yeah, extra reason why I found the existance of edge AA so incredible. With nearest neighbor texture sampling all over the place, what's the point really?
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Questions about Sega Saturn
- Thread starter Liandry
- Start date
yeah, extra reason why I found the existance of edge AA so incredible. With nearest neighbor texture sampling all over the place, what's the point really?
DS's 3D is a showcase of strange design decisions. And once you peel behind the questionable high level design you see a bunch of really weird little inaccuracies and hacks.
DF Retro: Daytona USA - why frame-rate has always mattered
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2016-introducing-df-retro
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2016-introducing-df-retro
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D
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Only if you believe in facts over your heart!!
Their Saturn results might be a little bit off relative to the games being played on their native region systems.
They are using the PAL version, which was programmed to used a larger frame buffer than NTSC could display to account for PALs increased resolution (a Saturn perk possible because of its normally inefficient video memory arrangement). If their Action Replay and NTSC machine aren't modifying the game code to lower the resolution to NTSC levels - and I don't see how it could - the game they are benchmarking will continue to render at PAL resolutions and simply not display some of the scene.
I could toggle my Saturn between 50 and 60 hz on the fly, or boot from either. Setting the update speed of the platform didn't do a thing to alter frame buffer size as this was set by the game.
The comparison with the Japanese Saturn version is interesting, as it shows that while normally the same, their are times where the J version is several percent faster. This could be because in these areas they were limited by fill and the PAL version (now at 60 hz but still at a higher resolution) was disadvantaged, but normally they were limited by transform and lighting on the CPU(s).
Nice video.
Remembering the first Tomb Raider makes me feel so, so sad... 
I just want to feel the same feeling I got when I first played it.
I just want to feel the same feeling I got when I first played it.
yeah me too. Even now when I was watching the video I could feel the good old atmosphere from back then. I felt that beautiful nostalgia. The original had a unique atmosphere. The sounds from the environment and the music blended very well with the environments. I wish I could get this from modern games too.Nice video.
Remembering the first Tomb Raider makes me feel so, so sad...
They rely too much on things that are in your face and excessive drama and forget the subtle elements that add atmosphere in current games.
edit: Coincidentally I started playing Rise of the Tomb Raider today and although graphics are good and the gameplay is ok, it lacks in atmosphere and depth. And really I thought they fixed the over the top drama of the characters' acting in the sequel. They are trying too much to make me care about Lara and convince me that she is special. So much that they achieve the opposite. The silence of the original filled those gaps better.
Ico and Shadow of the Colossus did a good job of this for some people.
Yes exactly. These games came to mind while I was writing my post, so I am glad that you pointed them out.
I think they should start treating games more like art and less like silly hollywood movies.
I have the same opinion about silly hollywood block busters too. For me thats no excuse. Thats a problem in both industries.
Also some do a better job than others. Uncharted 4 for example were less silly than Tomb Raider, the latter has some of the most annoying dialogues and script executions in an AAA game. They are trying too much to make me like Lara, to the point that I hate her guts. It is so fake.
Everytime there is a cut scene and characters start talking (especially Lara or the main bad guy) I want to punch someone in the face.
Idely, you'd make things that are good AND sell. If you have to prioritise one, you are going to prioritize to latter. That's hollywood and that's AAA games. I don't watch hollywood movies because i get nothing out of them. If I played games for the story, I'd probably play more indies, but really even most "good stories" games (ND included) are downright juvenile and shallow, I ignore the story, and scratch that itch with movies, books and TV instead.
I am talking about the mediums as an artstic expression. Really many things are often needless. For example, Tomb Raider's over drama and choice of dialogue aren't just shallow. They are pointless.
It is the execution the problem quite often. Indy games dont necessarilly have a deep plot either. It is the execution that makes them unique.
What you describe in your post is the problem and I agree. Movies, music, literature, video games etc are a reflection of culture and also affect culture back. So for me, the prioritization into the latter, shows that culture has been taken by businesses away from the human experience and expression. The business mentality affects back culture. I believe strongly that video games need to be treated with better respect, and by doing so there is better respect for the gamer. I dont like being treated like someone who consumes mindlessly whatever "spectacle" is thrown at me. This is one of the reasons why I adored Hideo Kojima's approach with MGS1 and MGS2.
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I learned to stop worrying and love mass culture long ago. It was a necessity when I worked with advertising. I felt miserable in the beginning, feeling like I was putting out mindless stupidity for stupid people. Eventually I realized that interpretation is actually quite condescending. Peopls get what they look for. No-one can complain from lack of access to information and culture in our times. If people can get convinced by silly advertising, they have nobody else to blame but their own complacency with intellectual mediocrity. It is what it is, and it is not necessarily bad the way it is. For every shitty mass market product out there, there are dozen other great ones if you just know where to look for it. Maybe games are not so much there yet, bur gaming is in its infancy, maybe teenagehood, and is progressing fast. Again, play games for their gameplay, and go get story out of books, tv and movies (the good ones of course)
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I dont think you understood what I am saying. You dont need the best plot. You need a good execution of it. You need a good artistic expression of it. Some games like Tomb Raider offer a "complete" package while others offer just the gameplay. Not all games are the same. I dont play a game necessarilly for the super deep plot, but regardless it is still an art form and if the writing and plot is stupid it will affect the experience. Super Mario and Tomb Raider are different experiences. One game sells you simply the experience of the gameplay, the other one is selling you the gameplay and the context in which the gameplay takes place. I dont expect Tomb Raider to be Citizen Kane but I dont expect it to have ridiculous shoved in mindless violence, writing and dialogue either. I cant ignore a whole genre of games, just to avoid the possibility that I may encounter idiotic shallow execution. Movies, books and music arent a replacement or substitude. They are a different experience. And each needs its own respect
Also people aren't born idiots and mediocre. As I said earlier, people feed culture but culture also feeds people back. In other words, marketing conditions and nurtures mediocrity because intellectual mediocrity means easier to sell to people. There is no effort to reduce mediocricy, to elevate the intellect because it either means less sales. The focus shifts away from profit towards the ideal and we dont reward that. The great ones (movies, books, music etc) are becoming harder to find. When a game is labeled AAA or good and in truth lacks that greatness then there is a problem. This isnt about the Story of the game. As I have said earlier I am talking about games as an artistic expression as well. Other mediums like movies and music are also suffering more and more from this trend and it is almost impossible to avoid.
Edit: and just to go back to the initial point, Limbo, Shadow of the Colossus, Ico, the first Tomb Raider etc didnt need a super deep plot.
Games arent in their infancy. They have simply adjusted to today's culture which is more about selling. This is also one of the reason why newer Silent Hil and Resident Evil games became like their Hollywood shallow releases and lost their own touch and identity.
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