makes them seem out of place in the very simplistic environments of the alpha. Also, the subtle animation tweaks are nice. Adaptive procedural animation makes postures on hills far more natural, and stepping AROUND objects to avoid clipping is pretty awesome. The Lighting and shadow model, especially on Snowbound, is excellent. And by far my favorite thing is the presence of what looks to be full AF.

The game, even in this year old build, can still look better than many next-gen games released today.

18.JPG


Here we can see a good application of real time reflection in the visor, as well as very nice ambient lighting conditions.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0005.jpg

Another shot demonstrating how well things are lit - the subtle HDR is a nice touch.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0053.jpg

541.JPG


Good examples of the adaptive animation.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0058.jpg

That soft shader is just so amazing to me. Better than lost planet even because it persists.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0060.jpg

More advanced particle system in action.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0068.jpg

Another demonstration of how great the Spartan models are. I'm positive they're the same as the E3 trailer model. Also, the bubble shield refraction is really nice.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0084.jpg

Again, the lighting and shadowing on the Spartans is so close to CG quality in my eye.

Anyway, I believe that the Vidoc showed plenty of promising elements. ;)
 
I wish they would redo or get rid the the Master Chief shield effects. The yellow sci-fi effects make the game look cheesy. I'm sure they could come up with something way cooler, less distracting and more realistic. Sure it helps to know if your hitting a guy, it justs seems makes the game look too much like the old Halos.
 
Yeah, I swear I read one of the Bungie guys say they were building off Halo 2's engine for multiplayer while creating a new engine for campaign, but I can't seem to dig up a souce to confirm it.

Me too.

Anyway, I'm not sure if it really matters. I expect they've been using it to jump start the project, but it's probably heavily modified by now anyway.

While searching for this I came across an old rumor - apparently they have been testing 4 player co-op.

Now that would rock.
 
Spartan models are fantastic, almost CG quality, which ironically makes them seem out of place in the very simplistic environments of the alpha.

Another demonstration of how great the Spartan models are. I'm positive they're the same as the E3 trailer model. Also, the bubble shield refraction is really nice.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0084.jpg

gephyr3bf6.jpg

Looks like the same E3 06 Model to me.

Frankie said that the most 'recent' footage was of Snowbound, which did look the best out of the video.
snbnd3ft6.jpg

snbnd1hf0.jpg

snbnd2fp5.jpg
 
Kyleb: The closest thing I could remember to admission that the SP and MP engines are being developed separately is from a Swedish magazine that did an expose on Halo 3 awhile back when the first MP screens came out sometime in November:

Source... There are scans there, but they are almost 5 months old. Mods please advise for removal if required.

Multiplayer has always been important, but it’s developed in a different way which makes it look bigger for every game. We have a base that we always build the MP part on, whereas the SP mode practically has to be built ground-up every time. Xbox Live also made MP in Halo 2 even more important.” -Brian Jarrard
I thought it was just implied that they were using ported code to get the MP up and running from the reuse of Halo 2 assets to the animation systems and just the overall similarity. It's not as though they need to reinvent the wheel - just get it to fit right so they can get moving and plug-in the newer tech and assets later.

Keep in mind the above quotation is a translation. I think the gist of it is that they're adding to the multiplayer build from a base code (Halo 2 for instance) rather than developing ground-up as is the case for the single player.



I wish they would redo or get rid the the Master Chief shield effects. The yellow sci-fi effects make the game look cheesy. I'm sure they could come up with something way cooler, less distracting and more realistic. Sure it helps to know if your hitting a guy, it justs seems makes the game look too much like the old Halos.


:???:

This must be the first time I've ever heard someone complain about shields, much less being cheesy or "unrealistic".
 
:???:

This must be the first time I've ever heard someone complain about shields, much less being cheesy or "unrealistic".

I don't think he's talking about the shields themselves he's refering to the actual effect they're using to represent the shield. And I agree with him, they do stick out along with a host of other problems with the graphics.
 
Exactly... I've never heard of any complaints regarding the look of the shields, much less being cheesy or unrealistic.


...


I'm sure they'll tweak it. I mean, even the laser looks pretty crappy at the moment. What's silly is complaining about realism. You might as well complain about the laser beam being visible. *shrug*
 
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That's because so much IS out of Halo 1 & 2 - the first person model, textures, sounds, animations - this is from a build a year old built primarily to be stable and to be subject to rigorous play testing. Even so, we can already see some impressive stuff. The Spartan models are fantastic, almost CG quality, which ironically makes them seem out of place in the very simplistic environments of the alpha. Also, the subtle animation tweaks are nice. Adaptive procedural animation makes postures on hills far more natural, and stepping AROUND objects to avoid clipping is pretty awesome. The Lighting and shadow model, especially on Snowbound, is excellent. And by far my favorite thing is the presence of what looks to be full AF.

The game, even in this year old build, can still look better than many next-gen games released today.

18.JPG


Here we can see a good application of real time reflection in the visor, as well as very nice ambient lighting conditions.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0005.jpg

Another shot demonstrating how well things are lit - the subtle HDR is a nice touch.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0053.jpg

541.JPG


Good examples of the adaptive animation.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0058.jpg

That soft shader is just so amazing to me. Better than lost planet even because it persists.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0060.jpg

More advanced particle system in action.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0068.jpg

Another demonstration of how great the Spartan models are. I'm positive they're the same as the E3 trailer model. Also, the bubble shield refraction is really nice.

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/5195/798_0084.jpg

Again, the lighting and shadowing on the Spartans is so close to CG quality in my eye.

Anyway, I believe that the Vidoc showed plenty of promising elements. ;)


Man I hear you, I really do. Do you honestly think what we've seen matches the E3 model?

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/3291/798_0002.jpg
http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/3291/798_0001.jpg

That model is on a whole nother level I'm sorry.

Now I understand what people were saying about DOA4 when I was defending it tooth and nail. So far this seriously looks like Halo 2 HD to me. I know things can change, I know it's an Alpha but that still doesn't make this look anymore impressive. I love the gameplay we've seen... I know Bungie will knock this out of the park from that perspective... I'm just hoping to be wowed by the complete package (graphics included).
 
Man I hear you, I really do. Do you honestly think what we've seen matches the E3 model?

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/3291/798_0002.jpg
http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/3291/798_0001.jpg

That model is on a whole nother level I'm sorry.

Now I understand what people were saying about DOA4 when I was defending it tooth and nail. So far this seriously looks like Halo 2 HD to me. I know things can change, I know it's an Alpha but that still doesn't make this look anymore impressive. I love the gameplay we've seen... I know Bungie will knock this out of the park from that perspective... I'm just hoping to be wowed by the complete package (graphics included).

No it looks nothing close, but we haven't seen SP so there's no comparison. I doubt that model was meant for the MP engine.

Have a little faith in Bungie, they haven't let us down before on the GFX front.
 
Yeah, I swear I read one of the Bungie guys say they were building off Halo 2's engine for multiplayer while creating a new engine for campaign

I recall that, except it was GRAW not Halo 3. :smile: Seriously I never remember that being said about Halo.

I do recall a statement on how they ended up ripping out things from Halo 2 for performance and they were pleased they could do it now, and that they have SP and MP teams. But the weekly updates drops so little information it's hard to keep track what was said vs. what was implied vs. what was imagined.
 
Man I hear you, I really do. Do you honestly think what we've seen matches the E3 model?

http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/3291/798_0002.jpg
http://images.xboxyde.com/gallery/public/3291/798_0001.jpg

That model is on a whole nother level I'm sorry.

I'm going to reply to this knowing that I'll probably be told no or get ignored, but I still think I should try like.

Anyway, as the picture I posted above, I'm pretty sure they're the same model.
gephyr3bf6.jpg

Obivously you're not seeing the tiny details like tiny little bumps in the metal, but you got to put into consideration that the camera isn't as close, different lighting, not a proper reflective visor, possibly some LOD, capped of a video with smaller resolution etc etc etc. To me anyway, they look like the same model, or at least very similar.
 
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