WiiGeePeeYou (Hollywood) what IS it ?

[fearsomepirate]

Except because the Wii does that, it ceases to be a competitive environment for more traditional games.

There are a few factors that may say otherwise. Install base alone can make a platform a competitive environment. If it's the only platform you've got, then it doesn't matter if the version on the other platform has much better graphics. You're just happy to have Splinter Cell on your PS2 or Rayman 2 on your N64, period. Second, of course, there's the controller. This could work out to make the experience a bit more competitive. And third, seening how quickly preorders sell out, this thing could have such a rapidly expanding install base that developers can't afford to ignore it. It may very well attract more exclusives just like PS2 did this gen. And those exclusives can indeed be system-sellers despite having worse graphics than games on competing platforms.

 

[theafu]

More CoD3 videos (direct feed), presenting a level already showed to PS3, at the first glance it look just like a shaderless version of the later.




This one would but he also said that Wii is just like a GC and that wouldnt have shaders, or even 16MB of edram... Anyway I do expect (hope) for some improvements but mainly "natural extentions" to GC architeture not a feature set that is almost two gens haed of the GC, eg the RS trailer as good looking as it is, seemed to not use advanced shaders but use use mostly (the kind of) features already on GC (TnL, bloom, self shadowing...).

So, unless the Wii does have DX9 level features, how will they put it working UE3 on the Wii if they cant (on the PC version at least) use a lower features set? Will they just replace some parts of the engine, rewrite, offload to the CPU...?

Matt didn't say that he just passed that info on from a certain source that told him Wii had no shader abilities, since E3 I know that to be wrong just by looking at vids and the source also said no normal mapping which Batallion wars, RS,THDJ, and even Rampage have shown that piece of info to be inaccurate. I wrote a digustlingly look post that I was about to use to flat out show he was wrong what he has said about Wii in the past in certain instances, but like a lot of useful things developers have said about the system it will easily be passed up and unconsidered in most discussions about the system. Hopefully with launch coming up we can somehow gain more info by opening up the system and testing it for ourselves.

 

[swaaye]

You know I'm still wondering if WiiGPU isn't significantly changed. I mean, there is no real official info is there? This could turn out just like the "G80 isn't unified" belief. Although I do think it does have a lot in common with Cube.

 

[pc999]

Matt didn't say that he just passed that info on from a certain source that told him Wii had no shader abilities, since E3 I know that to be wrong just by looking at vids and the source also said no normal mapping which Batallion wars, RS,THDJ, and even Rampage have shown that piece of info to be inaccurate.

Here is the normal maping in games like BTWii? jugding by those ss 1, 2 I cant see any althought some look like they are using emboss mapping, like this one 3.

 

[OVERLORD]

Are these for real?

Madden meets Mr.Sheen.

http://previews.operationsports.com/gamescreenshots.aspx?game=madden07wii

http://www.ngcfrance.com/news.php?operande=0&idx=6041&r=1

These look way better than the muddy screens on IGN!

 

[pc999]

That looks great, really detailed player, great lighting/shadows, very good grass and even the crowd watching the game (beyond the play field) is (in part?) 3D (eg, althought via instacing).

Is that per vertex lighting

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Are these for real?

http://previews.operationsports.com/gamescreenshots.aspx?game=madden07wii
http://www.ngcfrance.com/news.php?operande=0&idx=6041&r=1

These look way better than the muddy screens on IGN!

Those shots are higher resolution and have more AA. I'd say these were promo pics and not direct screen-grabs, although they're strangely not as super-dooper-high quality as I'd expect from promo pics.

 

[fearsomepirate]

Those are either PS3/360 shots mislabeled as being for Wii.

 

[OVERLORD]

Those are either PS3/360 shots mislabeled as being for Wii.

Please read http://uk.wii.ign.com/articles/732/732391p7.html

Additionally we've upped the texture quality on players. Textures are a higher quality. In many cases, they are higher than the Xbox version. We've added a whole host of features like depth of field. We've added a feature we call cinematic lens effect, which is like when you look through an actual television camera and straight lines get a little bit bowed in real life. We've increased the shadows. The shadows are better. We have something called contact shadows so that if two players get close to each other you'll see the shadow of one bleed onto the shadow of another. We've increased the grass. Our grass looks like it has more depth to it. It looks more lush than GameCube. It's definitely a much better looking game than on GameCube and we think that it really is challenging Xbox 360 in some places.

 

[Natoma]

Those shots are higher resolution and have more AA. I'd say these were promo pics and not direct screen-grabs, although they're strangely not as super-dooper-high quality as I'd expect from promo pics.

Which would lead me to believe their direct screen grabs.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Which would lead me to believe their direct screen grabs.

Then how come IGN's screenshots show ordinary jaggies? Was their's an old build, and these pics a later one? And how come these pics are larger than 640x480? Aren't they 960x540, or 540p? Wii's only supposed to handle SD resolutions. Does 540p count as SD? And how come the AA involved is probably 4xAA at least, which doesn't seem to fit the other media we've been seeing for Wii which has no AA? If Wii's capable of 4xMSAA, wouldn't a flagship title like SMG be showing it?

I think there's more reason to doubt these are direct screen grabs then trust they are.

 

[theafu]

The madden shots in question do seem like they are from the other next gen console versions not the Wii. Wii version doesn't look bad at all actually it's quite good, but ign has crappy old shots which they admit, wanna see how good the game looks watch a youtube or ign vid of it as it looks far better. PC999 just do this search at google "Battalion Wars Wii Bump Mapping" 3rd link down and look for the scan photo where they flat out have a shot and say it's bump mapped.

 

[see colon]

the only way those shots came from madden wii is if they include an image gallery of PS3/360 shots. "look at the version you didn't buy"!

 

[pc999]

I admit that those shoot are (very) suspicious good, but arent last year Madden for 360 much more detailed (muscles, crwod) and shader heavy (eg sweat, lighting) than these ones (eg 1, 2, 3).

If you look, for example, at the arms of the players in both games you can see that those from the "wii" version does have much less processing time on them, so if it is not from wii it isnt from PS3/360 neither.

Theafu, that tank seems (at least me, maybe it is just from the low qualitity of the photo) like it is usig Emboss Mapping, not normal mapping (like the floor on project hammer)..

 

[Shifty Geezer]

I admit that those shoot are (very) suspicious good, but arent last year Madden for 360 much more detailed (muscles, crwod) and shader heavy (eg sweat, lighting) than these ones (eg 1, 2, 3).

I hope see colon and theafu weren't being totally serious, as these don't look at all next-gen to me. The tiddly little repeating grass texture is but one clue these aren't XB360/PS3 graphics.

I think the graphics are Wii's, but with IQ enhancements the game won't have.

 

[OVERLORD]

If you look, for example, at the arms of the players in both games you can see that those from the "wii" version does have much less processing time on them, so if it is not from wii it isnt from PS3/360 neither.

Exactly!

I couldn't see any 360/PS3 shots that showed the arms like those I posted. Helmets for those 2 look far more detailed. But this is cosiderably better than those Wii shots on IGN.

Grass and other textures in new screens would appear to back up the quote on IGN.

 

[Teasy]

I hope see colon and theafu weren't being totally serious, as these don't look at all next-gen to me. The tiddly little repeating grass texture is but one clue these aren't XB360/PS3 graphics.

I think the graphics are Wii's, but with IQ enhancements the game won't have.

I don't know about next gen, its not exactly easy to define what is next gen graphics. But IMO the quality of the graphics in those pics certainly look a lot closer to the 360 version then they do the GC version. The model complexity and lighting doesn't look quite as realistic as the pics I've seen of the 360 version, but it does look very nice and from what I've seen the grass looks at least as good. Not to mention the Wii version apparently runs at twice the framerate of the 360 version. If those shots really are from Wii, and looking at shots taken straight from the 360 it seems they might be, then I'm very impressed. Just go and compare those shots to the GC version of Madden 07, the difference is pretty big.

 

[Oblivion]

wouldn't a flagship title like SMG be showing it?

Mario Galaxy is being done by EAD. EAD has never really been known for using all fancy graphics techniques and such.


Still, those pics look far better than what I thought Wii would be able to do. I need confirmation. Could be some asshat mixing up pictures again (IGN did that one time).

 

[fearsomepirate]

Yes, I'm sure they took out the depth effect on the grass, replaced it with a grass texture the quality of the 360 version, upped the texture quality on all the characters to the same level as the 360 version (you can't see the arm bumps because the resolution is 540), and pulled out of the Wii the ability to render the crowds in 3D. All this despite the fact that a new trailer for Madden is up at Gametrailers.com and looks exactly like what we've seen on IGN.

Why are you knocking EAD? Super Mario Sunshine, Pikmin 2, Luigi's Mansion, and Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat all were some of the better Cube titles from a technological standpoing. Just because their games didn't have aliens, fanged monsters, and grizzled war veterans doesn't mean they didn't have any advanced lighting effects, water shaders, fur shaders, bump mapping, etc.

 

[theafu]

I hope see colon and theafu weren't being totally serious, as these don't look at all next-gen to me. The tiddly little repeating grass texture is but one clue these aren't XB360/PS3 graphics.

I think the graphics are Wii's, but with IQ enhancements the game won't have.

I'm dead serious when talking about madden looking quite good compared to current gen stuff nothing can touch it's smoothness, shadowing or lighting. EA seems to agree with me as well.

"It's definitely a much better looking game than on GameCube and we think that it really is challenging Xbox 360 in some places." Source

Oblivion SMG is littered with a lot little fancy things in the HD vids you can find at gametrailers or some ign vids. The lava scene with mario flying through it was awsome, same for instance vs the lava pit poss where pixel shader effects are readily visible, and in some instances I swear I saw bump mapping techniques on certain surfaces. Mario and the way he animates is definetly great and I like the lighting they use on him and in general for the game itself.