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From Software responds to Dark Souls II graphics downgrade concerns
- Thread starter Poetic.Injustice
- Start date
Called it.
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=104729166&postcount=2717
At least fix the framerate on PS3, for god's sake.
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=104729166&postcount=2717
At least fix the framerate on PS3, for god's sake.
Well, there's a reason the OT is already on its second incarnation while the downgrade threads aren't THAT huge. There's some people seriously upset, and maybe a lot of people disappointed to some extent. I'd be more disappointed if they showed areas that simply didn't exist in the final game, but fortunately this wasn't a repeat of Aliens or for a more benign example Zelda: OoT.
... Although I do wonder what happened to those masked people in the unveiling trailer. I guess
they all became astronauts instead or something.
test_account
XP-39C²
Personally, i wouldnt care at all if the PC version looks better or not. I love good graphics and all that, but the Souls games are so good on their own that some better graphics wouldnt really impact the game that much for me.
Did FROM say that the early builds they shown were from the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions by the way?
Sorry but why exactly is it fine for a company to advertise a particular upcoming product in a way which doesn't reflect the final product at all, leaving it up to consumers to find out for themselves at release? Of course this needed answering.
The_Darkest_Red
Member
I know what you're saying and I agree in principle but this is a video game forum you're posting on.
DrROBschiz
Member
Can someone explain this?
PC version was
- Lead Platform
- Already stated to be significantly better than the console versions visually
I would be really surprised if the PC version ends up being close to the console versions despite their rocky track record.
Relaxed Muscle
Member
TGS build was PS3.
As so was the PlayStation Access video.
They only said resolution and framerate.
The reason people think the PC might get the old lighting is because speculation in our part, not becuase From or Namco said so.
PS3, yes. Repeatedly.
David Incorporated Esq.
Member
Turn your brightness all the way down, the game ends up looking a ton better without sacrificing playability one bit.
No it doesn't. It shows that people are against this shady business practise, simple as that.
As much as I would love to have the beta graphics in the retail PC version, I seriously doubt that they have a complete different level layout, assets, lighting engine, geometry, etc. Its From and I have basically no faith in them.
Pyramid head
Banned
"The final game looks like what it looks like. We are very happy that nobody who reviewed our game was discerning enough to notice that it looked nothing like the material we've been putting out!"
test_account
XP-39C²
I see. Thanks for the info.
UnrealEck
Member
Well they're using screenshots from the old build on the game's page on Steam, which is essentially like screenshots on the back of a physical copy. It's like saying "this is what you're buying."
Soooo, I guess that means the PC version will remain unchanged from those earlier builds.
...or of course they're lying again.
Soooo, I guess that means the PC version will remain unchanged from those earlier builds.
...or of course they're lying again.
SargerusBR
I love Pokken!
First of all, we have like 5-6 threads about this very subject already, no need to create another one.
Second, the positives of the game outweight the negatives of it. I listed the negatives both in the beta test and in my impressions of the full game.
They specifically mentioned texture resolution and framerate. Nothing at all about the lighting which is the major point of contention.
The_Darkest_Red
Member
I'll be honest, Dark Souls II is not a particularly nice looking PS3 game. It doesn't run very well either. Optimization, performance, and graphical fidelity have always been some of FROM's weaknesses.
David Incorporated Esq.
Member
enbshaders. One and done.
Yes oh my god you'll have to download a third party thing but whatever.
That's probably a relatively easy mode to darken the game. The game WAS darker going by the beta but I guess everyone falling to their deaths in a narrow corridor (without the torch mechanic explained at all, naturally) meant they did a crap bandaid fix that made the whole game lighter. If that's how it is then I definitely can see a mod that readjusts that.
Though I also think they needed to either make the torch unlimited or set for a limited duration that gets upgraded over time until you hit a bonfire (or buy the damn things) so the mechanic is kind of FUBAR'd anyway, even if modding fixes it that's probably the kind of stuff that'd push it straight into hacking territory and thus no online play. Unless they made a pathetically frail security system, then we're screwed period.
Yeah, it's why I'd be more sympathetic with the frustration if Crytek or Naughty Dog were being racked over the coals over this stuff, their games are ostensibly graphical showcases. But Dark Souls II is... man, just put it at a playable framerate and don't be too hideous.
New news = new thread and how in the name of fuck do your impressions of the game have anything to do with this topic?
Pie and Beans
Look for me on the local news, I'll be the guy arrested for trying to burn down a Nintendo exec's house.
When the PC version comes and goes, From will hopefully be forced to drop this "fuck you, we got paid" approach to this whole debacle. Thats if it doesnt feature all the lighting and stuff clearly cut from console versions over "performance". I feel especially weird about it all because I got the chance to play the PS3 Beta with some of the lighting stuff still in. I got to play the superior product for FREE?
I'm pretty upset that Dark Souls 2 *DID* end up as something I should have always worried about dragging the franchise down over. Probably my favourite game series of the now, but I'm sat here waiting on the off-chance the later PC release isn't the same garbled blend of great and hideous while each non-answer makes me lose more and more respect for the developers
I'm pretty upset that Dark Souls 2 *DID* end up as something I should have always worried about dragging the franchise down over. Probably my favourite game series of the now, but I'm sat here waiting on the off-chance the later PC release isn't the same garbled blend of great and hideous while each non-answer makes me lose more and more respect for the developers
PepsimanVsJoe
Member
Probably should have let Namco/Bandai provide the non-answer instead of coming up with one yourself From.
SargerusBR
I love Pokken!
bob_arctor
Tough_Smooth
I have. No Man's Wharf has made me.
The torch lighting mechanic still looks pretty good on consoles. But the ambient lighting for certain locations is nonexistent and very flat and bland. Only a few locations looked pretty so far.
Haunted
Member
The scary thing is that they could squash all the rumours about the PC version getting the downgraded lighting as well so easily, but are choosing not to do so.
Hopefully it's because they're trying to "protect" the console versions as long as they're still in the launch phase and only throw them under the bus when we're closer to the PC version's release date.
Hopefully it's because they're trying to "protect" the console versions as long as they're still in the launch phase and only throw them under the bus when we're closer to the PC version's release date.
From got too big for their own britches. I still feel like they were never meant to be under the spotlight. They had such humble beginnings too. I mean, like, NO ONE used to talk about their games. They strike "gold" with the Souls games and they (and partly due to the publisher) fall into the same trappings a lot of "AAA" developers/publishers find themselves in.
It's a shame too, because after having now played the game, I think the lighting stuff and how it's incorporated with the gameplay is still very much present and interesting. The problem is, as most have suggested, is the fact that they showed/"promised" it to look a certain way and it doesn't. If they demoed the game from the get-go with the current build I would have had no issues/problems with From and this game, but sadly that isn't the case.
Oh well, I've got some good memories of From back from the good old days, when no one gave a shit about their games.
It's a shame too, because after having now played the game, I think the lighting stuff and how it's incorporated with the gameplay is still very much present and interesting. The problem is, as most have suggested, is the fact that they showed/"promised" it to look a certain way and it doesn't. If they demoed the game from the get-go with the current build I would have had no issues/problems with From and this game, but sadly that isn't the case.
Oh well, I've got some good memories of From back from the good old days, when no one gave a shit about their games.
I never said it was fine. I said the question was aimed (and come to think of it, also framed) badly because from the looks of this thread, people did not get the answer they were expecting.
People are willing to wait and see if they PC version or a possible Current gen version will be improved over the last gen versions, I don't see what is so surprising about that.
I played the souls series years after their release and enjoyed them just as much as everyone else.
I know what you're saying and I agree in principle but this is a video game forum you're posting on.
I know man, and I do understand that I'm trying to fight the inevitable here.
It's just called advertising.
Dark Souls II doesn't look as good as it does advertised.
I'm not sure if 8 out of 10 cats really do prefer Felix either, but that doesn't justify a nerd-rage sweat fest every time Kibbles doesn't eat his lunch.
I've been playing on PS3 and I haven't really noticed any frame rate drops that have impacted my enjoyment of the game whatsoever. Same thing with the graphical changes. And I'm down to what I assume to be the last few areas of the game.
That said I will be double dipping on PC version.
That said I will be double dipping on PC version.
Garcia
Member
"The final version of Dark Souls II displays the culmination of this delicate balance and were very proud of the positive media and fan reception for the game.
So they're happy with a product that has bugs and problems like:
This is happening to a lot of disc based PS3 users. Why did they ship that crap in the first place? If they were aware of this they should have sticked to digital only.
So they're happy with a product that has bugs and problems like:
- Objects and enemies materializing out of thin air.
- Flickering shadows and light sources.
- Out of sync sound effects.
- Mob animations either freezing entirely or moving at lower FPS (like 5 FPS low).
- Input lag both in the menus' and HUD screens.
- Input lag during gameplay (character not reacting at all).
- Player being "smelted into the wall" during a Boss fight.
- Painful loading times (18 seconds on average for me: quickest was 14s. longest took 42s.)
- Very inconsistent framerate (going from the higher 10s up to 60fps when nothing is happening on screen)
- Holes in geometry.
- Enemies not reacting to the proximity of the player.
This is happening to a lot of disc based PS3 users. Why did they ship that crap in the first place? If they were aware of this they should have sticked to digital only.
That's my problem with it. I already figured the console game wouldn't look like the original video shown, but in many, many places, it just doesn't look as good as Darks Souls 1. Sure it can look pretty mesmerizing when you're holding a torch in a dark (or grey) area, but there are so many other things that I feel take a step backwards that the new lighting doesn't make up for it. I was at least expecting something graphically on par with its predecessor and it's just not.
I don't think we have to worry about developers investing in features and then purposefully throwing away that work at the end of development, no. This is a waste of money that most try to avoid. What happened here is unfortunate but nobody gained anything from the situation.
Garcia
Member
And with each passing day everything slowly points towards: PC version = Consoles.
Wait, people think this was planned, that they did this on purpose to decieve their audience? The consoles weren't performing adequately so things changed in the optimization phase. Yeah the communication sucks but some of these one liners insinuate something more sinister. Not sure those folks know too much about the development process.
Messofanego
Banned
Damn. Sounds rough all around.
Arthr2ShdsJcksn
Banned
Obvious answer, and totally acceptable. What they were able to accomplish on these old systems is pretty remarkable, and am completely used to games looking better prior to release.
bob_arctor
Tough_Smooth
No Man's Wharf! Torch looks great there plus is actually useful against those....things.
Has anyone mentioned if playing on VGA mitigates some of the gamma issues? Playing with Intermediate reference settings, I get a good balance of dark blacks and detail.
Also, the 360 version's framerate seems really damn solid, if not outright brisk, so far. Uncapped framerate probably responsible and I'm not too affected by screen tear generally.