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Based on what we know, will the PS4 will be THE multiplatform console next gen?

B

BruiserBear

Banned
I have general understanding of the hardware for the new consoles, but based on what we know right now, it would seem to me the PS4 will almost always have a multiplatform advantage.

- the consoles have the same CPU.

- the consoles have very similar GPUs, with the PS4 having a beefier version of what's in the new Xbox.

- both have 8 gigs of RAM, but the PS4 has much faster RAM.

- the PS4 has a rendering advantage with more ROPS.

- these are the most similar consoles in the history of console generations, in terms of architecture. In other words, they speak the same language. Unlike the PS3 and 360, where one spoke English and the other spoke Japanese.


So you're going to have developers creating code that will immediately be usable on each console. Very little effort will be required to put your game on both. It would seem to me there will be no more excuses for developers. "Porting" will barely even be porting anymore. Developers can just build their game and basically turn up the "settings" on the PS4 version, almost like a PC gamer would today if they suddenly put a better GPU in their rig.

Feel free to correct me if I've got anything wrong, but it would seem almost a given we're going to have a complete reverse of the current gen, where the Xbox almost always had a multiplatform advantage.
 
A

aegies

Member
It'll be the one that comes out first for the first 12 months, and then multiplat will focus on the lower spec machine as the baseline. Unless one of them flames out spectacularly.
 
Y

Y2Kev

TLG Fan Caretaker Est. 2009
Based on what we know, yes. But we only know for sure 50% of the equation.
aegies said:
It'll be the one that comes out first for the first 12 months, and then multiplat will focus on the lower spec machine as the baseline. Unless one of them flames out spectacularly.
Click to expand...
This didn't happen this gen. The ps3 gpu was asstrash and nobody really focused on ps3 for quite a while.

Regardless, it doesn't necessarily answer the question. Even if games are developed for the lower spec machine, they would run better on the higher spec one (perhaps marginally so, but not necessarily) by default.
 
R

RoboPlato

I'd be in the dick
Unless there's something huge we don't know about Durango's specs, it seems like it. At the very least there will be parity.
 
F

funkystudent

Member
MS have Epic and Crytek working on exclusives for xbox. Those engines will naturally favour the xbox regardless of the PS4's specs.

Most big publishers seem to be moving away from UE and no one seems to be picking up CryEngine so it probably isnt a huge deal like it was last gen but I think enough games will still use it to be a bit of a problem for pixel counters.
 
R

REV 09

Member
I guess, not sure why you'd ignore pc though. My big question is will either console be my multiplatform platform of choice or will I stick with pc. So far I'm leaning towards the pc.
 
G

gofreak

GAF's Bob Woodward
Yes, based on info out there so far.

Even if 'the lower one is the baseline', there'd be easy framerate and other wins that would come out of a more powerful system relatively transparently. And devs don't always do that anyway - they didn't always design around PS3's weaknesses for example.
 
B

BruiserBear

Banned
aegies said:
It'll be the one that comes out first for the first 12 months, and then multiplat will focus on the lower spec machine as the baseline. Unless one of them flames out spectacularly.
Click to expand...

I wrote that post based on the idea that they will target the weaker machine. But when you consider how similar the hardware is, and the architecture, wouldn't it be quite simple to just turn up the anti aliasing, or jack up the shadow quality for the PS4 version, just like a PC gamer would now?

In other words, they're so similar that taking advantage of those extra ponies in the PS4 should take very little effort, thus ensuring most devs will do it.
 
O

Osiris

I permanently banned my 6 year old daughter from using the PS4 for mistakenly sending grief reports as it's too hard to watch or talk to her
A

ace3skoot

Member
i think the clue is in the question, we don't know until microsoft plays its hand, but it was a strong opening gambit by sony.
 
I

i-Lo

Member
I hope for parity.

That said, PS4 looks to be in a better position right now.

aegies said:
It'll be the one that comes out first for the first 12 months, and then multiplat will focus on the lower spec machine as the baseline. Unless one of them flames out spectacularly.
Click to expand...

Hmm... I wonder why PS3 owners never saw this theory put into practice...
 
A

aegies

Member
Y2Kev said:
Based on what we know, yes. But we only know for sure 50% of the equation.

This didn't happen this gen. The ps3 gpu was asstrash and nobody really focused on ps3 for quite a while.

Regardless, it doesn't necessarily answer the question. Even if games are developed for the lower spec machine, they would run better on the higher spec one (perhaps marginally so, but not necessarily) by default.
Click to expand...

Developers started using PS3 as their baseline in 2008.

Edit: meaning, PS3 owners didn't always get the better version, but games and systems were designed around what would work on the PS3, at minimum. More work went into those versions of the game. The myth of the "half-assed PS3 port" is just that: mostly a myth.
 
E

Eideka

Banned
funkystudent said:
MS have Epic and Crytek working on exclusives for xbox. Those engines will naturally favour the xbox regardless of the PS4's specs.

Most big publishers seem to be moving away from UE and no one seems to be picking up CryEngine so it probably isnt a huge deal like it was last gen but I think enough games will still use it to be a bit of a problem for pixel counters.
Click to expand...

What could potentially make those games run worse on PS4 ? The system seems well balanced and easily accessible.

The absence of ESRAM is not a problem given the bandwidth of the PS4, frankly from what we know I would bet that a game designed with the PS4 specs in mind will prove very difficult to port down on the Xbox 720.

Of course they are details we don't know about yet but so far the next Xbox does not seem that attractive in my opinion. What happened to the rumor claiming that MS is not allowing devs to code to the metal ? This can't be true.
 
C

Corto

Member
We don't know half of what we need to know to begin to answer that question. But considering that the two consoles are rumored to be so similar (the true HD twins gen) in specs there will be no incentive or excuse to one version of a multiplatform title be noticeably better than the other.
 
G

gofreak

GAF's Bob Woodward
aegies said:
Developers started using PS3 as their baseline in 2008.
Click to expand...

Not universally. Many were still content to dev on 360 and then basically throw their game at PS3 and cross their fingers. There've been some very high profile, recent, examples that didn't turn out well at all.
 
Y

Y2Kev

TLG Fan Caretaker Est. 2009
aegies said:
Developers started using PS3 as their baseline in 2008.
Click to expand...
I am not ceding this point, but no one can argue with a straight face that multiplatform games were in any meaningful context design around the ps3's glaring weaknesses.
 
O

Osiris

I permanently banned my 6 year old daughter from using the PS4 for mistakenly sending grief reports as it's too hard to watch or talk to her
Corto said:
We don't know half of what we need yo know to begin to answer that question. But considering that the two consoles are rumored to be so similar (the true HD twins gen) in specs there will be no incentive or excuse to one version of a multiplatform title be noticeably better than the other.
Click to expand...

I don't know, free-to-play online vs XBL Gold would swing it towards Sony for me, if all other aspects have technical parity.

Sendou said:
I'm counting on Wii U.
Click to expand...

I laughed, I must admit :p
 
gioGAF

gioGAF

Member
Based on estimated specs alone, I would say yes. In reality, I'm almost 100% positive that it will not be, since Microsoft policy mandates that games released on their platform have to be equal or better in quality than versions released on any competitor's system.

Not a SINGLE third party developer has made a truly superior version of ANY game on the PS3. They haven't even cleaned up old ports that could have easily been fine tuned given the advances since the game was originally released. How is the original Mass Effect just as bad on PS3 in 2012 as is it was in 2007 on xbox 360?
 
K

Klocker

Member
MoogPaul said:
I have a strange feeling if microsoft blocks used games they'll have a ton of exclusives.
Click to expand...

yep not that I want it but why not sell 3 million on one console or sell 1.5 million over two (requiring more effort) while Gamestop gets the rest?
 
B

BrainZEROX

Member
Could very well be. Prototypes could be easier to pull out from PS4 or require less man power so, yes, the PS4 could end up being the lead development machine.

On the other hand, 720 seems to be very similar to 360 architecture wise. So similar that current 360 engines could scale very well resulting in cheap next gen development fees.

So... I don't know, maybe it's a win-win situation :)
 
C

CountAntonius

Member
So with all these new consoles will the majority of non exclusive games use the PC as the main development platform and port to consoles now?
 
G

gofreak

GAF's Bob Woodward
Reiko said:
Scratch that. Both consoles do not have the same CPU.


http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=47802013&postcount=996
Click to expand...

I think there was some dispute over whether this may have been a misunderstanding. I vaguely recall talk that there's a double-wide fp feature but operations takes twice the number of clocks or something like that (so effectively it's the same peak fp rate). I wasn't following the full thread of that conversation though.
 
K

Kagari

Crystal Bearer
gioGAF said:
Based on estimated specs alone, I would say yes. In reality, I'm almost 100% positive that it will not be, since Microsoft policy mandates that games released on their platform have to be equal or better in quality than versions released on any competitor's system.

Not a SINGLE third party developer has made a truly superior version of ANY game on the PS3. They haven't even cleaned up old ports that could have easily been fine tuned given the advances since the game was originally released. How is the original Mass Effect just as bad on PS3 in 2012 as is it was in 2007 on xbox 360?
Click to expand...

Final Fantasy XIII?
 
sublimit

sublimit

Banned
Doesn't MS have a rule that gives them the right to not allow a multiplatform game on their system if they think it's inferior from the other versions?

Edit:Beaten.
 
T

Takuya

Banned
gioGAF said:
Based on estimated specs alone, I would say yes. In reality, I'm almost 100% positive that it will not be, since Microsoft policy mandates that games released on their platform have to be equal or better in quality than versions released on any competitor's system.

Not a SINGLE third party developer has made a truly superior version of ANY game on the PS3. They haven't even cleaned up old ports that could have easily been fine tuned given the advances since the game was originally released. How is the original Mass Effect just as bad on PS3 in 2012 as is it was in 2007 on xbox 360?
Click to expand...

MGS4

mwuahaha
 
O

Osiris

I permanently banned my 6 year old daughter from using the PS4 for mistakenly sending grief reports as it's too hard to watch or talk to her
Meelow said:
Nintendo's huge surprise for E3.

I'm not going to lie, a generation where a Nintendo console gets all the third party support again would be nostalgic.
Click to expand...

Nostalgic?

I think the word you were looking for was "Historic" :p
 
E

Eideka

Banned
gioGAF said:
Based on estimated specs alone, I would say yes. In reality, I'm almost 100% positive that it will not be, since Microsoft policy mandates that games released on their platform have to be equal or better in quality than versions released on any competitor's system.
Click to expand...

That's unfair for Sony. MS should blame their hardware instead of developpers who want to make the most out the systems.
 
C

Cookie18

Member
It really depends on what Microsoft do. If they fuck up and make the 720 online only and unable to play used games then something like that could harm the system so much that the PS4 is default.

On the other hand Sony could fuck up with something we don't know about yet and send it in Microsofts direction.

I think the one thing we can safely say is that the default console definitely won't be the Wii U.
 
S

sleepykyo

Member
aegies said:
Developers started using PS3 as their baseline in 2008.

Edit: meaning, PS3 owners didn't always get the better version, but games and systems were designed around what would work on the PS3, at minimum. More work went into those versions of the game. The myth of the "half-assed PS3 port" is just that: mostly a myth.
Click to expand...

Could have fooled me.

Wish I could have quoted pre-edit. Not saying anything about the monumental effort on the staff that got stuck porting the games to the ps3, but the end results don't seem to reflect games being tailored around the PS3.
 
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