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[Malice215]

Resolution won't sell a game, but it can turn people away if everything else isn't on point, or steer people towards buying the game on one platform versus another if there's a clear performance difference.

And it's more than just the hardcore gamer who cares about resolution/frame rate. Otherwise there wouldn't be so many discussions about it, or so many people wanting to know what the res & frame rate are for every next gen game that's announced, or Microsoft giving back that 10% reserve, or Ubi Soft constantly bringing it up even though it supposedly doesn't sell games.

It matters.

 

[ShemhazaiX]

I play my PS4 on a PC monitor in my tiny bedroom about 2 feet away from my face. I can see the individual pixels in 1080p games. 720p is eye bleeding for me on that thing.

I understand that this isn't the same situation for everyone, but this is why I personally am much more in favour of a simple 1080p with less effects than 720/900p with slightly more effects (that I probably won't actually notice as much).

So please Mr Ubisoft developer. Don't patronise me.

 

[koutoru]

I can agree that resolution alone doesn't sell games, but how well it looks and runs in general on different platforms can start influencing purchasing decisions.

If potential customers keep hearing one platform runs games in a higher quality (this can mean frame rate and/or resolution, etc..) they might shift in favor towards one platform.

 

[gruenel]

Resolution won't sell a game, but it can turn people away if everything else isn't on point, or steer people towards buying the game on one platform versus another if there's a clear performance difference.

And it's more than just the hardcore gamer who cares about resolution/frame rate. Otherwise there wouldn't be so many discussions about it, or so many people wanting to know what the res & frame rate are for every next gen game that's announced, or Microsoft giving back that 10% reserve, or Ubi Soft constantly bringing it up even though it supposedly doesn't sell games.

It matters.

100% agreed.

 

[leadbelly]

Is this something controversial? Being 1080p isn't a sticking point to most of the people who play games, and having a fun experience like COD matters a metric ton more...

No, it is more a sense of perspective. If you're saying that resolution will not ultimately decide the fate of a game, then that is probably true. It's not really about what people will settle for if there isn't another option, it is what people would prefer if they had a choice.

It goes back to the question of whether the specs of a console matter at all. There are other factors besides specs, like which console has the most games, etc, but if all things are equal in other areas, the likelihood the specs of the console could become a significant factor increases.

The Playstation has overtaken Xbox in key areas where last gen, Xbox was strong. Now, you could argue that Microsoft's DRM bullshit at the beginning of launch had some influence on that, but it is something they also backtracked on. It isn't really a major factor in reality. What seems to me to be the bigger factors are hardware specs and price. People are getting more for their money. It is a combination of both.

I personally believe that better graphics is a selling point, and that a significant percentage of people will buy a console on that selling point if all things are equal in other areas. Maybe not everyone will, but a percentage would.

In other words, resolution doesn't necessarily mean something in and of itself, but it means something in relation to the other. If the Xbone was the only console, it means nothing.

 

[Abounder]

It's like BluRay vs Netflix/Cable. Sure there are enthusiasts that care but most people don't care about resolution quality. When it comes to gaming the most successful franchises arguably have outdated graphics like Warcraft, Minecraft, MOBAs, etc. And if people really cared they would be running high end gaming PCs, but that generally doesn't happen

 

[JayEH]

It's like BluRay vs Netflix/Cable. Sure there are enthusiasts that care but most people don't care about resolution quality. When it comes to gaming the most successful franchises arguably have outdated graphics like Warcraft, Minecraft, MOBAs, etc. And if people really cared they would be running high end gaming PCs, but that generally doesn't happen

Resolution and quality of the graphics are two different things. All the games you listed can be played in 1080p.

 

[The Lamp]

My friends can't tell the difference between 720p and 1080p. I assume he means these audiences don't care. Which he's right about, unfortunately.

 

[bishoptl]

I'll keep that in mind the next time I see a supersampled ad with perfect AA and motion blur for Far Cry 4. That is if they even show gameplay footage in the first place and not a CG movie.

It does appear a little disingenuous.

 

[The Lamp]

It does appear a little disingenuous.

That's a good point I didn't think of. If resolution doesn't matter, why bullshot?

 

[Abounder]

Resolution and quality of the graphics are two different things. All the games you listed can be played in 1080p.

True, but the point is about the same like BluRay vs Cable/Netflix. The latter in most cases doesn't rival the 1080p or 4k resolution from BluRays, but millions still subscribe anyway. It's also why you don't see Sony or anyone advertising such because people don't really care. And while a game can be played in 1080p, the average gamer may not have the machine to run it and is content with lower resolutions.

So basically I agree that resolution and specs in general don't really matter, or at least doesn't matter as much compared to accessibility and price.

 

[fabricated backlash]

That's a good point I didn't think of. If resolution doesn't matter, why bullshot?

Because Ubisoft isn't confident in it's games selling on their own merits?

 

[ProfessorMoran]

Resolutions means squat to me. But my TV is only 32inch/720p and I won't be upgrading until it dies.

I used to think like you. Upgrade to a 55" 1080p and I doubt you would ever go back to 720p.

 

[Omnipunctual Godot]

Maybe not specific games, but if one piece of hardware is continuously capable of demonstrating a resolution advantage over the other, people are going to begin to recognize that console as the more powerful console, and when more people buy the console that they believe to be better for gaming, the console with the better resolution will also be the one that is more likely to sell the most third-party games (in my opinion).

 

[SapientWolf]

If mainstream consumers didn't care about graphics then they would buy the game on the last gen platforms. The gameplay is exactly the same. And the resolution has a significant effect on how sharp the graphics are. Gamers might not know the technical details but they know that more pixels are better.

Maybe not specific games, but if one piece of hardware is continuously capable of demonstrating a resolution advantage over the other, people are going to begin to recognize that console as the more powerful console, and when more people buy the console that they believe to be better for gaming, the console with the better resolution will also be the one that is more likely to sell the most third-party games (in my opinion).

This has already come to pass. People aren't buying up PS4s for the exclusives. Multiplatform games are the best sellers.

 

[Melchiah]

"With the 4K TVs and things - somebody was telling me that with a 4K TV, to even see it, your living room has to be big enough to sit like 12 feet from the screen. I don't know the exact numbers, but it starts to get a little crazy. I'm just in it for the experience, I'll play a SNES game if it's cool."

I can definitively see the difference a couple of meters away, when 4K and 1080p are side by side at the store.

I'm fed up with the belittling of those, who care about their system being shackled to a lower level. We care about the gameplay experience just as much, we only want the games in the best possible form they can be. 1080p/60fps TLOU was definitely a better gameplay experience than the 720p/30fps one.

 

[NervousXtian]

Why is it a surprise that people who have native 1080p screens want native 1080p content on those screens.

Except, for the majority of consumers with 1080p they are NOT consuming 1080p content on a regular basis. That is 100% fact.

If mainstream consumers didn't care about graphics then they would buy the game on the last gen platforms. The gameplay is exactly the same. And the resolution has a significant effect on how sharp the graphics are. Gamers might not know the technical details but they know that more pixels are better.


This has already come to pass. People aren't buying up PS4s for the exclusives. Multiplatform games are the best sellers.

Come on man, you know that's not true. Resolution is not the only thing when it comes to graphics.. you know that.

 

[NullPointer]

Well, he's right. The majority of consumers doesn't even care.

Customers are still customers, and $60 from the majority is no different than $60 from everyone else.

Resolution and framerate may be marginal issues when it comes to sales, but its not a great idea to keep either missing the point that drives a segment of customers to buy your game, or to treat them as if they're idiots (like Ubi's previous statements about 900p vs. 1080p).

Some advice for Ubisoft: justify your own targets and choices rather than deflecting. Otherwise, for your own benefit and ours, please stop talking.

 

[HyperBitHero]

Framerate does for me. I probably won't be buying this game unless a superpowered PC falls into my lap.

 

[Rushersauce]

I don't mind if the game has the same resolution in both consoles, as long as it looks better on the better hardware. You *****, stop this parity BS.

 

[JayEH]

True, but the point is about the same like BluRay vs Cable/Netflix. The latter in most cases doesn't rival the 1080p or 4k resolution from BluRays, but millions still subscribe anyway. It's also why you don't see Sony or anyone advertising such because people don't really care. And while a game can be played in 1080p, the average gamer may not have the machine to run it and is content with lower resolutions.

So basically I agree that resolution and specs in general don't really matter, or at least doesn't matter as much compared to accessibility and price.

Agreed. But to me games should be running at 1080 on consoles considering we will be abandoning 1080 for 4k soon. I wouldn't not buy a game because of its resolution but it's ridiculous that we can't hit the resolution standard of today.

 

[gruenel]

Except, for the majority of consumers with 1080p they are NOT consuming 1080p content on a regular basis. That is 100% fact.

So what? Doesn't mean people don't WANT it.

Given the choice between 720/900/1080p, how many people do you think would say "I don't care", and how many would say "Give me 1080!"?

 

[Shin-Ra]

Resolution can be a selling POINT in games. But it won't make or break a game sale. At least it shouldn't. Lord knows theres a good amount of gaffers that will think twice about buying a game if it isn't 1080. Fuck if its a good game or not.

Why not?

If you're interested in Shadow of Mordor and Assassin's Creed Unity on PS4, you don't want two of the same kind of game and you see the preview Xbone footage of Unity with it's horrid image quality, it may well break the Unity sale.

 

[leadbelly]

Customers are still customers, and $60 from the majority is no different than $60 from everyone else.

Resolution and framerate may be marginal issues when it comes to sales, but its not a great idea to keep either missing the point that drives a segment of customers to buy your game, or to treat them as if they're idiots (like Ubi's previous statements about 900p vs. 1080p).

Some advice for Ubisoft: justify your own targets and choices rather than deflecting. Otherwise, for your own benefit and ours, please stop talking.

Yeah. Lets say 30% of the people who bought the PS4 did so because it was the more powerful system. That means 30% of your potential customers are people who expect games to be graphically better on that console. 30% is still a significant number when it comes to sales.

That said, I don't think it is entirely true. I don't think it is because the majority of people absolutely don't care, some may not, but I imagine with some people it is because they're little less knowledgeable on the technical aspects of the game.

If you were to say to these people, would you prefer the version that is 900p or the version that is 1080p? and explain to them what that actually means, the chances are they would choose the version that is 1080p. They would do so for the simple fact that one version is perceivably better than the other. Why wouldn't they? It's only natural to do that.

There may be another reason for why they choose one version over another, but I'm not sure the reason is entirely to do with they just don't care about graphics.

It's funny because, some people who aren't even interested in video games at all, will talk about some movie and how amazing the VFX are in that movie. Of course we're talking computer generated visual effects. Good VFX can be a big draw to a movie for some people.

Of course video game graphics are not on that scale, but I just don't buy the fact that people are just not interested in good graphics. People just don't care. Yet, I feel if people can go to a movie and say, "The VFX were spectacular!" then they can also appreciate good graphics in video games.

 

[m@cross]

So I guess this is why blu-ray never caught on... makes sense.

 

[PeregrinSe7en]

Not true. See the Wii.

The PS4 is not selling because of resolution. The PS4 is selling because of PS Plus and the perception that XBOX was going to screw gamers by not allowing rentals. Higher tech specs was just icing on the cake.

there's waaaay more to it than what you just mentioned

He was just telling OXM what they wanted to hear.

if OPM were still around you can bet your bottom dollar he would be saying the exact opposite to them.

 

[Shin-Ra]

The dev is right. He's totally 100% correctamundo.

But Ubisoft, please, shut the fuck up about resolution and frame rate already. It's every week now that there's a new article about you guys.

Even the 4K TV part which is complete nonsense?

 

[Tizoc]

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/vid...bisoft-Assassins-Creed-Unity-Locked-Framerate
Allow me to remind you of Jim's recent video about this.

 

[NervousXtian]

So what? Doesn't mean people don't WANT it.

Given the choice between 720/900/1080p, how many people do you think would say "I don't care", and how many would say "Give me 1080!"?

My wife watches shit on SD all the time... I keep switching her shows to record in HD.. but she doesn't like it because the shitty Comcast box stutters when fast forwarding through the commercials in HD and sometimes doesn't pause right.

That's anecdotal... I know.. but it's just that it doesn't matter as much as some people want it too.

There's not some giant outrage about TV content.. because it's just what it is.. would it be better all in 1080? Sure.. but honestly.. I don't care.

Will I buy the PS4 version over an Xbox One version if the PS4 looks better.. probably so. Would I buy one over the other if one was cheaper.. yes.. that's how little I care.

Besides... resolution isn't the be all end all of graphics. It's only this generaton where people pretend that it is.

I mean fuck.. someone just implied that the Xbox One version of Unity looks horrid. Come on, really?

 

[Rembrandt]

Why not?

If you're interested in Shadow of Mordor and Assassin's Creed Unity on PS4, you don't want two of the same kind of game and you see the preview Xbone footage of Unity with it's horrid image quality, it may well break the Unity sale.

See, this post here shows how out of touch you are with your average consumers. Nobody is looking at Unity and thinking it looks horrid. Get real.

 

[Shin-Ra]

I mean fuck.. someone just implied that the Xbox One version of Unity looks horrid. Come on, really?

see the preview Xbone footage of Unity with its horrid image quality,

Yes. It has horrid image quality.

 

[spwolf]

I play my PS4 on a PC monitor in my tiny bedroom about 2 feet away from my face. I can see the individual pixels in 1080p games. 720p is eye bleeding for me on that thing.

I understand that this isn't the same situation for everyone, but this is why I personally am much more in favour of a simple 1080p with less effects than 720/900p with slightly more effects (that I probably won't actually notice as much).

So please Mr Ubisoft developer. Don't patronise me.

people are taking his comments way too seriously... Ubisoft cant recommend one version of the game over another and selling consoles is not their job.

As to the customers, they obviously want to play "better" version - as in higher resolution and better framerate, we have plenty of proof in every sales thread on that.

 

[Handy Fake]

Customers are still customers, and $60 from the majority is no different than $60 from everyone else.

Resolution and framerate may be marginal issues when it comes to sales, but its not a great idea to keep either missing the point that drives a segment of customers to buy your game, or to treat them as if they're idiots (like Ubi's previous statements about 900p vs. 1080p).

Some advice for Ubisoft: justify your own targets and choices rather than deflecting. Otherwise, for your own benefit and ours, please stop talking.

I like you, and you may stay.

 

[Sacul64GC]

People need to realize that the majority of the public ether don't care or understand resolution. A large chunk of customers that buy HDMI from my work even think that they need a PS3 HDMI or a Xbone HDMI. They know it makes it look better but dont know any info about it. This is the majority that buy these games and that is Why Ubi can get away with this.

 

[SapientWolf]

Except, for the majority of consumers with 1080p they are NOT consuming 1080p content on a regular basis. That is 100% fact.



Come on man, you know that's not true. Resolution is not the only thing when it comes to graphics.. you know that.

No, but it's the thing that's easily quantifiable, which is why there is so much attention on it. A higher resolution also makes it easier to see the other graphical improvements over last gen, such as better textures and character models. They're going to look better at a higher resolution even if they're exactly the same.

 

[Celestial Mortal]

 

[ghostjoke]

It's like watching that annoying kid get pissed off his parent's won't buy him a toy so he keeps going on and on about how he didn't really want it/it's not that a cool a toy anyway.

Honesty, Ubi, you got far more major problems that 180 lines of resolution.

 

[virtualS]

So much misinformation about resolution, even within the dev community? Just walk down to your local TV store and see 4K in action for yourself. The difference is staggering.

Also, it's not about resolution selling games. It's about resolution being native to the display device so as not to artificially blur the image during upscale + extra detail. We've had 5+ years of that already.

 

[Ploid 3.0]

Yes. It has horrid image quality.

Looks soft/blurred to me. It's not horrid though. PS2 on a HD tv is horrid.

 

[Steroyd]

That's rich considering resolution was the major selling point of the PS360 era.

 

[Mohonky]

Some people are really taking arguments to the extreme.

A four year old game at 1080p doesnt look better than a current game at 900p. It depends on the other assets being used. Using the same assets at a higher resolution is always going to be better naturally, but if you dont have enough power there to render at 1080p, you could potentially find a tipping point where scaling back for a higher resolution may not necessarily look at good as keeping a slightly lower resolution with the assets you wanted.

Ryse would be a case in point. Yes its better at 1080p, but at 900p it still looks better than just about everything else out there on a console.

Upping resolution doesnt magically make for a better looking game.

 

[Phreakuency]

To all the 'majority don't care' replies...

The difference in hardware sales between PS4 and Xbone and their shared multiplatform titles says otherwise.

 

[Renekton]

I'm not so sure; as the core of what keeps them afloat - the consumers who pay good money for their products - I think the least we can expect is not to be talked down to and patronised.

"Expect" sounds like they owe you something.

The relationship is they sold a game, and you bought a game. That's it.

 

[Vhagar]

That's rich considering resolution was the major selling point of the PS360 era.

lol what?
Devs never announced what resolution their games ran at and quite a few of them would have been sub 720p. People didn't really give a shit back then, at least not to the extent they do now.

 

[Keasar]

I can agree that resolution doesn't sell the games. I personally really don't care what the graphical capabilities are as long as the game is fun.

Just don't try to bullshit me with any "30 FPS is better than 60 FPS". That is just stupid.

 

[erale]

To all the 'majority don't care' replies...

The difference in hardware sales between PS4 and Xbone and their shared multiplatform titles says otherwise.

I think the most of difference originates from the messed up Xbox One launch event and that a lot of people still think there would be a online requirement for the Xbox One.

And for the software shares: of course there would be more sold titles on the better selling hardware...

 

[Coreda]

Not disagreeing here. Hell, I still have friends that think that their TV output resolution==the resolution of their games.

"My games are in 4k now!"

*sigh*

I remember when Microsoft themselves said this lol

 

[Mory Dunz]

Of course resolution doesn't sell games.

What was Super Mario Bros's resolution? Like 8p? And that game did decently well.

So like, /thread, man.

 

[Cave Johnson]

According to Ubisoft, this is what gaming should've been from this generation:

 

[Shin-Ra]

Looks soft/blurred to me. It's not horrid though. PS2 on a HD tv is horrid.

It's a video frame so there's obvious extra blurring from the compression but it's the 900p upscaled aliasing that's embarrassing coming from last year's game.

Using the same assets at a higher resolution is always going to be better naturally

...

Upping resolution doesnt magically make for a better looking game.

You're contradicting yourself.

lol what?
Devs never announced what resolution their games ran at and quite a few of them would have been sub 720p. People didn't really give a shit back then, at least not to the extent they do now.

Yeah, no-one gave a shit when games like MGS4 and Halo 3 had shitty image quality. Definitely not.