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Kotaku details the five possible states of Xbox One games (multitasking info)

K

Killthee

helped a brotha out on multiple separate occasions!
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Stephen Totilo said:
The Five Possible States of Xbox One Games Are Strangely Exciting

Caveat: this Xbox One development info was circulated by Microsoft to its partners at the beginning of this year. It may have changed, but based on what we saw this week, probably not in any major way.
1) Running: The game is loaded in memory and is fully running. The game has full access to the reserved system resources, which are six CPU cores, 90 percent of GPU processing power, and 5 GB of memory. The game is rendering full-screen and the user can interact with it.

2) Constrained: The game is loaded in memory and is still running, but it has limited access to the system resources. The game is not rendering full screen in this state; it either is rendering to a reduced area of the screen or is not visible at all. The user cannot interact with the game in this state. System resource limits in this state are four CPUs, 5 GB of memory, and 45 percent of GPU power if the game is rendering to a reduced area of the screen, or 10 percent of GPU power if the game is not visible.

3) Suspended: The game is loaded in memory but is not running, meaning that the system has stopped scheduling all threads in the game process. The game has no access to CPUs or to the GPU processing power, but it still has the same 5 GB of memory reserved.

4) NotRunning: The game is not loaded in memory and is not running, and the system has no game-history information about the previous execution of the game. A game would be in NotRunning state in any of these three scenarios:
-The game has not been run since the console started.
-The game crashed during the last execution.
-The game did not properly handle the suspend process during the last execution and was forced to exit by the system.

5) Terminated: The game is not loaded in memory and is not running, which is identical to the NotRunning state in terms of system resource usage. Terminated state, however, indicates that during the last execution of the game, the game process was successfully suspended and then terminated by the system. This means that the game had a chance to save its state as it was suspended; the next time the game is activated, it can load this previous state data and continue the user experience from the same position. A game, for example, can start from the same level and position in the player’s last session without showing any front-end menu.
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Got all that? Suddenly, saving and pausing games seems so pedestrian, doesn't it?
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Good stuff, love this under the cover type info.

Edit: I'm wondering if Skype, running from the other 3GB can be run at the same time as a game. I'm guessing yes, since it would have up to 10% of the GPU and 2 cores.
 
AgentP said:
Good stuff, love this under the cover type info.

Edit: I'm wondering if Skype, running from the other 3GB can be run at the same time as a game. I'm guessing yes, since it would have up to 10% of the GPU and 2 cores.
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Yeah, that's the point of how they're doing Skype. It runs during any game. It is presumably working off the app OS, not the game OS, and therefore is using the RAM dedicated to that.
 
I imagine Skype video calls will force a game into Constrained mode. NM, didn't notice it would cut off the ability to interact with the game in this state.
 
That's some great information. I think the most interesting part of this is in the "running" state. It confirms the 5 GB for games and 6 cores rumoured before, and adds the "90% GPU" limitation that I never heard of up to now.

Clearly, XB1 is more like a PC and less like earlier consoles in terms of game control over the system and multitasking.
 
Durante said:
That's some great information. I think the most interesting part of this is in the "running" state. It confirms the 5 GB for games and 6 cores rumoured before, and adds the "90% GPU" limitation that I never heard of up to now.

Clearly, XB1 is more like a PC and less like earlier consoles in terms of game control over the system and multitasking.
Click to expand...

So now the GPU has a theoretical 1.1tf? Will PS4 also reserve GPU resources?
 
BlazingDarkness said:
But the article states the user can't interact with the game in the Constrained state - so what would be the point of Skype calls while you play?
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Caught me before the edit ^_^;

Constrained must be when they pull out to the home menu then and snapping in apps should be possible while the game is Running going off of what Totilo said.
 
1) Running: The game is loaded in memory and is fully running. The game has full access to the reserved system resources, which are six CPU cores, 90 percent of GPU processing power, and 5 GB of memory. The game is rendering full-screen and the user can interact with it.

2) Constrained: The game is loaded in memory and is still running, but it has limited access to the system resources. The game is not rendering full screen in this state; it either is rendering to a reduced area of the screen or is not visible at all. The user cannot interact with the game in this state. System resource limits in this state are four CPUs, 5 GB of memory, and 45 percent of GPU power if the game is rendering to a reduced area of the screen, or 10 percent of GPU power if the game is not visible.
Click to expand...
Man a lot of work is going to be needed to get this to work.

At all time the game has to be able to run on 4 cpu core[50% cpu power] and 45% of gpu power. Just to open IE your game loses a ton of power. I would be shock if this doesnt hold back games.
 
USC-fan said:
Man a lot of work is going to be needed to get this to work.

At all time the game has to be able to run on 4 cpu core[50% cpu power] and 45% of gpu power. Just to open IE your game loses a ton of power. I would be shock if this doesnt hold back games.
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Shouldn't be a problem, since the game doesn't allow interaction in that state.
 
The multitasking was one of the things I was most excited about.

It looks fantastic. Hope the PS4 can pull it off in a similar capability.
 
I don't get what's the point of the constrained state, all others make sense. If the user's not going to interact with it, why not use the suspended state?
 
coldfoot said:
I don't get what's the point of the constrained state, all others make sense. If the user's not going to interact with it, why not use the suspended state?
Click to expand...

I imagine that's how we'll be able to queue up a search for multiplayer matches while using another app.
 
50D1A745-8888-471D-984F-63F214CC169C-130-000000192B4F7054_zps4360e4a1.jpg


Still don't really understand everything-- are these theoretically possible states or actual different states in which the games will be running? Either way, looks like one in the plus column for ol Kotaku
 
If Xbox One can only use 5Gb for games and PS4 can use 7GB. Won't that have a significant impact on multiplatform development?
 
  1. WORKING
  2. NOT WORKING due to no Internet connection
  3. NOT WORKING due to no Kinect present
  4. NOT WORKING due to used game
  5. NOT WORKING due to game borrowed from friend
 
SneakyStephan said:
So the thing doesn't even have a real savestate? It clears the savestate when you turn off the console? What kind of garbage is that.
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It saves your gamestate, probably to the HDD, when you terminate the game. When you reboot you can pick up exactly where you left off, no menus and startup logos.

Brian Crecente said:
"One of things that we haven't talked about is the way the saved game architecture works," said Ben Kilgore, corporate vice president of Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment Business. "It's more like a phone a little bit. So you are not going to lose your save game stuff as you are switching between tasks."

Game designers can still decide whether their games will also feature more traditional save points, Kilgore said, but all games will include the ability to stop playing a game and have it essentially save instantly.

For instance, Kilgore said, a player could stop gaming for the day, and then come back the next day and say "Xbox on," and the console would "bring you right back to where you were in the game."
Click to expand...

http://www.polygon.com/2013/5/22/4354614/xbox-one-lets-you-save-and-restart-your-game-at-any-point

LyleLanley said:
I imagine that's how we'll be able to queue up a search for multiplayer matches while using another app.
Click to expand...
That's a good point. Forgot about that.

ctkayedisto said:
50D1A745-8888-471D-984F-63F214CC169C-130-000000192B4F7054_zps4360e4a1.jpg


Still don't really understand everything-- are these theoretically possible states or actual different states in which the games will be running? Either way, looks like one in the plus column for ol Kotaku
Click to expand...
Possible states all games must support so the OS can easily multi task.
 
I am like on the verge of tears right now.

Does anyone remember when games had one F$%^ING STATE? On!

Jesus! If this is the future of gaming I don't want to be a part of it.

Where is Doc Brown and the Delorian?
 
cyberheater said:
If Xbox One can only use 5Gb for games and PS4 can use 7GB. Won't that have a significant impact on multiplatform development?
Click to expand...

You'd think - but devs usually build around the lowest common denominator. Technically Im not sure how difficult it is to factor in benefits to utilise that extra 2GB of a higher speed on the same multi-plat title. Anyone?
 
The article is about game states, not necessarily app states (which are running on the other OS I believe). I imagine that certain classes of apps will be able to run in the background (voip, music for example). Anything else would be kind of silly.
 
Rogue_Ledr said:
I am like on the verge of tears right now.

Does anyone remember when games had one F$%^ING STATE? On!

Jesus! If this is the future of gaming I don't want to be a part of it.

Where is Doc Brown and the Delorian?
Click to expand...

Remember when everyone despised touch screen phones a while ago and now everyone has them?

I bet once you experience the multitasking state stuff, you will be wondering how you ever owned consoles without it.
 
cyberheater said:
If Xbox One can only use 5Gb for games and PS4 can use 7GB. Won't that have a significant impact on multiplatform development?
Click to expand...

I reckon third parties cater to lowest common denominator, perhaps PS4 will have a bit better textures etc.
Exclusives will be much better on PS4 for sure though.

EDIT got a neat avatar from the article
 
LyleLanley said:
I imagine that's how we'll be able to queue up a search for multiplayer matches while using another app.
Click to expand...
That's an incredible amount of system resources reserved for just matchmaking. If all you're doing is waiting for a match, a "background" mode would have been better just like we have on smartphones. You could be playing another game while waiting for your next COD match.
 
... isn't this article just describing the various states a process can be in in an operating system? I mean, obviously there are some Xbone intricacies, but this is literally what every computer that multi-tasks does. Heck, even the 3DS does this to some degree.
 
Woorloog said:
I reckon third parties cater to lowest common denominator, perhaps PS4 will have a bit better textures etc.
Exclusives will be much better on PS4 for sure though.

EDIT got a neat avatar from the article
Click to expand...

with MS moneybagging everyone, Xbone might get the best console multiplats on content alone.
 
Rogue_Ledr said:
I am like on the verge of tears right now.

Does anyone remember when games had one F$%^ING STATE? On!

Jesus! If this is the future of gaming I don't want to be a part of it.

Where is Doc Brown and the Delorian?
Click to expand...

The termination/save state sounds amazing. It is great on the Vita and will be great on a full console.
 
flamingotripod said:
Remember when everyone despised touch screen phones a while ago and now everyone has them?

I bet once you experience the multitasking state stuff, you will be wondering how you ever owned consoles without it.
Click to expand...
lol why not used you phone or tablet to multitask. I really do not understand building a console around this. If I want to look something up while im gaming i just glab a phone or tablet.
 
Cidd said:
How does this compare to the PSV?

isn't the same thing?
Click to expand...

I think so, sounds like it. It's a great feature and it'd be incredible for anyone to spin it as a a negative. It's the best thing about vita, and if you think about PSP had a primitive version of it. It went to a save state when you put it to sleep, but wiped everything if you turned it off.
 
AzaK said:
What truly has happened for a game's quality to be reduced to a TF number.
Click to expand...

only the TF number has nothing to do with any game in particular but the power of the system as a whole, which effects what games can and can't be made on said hardware, and what can and can't be done in the games that can be made on said hardware. This matters to people looking for a next generation game console so in your case I probably wouldn't care as much
 
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