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Bish's Official GTA IV Thread of Comparisons and Ignoring the OP at One's Peril
- Thread starter bishoptl
- Start date
Deus Ex Machina
Member
lowrider007 said:
duk said:
I'm not sure if you can completely replicate it (different lighting, etc) ...
... but you should note that when talking about color temperatures (which is what your TV is referring to) ... it has the opposite effect of what you're thinking. A warmer color temperature yields what we would consider cooler colors (more blue, etc.) ... while a colder color temperatures increases red, etc.
vpance
Member
The lighting has its moments and is generally pretty nice, but only after tweaking the brightness and contrast settings in game. But overall the blur filter and bad aliasing combined distracts too much. Scoring 10 for graphics out of the box at least seems insane unless you play on a tiny CRT.
I've spent a good chunk of the day now jumping back and forth between playing the two versions (I'll sell the one I ultimately decide against).
Regardless of which one is "better," there's absolutely a very noticeable difference between the two. Screenshots and videos don't do the difference justice. It's a pretty stark contrast, IMO. As others have stated, 360 version is crisp and vibrant; PS3 version is muted and filtered. I wish I could combine elements of both versions:
--I really like the more muted look of the PS3 version (very cinematic and gritty), but I don't like the blurred textures. You also really notice the jaggies on the PS3 version on power lines, fences, and scaffolding.
--And I really like the sharp, clear textures of the 360 version (great details, especially on building facades), but I don't like the cartoony look. Even with the in-game visual settings adjusted, it still looks too clear and bright. Also, during cinematics, the characters get that weird next-gen lighting shimmer that makes characters look like they've been swimming in oil (the PS3 version doesn't have this).
Anyhow, I've been looking at both versions all day, and I'm still not sure which one I would rather keep. They both have their graphical strengths and weaknesses.
Regardless of which one is "better," there's absolutely a very noticeable difference between the two. Screenshots and videos don't do the difference justice. It's a pretty stark contrast, IMO. As others have stated, 360 version is crisp and vibrant; PS3 version is muted and filtered. I wish I could combine elements of both versions:
--I really like the more muted look of the PS3 version (very cinematic and gritty), but I don't like the blurred textures. You also really notice the jaggies on the PS3 version on power lines, fences, and scaffolding.
--And I really like the sharp, clear textures of the 360 version (great details, especially on building facades), but I don't like the cartoony look. Even with the in-game visual settings adjusted, it still looks too clear and bright. Also, during cinematics, the characters get that weird next-gen lighting shimmer that makes characters look like they've been swimming in oil (the PS3 version doesn't have this).
Anyhow, I've been looking at both versions all day, and I'm still not sure which one I would rather keep. They both have their graphical strengths and weaknesses.
Give it more time.Bebpo said:
Perhaps you won't change your mind, but I love the way the game looks. It really does remind me of Wreckless in how it appears. I prefer the image quality here to Halo 3. It really looks very unique. Games like Crackdown and Saints Row are far less appealing to me in that they have a very defined "game" look. GTAIV looks very different.
I'm curious as to how it will appear on a CRT, however. Plasma has a higher ANSI contrast and I've found that it does a much better job when dealing with simultaneously bright and dark areas. On my CRT, such an image loses detail. I have no issues with seeing everything within the darker areas while still experiencing the bright highlights.
I prefer the IQ here over Halo 3 simply due to its soft appearance. They use a lot of post processing where as Halo 3 was completely devoid of it. I suppose this will be a matter of opinion.
My only complaint remains the framerate (which is still *MUCH* better than Saints Row - a game which I've played recently). Crackdown likely runs much smoother as it uses a very basic lighting model (no realtime shadows from objects, no HDR, etc.). Saints Row doesn't seem to use HDR of any sort, but it does contain realtime shadows (which I believe look worse than those in GTAIV).
lowrider007 said:PS3
360
In regards to aliasing, I've seen quite a few 360 screenies now and I really feel that the 360 version has less jaggies, look at the steps in the above pictures, the steps in the 360 version almost look they they have 2xAA apllied to them, and thats even with it being sharper.
That's really what the 360 looks like? Judging from the videos, it didn't seem the difference was that major...whoa.
lowrider007 said:PS3
360
In regards to aliasing, I've seen quite a few 360 screenies now and I really feel that the 360 version has less jaggies, look at the steps in the above pictures, the steps in the 360 version almost look they they have 2xAA apllied to them, and thats even with it being sharper.
umm if you look at rest of image there're places where the PS3 has less aliasing. like the pillars, the hand rails, the counter, the green and red lights in the back, etc, etc...
Diablos said:
If you don't care about DLC, Achievements, paying for Xbox Live, don't a controller preference, and aren't bogged down by fanboy nonsense, just flip a coin. You can't go wrong on this one. It's better to just get one or the other and enjoy it than to sit on the sidelines and wait due to indecision or fear of getting the "inferior" one.
Phoenix
Member
Brashnir said:
Depends on whether or not the online gaming experience is compatible between the consoles. Not sure about that myself. If so, you're more or less compelled to go with the XBox version to have a larger audience. I don't have that option myself, but that would be what compelled me to head in that direction given the option of either console.
lowrider007
Licorice-flavoured booze?
bishoptl said:
Sorry mate, I've re-hosted the pictures in my original post using TinyPic, hope thats OK, if not PM me a host url that is safe.
I can't be sure, but I feel like on the PS3 version I keep running into these occasional "hiccups." It's not the framerate taking a hit; it's more like a brief pause for loading. Once it was long enough that I thought the game had locked up. Mostly it's just these occasional pauses while I'm driving. This is on the 60gig PS3, so maybe this is related to the other reported lockup issues?Surfheart said:
I haven't hit the same things on the 360 version. Overall, though, the framerates seem indistinguishable.
I didn't say this above (since everyone else has already pointed it out ad nauseum), but I have definitely run into sudden texture pop-in on the 360 version (often it's at very close range, so it's very noticeable; and it's usually buildings, but sometimes it's the trees).
Anyhow, as we're finally starting to recognize, this is all about trade-offs. No, the two versions aren't graphically identical. No, one version isn't superior. Yes, they both have visual advantages over the other. Yes, the both have visual disadvantages against the other.
The crap of it is that I still don't know which version I prefer. Once I figure that out, I can finally focus on one game and start really playing. This is driving me nuts.
EDIT: Also, I don't know if this was random or if this is something that's already been pointed out:
Content difference: during first date, when it shows strippers during the tutorial explaining the different things you can do on a date, in the PS3 version the stripper doing the pole dance had black-tape X's over her boobs. In the 360 version, she had a bikini top.
Randomly generated? If this is deliberate, are there other similar differences?
Lord Error
Insane For Sony
Played the PS3 ver. for about an hour (works perfectly on my 60GB) and I too can report that it indeed looks just like those IGN screens posted around yesterday. It has such deep, rich look to it, it's really a joy to look at.
I can see the aliasing, but it's been masked pretty damn well for the most part, that it never bothered me, and I never noticed it unless I was specifficaly looking for it. Plasma TV helps with this I assume, it always alleviates aliasing problems a bit compared to LCD. This combined with the wonderful colors it's showing in the game, makes me happy to have plasma for the n'th time :-D
Framerate has been really fine so far, it seemed even better than what I've seen in videos. Haven't noticed any obvious object popup either. The game feels so much more polished technically than any of the previous GTAs. Controls so much better, animates so much better, framerate is much, much better, and it's just so much fun to play - it's really proves who's the king in town when it comes to sandbox free roaming games.
What especially surprised me was that the game animates and controls so good. Coming from the recent Uncharted high, this doesn't feel that much inferior at all, which is a huge accomplishment for GTA series. Character control and animation is slightly more clumsy and inert, but just the fact that I can mention GTA game in the same breath as the game made by Naughty Dog, is mind blowing to me.
I can also confirm that the PS3 ver. also has dithered shadows, but it's been hiding it very well so far. I probably wouldn't even notice if I wasn't aimlessly running on the beach and found some long, stretched shadow there that I could carefully inspect. Other objects, like those signs and other things in the distance are not dithered however.
I can see the aliasing, but it's been masked pretty damn well for the most part, that it never bothered me, and I never noticed it unless I was specifficaly looking for it. Plasma TV helps with this I assume, it always alleviates aliasing problems a bit compared to LCD. This combined with the wonderful colors it's showing in the game, makes me happy to have plasma for the n'th time :-D
Framerate has been really fine so far, it seemed even better than what I've seen in videos. Haven't noticed any obvious object popup either. The game feels so much more polished technically than any of the previous GTAs. Controls so much better, animates so much better, framerate is much, much better, and it's just so much fun to play - it's really proves who's the king in town when it comes to sandbox free roaming games.
What especially surprised me was that the game animates and controls so good. Coming from the recent Uncharted high, this doesn't feel that much inferior at all, which is a huge accomplishment for GTA series. Character control and animation is slightly more clumsy and inert, but just the fact that I can mention GTA game in the same breath as the game made by Naughty Dog, is mind blowing to me.
I can also confirm that the PS3 ver. also has dithered shadows, but it's been hiding it very well so far. I probably wouldn't even notice if I wasn't aimlessly running on the beach and found some long, stretched shadow there that I could carefully inspect. Other objects, like those signs and other things in the distance are not dithered however.
It might be :\ I can say with utmost certainty that it's not normal - I haven't seen anything like that in my play time so far.conman said:
MobiusPigeon
Banned
conman said:
for those who want gritty, turn the saturation down in the options. you want colorful then turn it up.
Hate to admit it, but I've already grown tired of this generation, with its ram limitations and woefully underpowered graphic cards. I'm ready for next-gen to arrive, where it'll be possible to enjoy these sandbox games in proper HD, with high resolution textures, zero pop-in, and all at an acceptable framerate.g35twinturbo said:
I have a 46" 1080p XBR-3. Should I force the game to run at 1080p, or continue playing in 720p which it prioritizes for this game. I tried MLB 08 The Show in 1080p and the game was incredibly choppy. Does this one suffer at a higher resolution in the same way? If not why is it set to run at 720p > 1080p?
Lord Error
Insane For Sony
It could be that the upscaling is blurring things a bit and that softens the edges, but I don't know. How much blur can the horizontal 1150 -> 1280 resize produce? That pillar on the left or that green light up there look like they have some AA going, same with some other spots. But other spots pretty visibly have no AA. Maybe it's some selective AA algorithm (wouldn't be the first time)?ypo said:
It's not just that. It really isn't. i tried changing those settings, and while it changes colors, the basic look still stays the same. It has that same filtered look and depth to it even when I put saturation all the way down.MobiusPigeon said:
Yep, I've been thinking their skin looks different ever since I saw that comparison video, and I really don't think it's just a color adjustment change.
PS3 ver. is natively rendering at 1152x640 and then upscaling that to 720p or 1080i/p. If the game is going for 720p, it's the best to leave it like that despite that you have 1080p TV. Either the TV or the console would have to upscale to 1080p, but the base resolution is still going to be 1150x640.Yama said:
Well that's true to an extent, but I think this gen has greatly suffered from making the transition of SD to HD on a measly 512MB ram, which is exactly why so many concessions have had to be made. Yeah, there will always be overly ambitious devs with grandiose projects that'll bring a system to its knees but, by and large, I just don't envision the same level of limitations which have defined this particular generation.duk said:
CrushDance
Banned
Uh the reason for the colour differences in multiplatform games for 360 and PS3 is due to PS3 being built as a media device from the ground up. It's puts out a very good colour profile. I remember it was discussed a while back and that was the explanation, people were complaining about PS3 games looking "washed out" compared to the darker 360 games.CowboyAstronaut said:
Jack Scofield
Member
So, I take it that both versions are fine, and there isn't a clear "winner" in terms of visuals or performance, correct?
I have both systems, and right now I'm leaning toward the PS3 version just because of controller preference.
I have both systems, and right now I'm leaning toward the PS3 version just because of controller preference.
andrewjnyc
Member
I know this isn't the most "technical" differentiation between the two versions, as I guess it's pretty subjective, but having compared the first 45 minutes or so of gameplay on both consoles (from the beginning through the first date with Michelle), the colors of the 360 version seem to better reproduce the look of the posters for the game that I've seen all over NYC (ditto the look of the GTA IV avatar icons at the Rockstar Social Club). That's enough to make me want to move forward with the game on the 360 rather than on the PS3, but I'm certainly going to keep both versions (it helps that, as a member of the press who sometimes covers gaming, I got free copies of both, which showed up after my midnight purchase of a PS3 copy that I'm gonna give to a friend).
Well, looks like I'm not the only one having complaints about the image quality in that game. I only have the PS3 version for the moment (360 one is on the way), but damn the aliasing really annoys me (keep in mind I've been one of the first here to point that the aliasing in Halo 3 was quite bad), the framerate is all over the place, and the blur is well... blurry.
I didn't play enough to get pop-ins, but honestly I just don't even feel like playing anymore. Call me a graphics whore since I am one, but the technical issues are just too much for me.
I didn't play enough to get pop-ins, but honestly I just don't even feel like playing anymore. Call me a graphics whore since I am one, but the technical issues are just too much for me.
Well I have just played the PS3 and the 360 version, I only have the 360 version and have played it for around 4 hours. Colleague of mine brought the PS3 version around and I must admit for me its just plain blurry thats the best way I can describe it. The 360 hasn't got the best IQ either but its much easier on the eyes compared to PS3 version. For me the PS3 version was actually diffciult to play it was like a computer monitor that is slightly out of focus. As for colours well to be honest I couldn't see a massive difference. There is also more jaggies on the PS3 version that was pretty obvious. To be honest Im pretty dissapointed with both versions, yeah Crackdown is different and cartoon like but the IQ in that game is miles beyond GTA4. By the way I was playing on a calibrated Panasonic Plasma
dark10x said:
Yeah, actually after playing for an hour or so with the lights off somehow my eyes adjusted and the game started looking pretty nice and it was very immersive with how alive the city was.
One thing that helped was switching the walking camera to the RE4 upclose one so it's almost like FPS. Looks really good, though I wish the camera didn't keep fighting you and pulling control away from you. Either that or I wish there was just an FPS mode.
I think the game looks a lot better on foot than in the cars. None of the car views make you feel like your there. They're all so distant and the hood camera is terrrrrible with the view distance + framerate.