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[nasos_333]

Ugh this all sounds TOO good. I would 100% purchase any DLC that comes out to add this content.
Whether I play it or not is another story... I just WANT it.

(will also try and convince PC-only friends to get asap).

edit:

For those who haven't played yet, the framerate concerns are seriously one of the most overblown "issues" I've seen in awhile... I put 80 hours into the PS3 version, and I never had any difficulty with framerate. Blighttown was no better or worse than any other part of the game. I'm not anal about these things - I understand I'm playing a videogame - but there was nothing game breaking or even game compromising about it. I thought it was technically brilliant.

I think they recently said that there wont be DLC and that they feel sorry for the console gamers

So, i guess it is PC exclusive, since Namco only cares for money and exlusive content sells extra copies to console gamers that want it

It is a strategy to make maximum profit, but will definatly make them one of the most unpopular companies in the face of the planet imo

For example, CD Project did not force PC gamers rebuy the console version, by bringing all extra content on PC as DLC day one, these guys really care for their fans and gamers

 

[Mistouze]

For those who haven't played yet, the framerate concerns are seriously one of the most overblown "issues" I've seen in awhile... I put 80 hours into the PS3 version, and I never had any difficulty with framerate. Blighttown was no better or worse than any other part of the game. I'm not anal about these things - I understand I'm playing a videogame - but there was nothing game breaking or even game compromising about it. I thought it was technically brilliant.

I understant what you're getting at and kind of agree but Blighttown IS worse than most other parts of the game. Big framerate dips, still playable but the effects on people vary from one person to another. I get headaches from those low framerate moments especially if I'm turning the camera but it doesn't last long.

That level is not particularly hard but in the first half of the game and on top of everything pretty scary/stressfull.

 

[Zeliard]

For those who haven't played yet, the framerate concerns are seriously one of the most overblown "issues" I've seen in awhile... I put 80 hours into the PS3 version, and I never had any difficulty with framerate. Blighttown was no better or worse than any other part of the game. I'm not anal about these things - I understand I'm playing a videogame - but there was nothing game breaking or even game compromising about it. I thought it was technically brilliant.

Some of us actually have already played the game and were looking forward to a PC version partly for what should have been much superior performance, which would certainly have impact on a 3D action game.

And Blighttown is quite a bit worse in terms of performance than the other parts of the game - notoriously so, even. It's particularly unfortunate as from a level design standpoint it's quite strong, but it's hampered by the framerate.

 

[Swifty]

Now that I think about it, Dark Souls being on GFW Live might actually be a boon for us. Microsoft's strict certification process will force From Software to at least have a screen resolution selector.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Games_for_Windows#Certification

 

[Eusis]

Some of us actually have already played the game and were looking forward to a PC version partly for what should have been much superior performance, which would certainly have impact on a 3D action game.

Well, admittedly Demon's Souls and Dark Souls are slower paced games so 60 FPS is more for our gratification than an out and out necessity, had it been then Blighttown would've been way, WAY worse than it already was. Blighttown HAS to be better though, or the port really is a failure, barely at the least.

Now that I think about it, Dark Souls being on GFW Live might actually be a boon for us. Microsoft's strict certification process will force From Software to at least have a screen resolution selector.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Games_for_Windows#Certification

I seem to recall a gamepad requirement but Bioshock 2 just completely ignored that. Amusing to see the tray and play thing though, that seemed to be a good feature but I think it came a bit too late to actually be relevant, we would've need a VERY swift adoption of DVD in the early 2000s and for it to be in XP, rather than a Vista exclusive. By the time everyone went to Vista/7 we all had large enough hard drives to store at least a small handful of larger games, and DD became king.

 

[dani_dc]

Now that I think about it, Dark Souls being on GFW Live might actually be a boon for us. Microsoft's strict certification process will force From Software to at least have a screen resolution selector.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Games_for_Windows#Certification

Actually that list isn't accurate. Here's the accurate one:


1.5 Support Multiple Aspect Ratios and Resolutions
Requirement
The game must support at least the following aspect ratios and associated screen resolutions:
4:3 normal (800×600 or 1024×768)
16:9 widescreen (1280×720)
16:10 widescreen (1152×720 or 1680×1050 or 800×480)

The game should already supports those resolutions in the Xbox version with the exception of the 16:10 ones, which at this rate I imagine they'll just throw black bars around it and call it a day.

 

[Eusis]

What I think is most likely is that IF resolution is actually restricted, you pick one but the game SCALES from a lower resolution up. Do many PC games even do this excluding 2D stuff?

 

[Zeliard]

Well, admittedly Demon's Souls and Dark Souls are slower paced games so 60 FPS is more for our gratification than an out and out necessity, had it been then Blighttown would've been way, WAY worse than it already was. Blighttown HAS to be better though, or the port really is a failure, barely at the least.

It isn't a necessity but it should be an elemental feature of transferring over to superior hardware. Plenty of games are playable and fun at the sub-30 framerates they hit on console, including the Souls games, but that doesn't mean they wouldn't be that much better running at a higher, and steadier, framerate.

And Blighttown was enough to decrease the enjoyment of the game as a whole for some. I'm not one of them, since I enjoyed the design of the level itself and the game otherwise that much, but for some it was clearly bad enough that it couldn't have been much worse. Souls isn't Ninja Gaiden but it's still a game that demands a decent amount of responsiveness, and would benefit strongly from a good framerate. If the game does come out with an unlocked framerate and decent optimization, that will become quickly evident. It'll feel so smooth that it will just stand out immediately.

 

[Swifty]

What I think is most likely is that IF resolution is actually restricted, you pick one but the game SCALES from a lower resolution up. Do many PC games even do this excluding 2D stuff?

It's almost impossible to do literal upscaling unless you were going out of your way to render to a smaller framebuffer object, then rendering the results of that framebuffer to the actual viewport. It's far easier to tell your graphics API that you want a viewport of X by Y and call it a day.

EDIT: Though I imagine From might be doing some post processing which means that their scene is already rendered to a framebuffer object which means it might not be too hard for them to handle resolutions "the wrong way"

 

[DOA]

plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW...

 

[Eusis]

It isn't a necessity but it should be an elemental feature of transferring over to superior hardware. Plenty of games are playable and fun at the sub-30 framerates they hit on console, including the Souls games, but that doesn't mean they wouldn't be that much better running at a higher, and steadier, framerate.

I can't deny it'd help to have, but I don't consider it ALONE a big enough deal. If it were an amazing port beyond a locked FPS then I'd be content.

EDIT: Though I imagine From might be doing some post processing which means that their scene is already rendered to a framebuffer object which means it might not be too hard for them to handle resolutions "the wrong way"

Damn, so it really is possible? But could that up the system requirements for no good reason?

 

[ScepticMatt]

plz no GFWL

fix'd

 

[Eusis]

fix'd

Yeah, GFWL may be a dubious service but GFW alone helped chase off that awful, awful generic PC banner they adopted in the middle of the decade for some dumbfuck reason. Seriously, you pick something to standardize then make it look that terrible and generic? I'm sure there's minimalist, stylistic ones they could've done... like the PC DVD logo they'd already been using before, and still use frequently.

 

[KennyLinder]

Ever so slightly OT, did the artbook ever come out in the end?

 

[NBtoaster]

What I think is most likely is that IF resolution is actually restricted, you pick one but the game SCALES from a lower resolution up. Do many PC games even do this excluding 2D stuff?

Modern Warfare 3 has an "image quality" setting that makes it render at a certain percentage of the set resolution and upscale to that.

 

[Eusis]

Modern Warfare 3 has an "image quality" setting that makes it render at a certain percentage of the set resolution and upscale to that.

Must be for computers that can't handle it at the ideal FPS at native resolution then. At least that IMPLIES there's an actual advantage here (keeping system requirements as low as reasonably possible) rather than being the most insane way to maintain parity.

... Fuck, they're going to do that aren't they? It seems like the kind of thing I'd expect from a Japanese developer, maintain a set level of quality rather than allowing it be wildly divergent based on each person's setup. Even if it means taking a few blows. :/

 

[Corky]

Trust me, I have a similar monitor. 2560x1600. When I run stuff at 1280x800 (exactly half of my native resolution), there is no blurring whatsoever. This is the same reason that Apple jumped from 1024x768 to 2048x1536 for the iPad 3: Perfect scaling for older applications

It won't look as sharp as it could, obviously, but it won't look like the blurry mess that you get when scaling other resolutions.

I played dark souls 360 on my 2560x1440 monitor and it looked absolutely atrocious.

 

[brotkasten]

I played dark souls 360 on my 2560x1440 monitor and it looked absolutely atrocious.

You missed the point. He's talking about perfect 1:1 scaling. 2560 x 1600 is exactly twice the resolution of 1280 x 800 and that's why it doesn't look like a total interpolated blurry mess. Dark Souls, on the other hand, has a native resolution of 1024 x 720 and won't match the resolution of your screen. That's why it looks so terrible.

 

[Corky]

You missed the point. He's talking about perfect 1:1 scaling. 2560 x 1600 is exactly twice the resolution of 1280 x 800 and that's why it doesn't look like a total interpolated blurry mess. Dark Souls, on the other hand, has a native resolution of 1024 x 720 and won't match the resolution of your screen. That's why it looks so terrible.

I see, guess that would explain it, didn't know the game wasn't 1280x720

 

[Eusis]

I see, guess that would explain it, didn't know the game wasn't 1280x720

It DID look a bit less sharp than Demon's Souls. When I heard about that the reason became clear. Might also mean there's issues converting the HUD, but I'd think that would be relatively easy to fix.

 

[brotkasten]

I see, guess that would explain it, didn't know the game wasn't 1280x720

That's what DF says.

"Each version runs at a native 1024x720, with v-sync engaged. The decision to decrease the resolution from Demon's Souls' 1280x720 is more than made up for by the additional coat of 2x multi-sample anti-aliasing (MSAA) lavished upon the overall image. This clears up the rough edges that blighted the look of its AA-deprived predecessor, previously evident on a character's illuminated weaponry and armour while running against dark, labyrinthine backdrops."
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-dark-souls-face-off

 

[Totobeni]

plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW...

GFW =/=GFWL

Games for Windows standard ( 360 pad support, easy install..ect) is very good thing for PC games, many games nowadays go GFW plus Steamwork ( Rage,Skyrim,Just Cause 2..ect) and it's really good combo.


however GFWLive implantation,client and service are shit and need to die.

 

[NBtoaster]

Forgot I actually already played Dark Souls on my 1080p monitor. It wasn't that horrific I guess.

At least this will look better because I can get the GPU to upscale instead of the monitor.

 

[Sentenza]

Forgot I actually already played Dark Souls on my 1080p monitor. It wasn't that horrific I guess.

At least this will look better because I can get the GPU to upscale instead of the monitor.

Yay?
Let's hope there's some mistake here, cause this sounds fairly depressing.

 

[Izayoi]

What the fuck are they thinking?

 

[StoppedInTracks]

plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW...

GFWL is the least of this port problems...

 

[Zzoram]

MSFT has never actually enforced GFW or GFWL requirements.

 

[Ryuuga]

Hey remember when we were all scared that Hijinx Studio might be developing this port? I'm trying to decide between the best of two horrible scenarios.

 

[fluffydelusions]

Wow, this game is really aiming to be one of the worst console to PC ports I've seen in a while.

 

[Leckan]

Worst PC port of the best console game.

Proof that there is no god.

 

[Raide]

Worst PC port of the best console game.

Proof that there is no god.

Its Dark Souls...it is all about making people rage.

 

[Imp the Dimp]

You missed the point. He's talking about perfect 1:1 scaling. 2560 x 1600 is exactly twice the resolution of 1280 x 800

It's 4,4444444 times the resolution.

 

[Fuz]

Yes. Port your game on the PC but don't support the keyboard.

If this ends up being a bad port...

That's the one thing I can't ignore, controls.
I don't care for fps lock or low resolution or whatever. I don't even care that much for GFWL.
But don't give me crappy mouse+keyboard controls.

I WANT so badly to buy this, but I'll have to try it first.

 

[AndyMoogle]

It's 4,4444444 times the resolution.

You mean 4.

 

[Durante]

GFWL is the least of this port problems...

Indeed. I can deal with GFWL just fine, but not with a resolution lock.

 

[brain_stew]

Narco should have never let From develop the PC version. Let them develop some new content fine, but the actual port job should have been handed to someone that actually knows how to create a PC port, like Nixxes for example.

 

[web01]

Wow, this game is really aiming to be one of the worst console to PC ports I've seen in a while.

Lets not get ahead of ourselves people, apart from gfwl everything else is speculation and even gfwl might be getting the axe based on comments from the Bandai Namco people.

 

[JaseC]

Narco should have never let From develop the PC version. Let them develop some new content fine, but the actual port job should have been handed to someone that actually knows how to create a PC port, like Nixxes for example.

Agreed. Look what Nitro did with Alan Wake in six months, for another example. Dark Souls PC isn't to hit until August, which means it'll also have been in development for about the same amount of time and yet it's looking to be a joke of a port.

 

[Maedhros]

I'm sure it'll not have resolution lock, considering the guy don't know almost anything about PC development.

Also, I suggest that people bother Namco A LOT. They have forums, right?

 

[Sysgen]

Just Googled what you all are talking about and seriously, what is wrong with Namco / From. This isn't how you sell a PC Game. If it's going to look visually the same as the console version I will not under any circumstances buy the PC version. I'll Ebay it and play it on my PS3. How could they fuck this up? This title was destined to be a money train for them.

Edit: maybe jumping the gun here. Just give me normal PC graphic options, normal PC resolution support to enhance the visuals and no frame rate issues and I'll be fine.

 

[Raide]

Just Googled what you all are talking about and seriously, what is wrong with Namco / From. This isn't how you sell a PC Game. If it's going to look visually the same as the console version I will not under any circumstances buy the PC version.

Maybe they should have done a Kickstarter for it and get some money behind it.

 

[kamorra]

I will probably buy it anyway. Some smart modder will probably find a way to unlock any possible resolution/fps locks. I just want the new content.

 

[ROBOKITTYZILLA]

This sounds.... bad. How was Ridge Racer Unbounded on PC? Maybe they can source some resources from that team to help out? That was Steamworks at least.

 

[Clear]

Have people considered that the quality of the port is going to be largely down to the amount of time and money FROM have been given by Namco-Bandai to deliver it with?

You can wail and gnash your teeth all you want, but it isn't giving FROM more time and money to do more than they are planning on doing, and the simple truth is Dark Souls is a pretty big game, so just porting it straight and pushing it through QA represents a fair chunk of effort.

Miyazaki's inability to confirm/deny whether the console releases will get the additional content indicates strongly to me that Bamco have slapped a gag on him, which pretty much confirms that it will goto consoles AFTER the PC version releases. Because let's fact it, if it was simply never going to happen, there would be no reason not to announce that was the case definitively, thus adding more importance to the PC release.

So, most likely what we're looking at here is FROM being committed to releasing a PC port plus a multiformat expansion package within a relatively tight (<1yr) release window. That's a lot of work in a short time, especially given their inexperience with the PC platform. It's actually pretty decent of Miyazaki to be so honest about this upfront.

 

[fresquito]

I like keeping things simple:

- No GFWL or no buy
- 1080p or no buy
- 60fps or no buy.

I can get over no pretties being applied to the PC version, but these are needed if they want my money.

 

[Totobeni]

This sounds.... bad. How was Ridge Racer Unbounded on PC? Maybe they can source some resources from that team to help out? That was Steamworks at least.

Well it's not a Namco owned team to just do that, Bugbear Entertainment will costs them some amount of money to help, and sadly Namco/From want this port job to be as cheap as possible.

 

[H_Prestige]

Have people considered that the quality of the port is going to be largely down to the amount of time and money FROM have been given by Namco-Bandai to deliver it with?

You can wail and gnash your teeth all you want, but it isn't giving FROM more time and money to do more than they are planning on doing, and the simple truth is Dark Souls is a pretty big game, so just porting it straight and pushing it through QA represents a fair chunk of effort.

Miyazaki's inability to confirm/deny whether the console releases will get the additional content indicates strongly to me that Bamco have slapped a gag on him, which pretty much confirms that it will goto consoles AFTER the PC version releases. Because let's fact it, if it was simply never going to happen, there would be no reason not to announce that was the case definitively, thus adding more importance to the PC release.

So, most likely what we're looking at here is FROM being committed to releasing a PC port plus a multiformat expansion package within a relatively tight (<1yr) release window. That's a lot of work in a short time, especially given their inexperience with the PC platform. It's actually pretty decent of Miyazaki to be so honest about this upfront.

Are you telling us there's no magic PC port button and a switch they can flick on to turn on steamworks?

 

[Derrick01]

plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW
plz no GFW...

GFW would actually be an improvement over what we're getting now

 

[Clear]

Are you telling us there's no magic PC port button and a switch they can flick on to turn on steamworks?

No I'm simply pointing out that the imminent release-date pretty much guaranteed that this would be a quick and dirty port.

 

[charsace]

Who gives a fuck if the res and frame rate are locked and you need a controller to play it? As long as there is little to no slow down and its easy to run the game I'm ok with things being locked.