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Dark Souls 2 Lighting changes/Downgrade

doofy102

Member
I am only about an hour into the game, but the lighting is just sadness. I have probably passed 15 places I could have lit with a torch that are just useless to do so. Everything is well lit, I can see the enemies.

I can only imagine how much depth is now missing from this game due to the omission of the proper lighting. It's more than a graphical downgrade, it's missing a major gameplay mechanic. I think it is really frustrating when people say, "looks fine to me".

Damn, I was worried about this :(

The game is simply unfinished. Namco made an awful call.
 

Garcia

Member
Last gen systems are terrible. PS3 has like what 512mbs of RAM?
never mind the fact that it's actually 256x2
I just use that as an example that last gen systems are terrible and it's possible that From decided to work on gameplay and general mechanics over graphics, since there isn't all the much father you can push last gen systems anyway.

I'm slowly convincing myself that this is the case. You know what the problem here is though: They falsely advertised their game and delivered a heavily compromised version of their original concept.

Nothing of this caliber would be happening had they not misled the public.

This game vastly lacks atmosphere. Even the original Dark Souls had more charm going on in its most uninspired areas (like the vertical tunnels before Blightown or the gigantic branches that led you down to the Ash Lake). Nothing like that is present here. It's either "wow, that's gorgeous" or "shit, that looks terrible".
 
hilarious:D

I think that's so unfair though.

Last gen systems are terrible. PS3 has like what 512mbs of RAM?
never mind the fact that it's actually 256x2
I just use that as an example that last gen systems are terrible and it's possible that From decided to work on gameplay and general mechanics over graphics, since there isn't all the much father you can push last gen systems anyway.

I think they did a good job given the tools at their disposal. I'd wait to judge them until after we see a PS4bone Souls game.

They are shit, that's why the framerate is shit, why the resolution is shit, why there's no decent texture filtering and why there's low quality effects etc etc

but this ps2 style lighting on environments is beyond ps360 shittyness
dragon's dogma dark arisen represents ps3/360 shittyness graphics wise but it still has a good atmosphere, pitch black darkness, dynamic shadows, a day and night cycle etc
it shows that those old shitty consoles can at least do a lot more than what ended up in dark souls 2
 

doofy102

Member
1bnwu16.png


I didn't know Dark Souls 2 had been a PS3 launch title all along.
 

Grief.exe

Member
They are shit, that's why the framerate is shit, why the resolution is shit, why there's no decent texture filtering and why there's low quality effects etc etc

but this ps2 style lighting on environments is beyond ps360 shittyness

We can only hope the PS4/XBO generation doesn't last very long. Going to need to refresh that hardware quite quickly.
 

Vesper73

Member
Found footage of the mansion of the dragons. There's no way anybody anywhere can't claim this game hasn't been completely gutted. Just look at this shit, LOOK AT THIS SHIT:

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1a67u94.png

1bnwu16.png


2ad9u9b.png

2bp2uhl.png


3a1zun3.png

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4apku5b.png

4bbljpc.png


5aecuyc.png

5bosug5.png


6a0purt.png

6bd8uov.png


7ateukc.png

7bkkubu.png


8ai8u2g.png

8bddu5a.png

....I want someone to come in here and defend this steaming stool of a downgrade! It's so far out it's comical! It's not even close! ...... Unbelievable!
 

Ahasverus

Member
Stop with the Last Gen blaming. We've seen comparable teams making far far far superior looking games than this one. Metro, Witcher 2, Lords of Shadow, pretty much al Capcom games, all overly superior.
 

B-Genius

Unconfirmed Member
A beta isn't a finished product, a beta or an alpha is not a promise either, the whole point of beta testing is to see how things are working in an actual game scenario, and then make changes based on the data collected and feedback. From didn't promise to deliver the beta, the promised to deliver a sequel to Dark Souls, which they did, and with flying colors based on my 8 hours with it and the great reviews. To say reviewers, who are paid to review the product at hand, should do anything other than review the finished product is ludicrous, they should editorialize to a certain extent, but the ultimate goal is to review the product in front of you. If the game is worse than thw beta in some way it should be holistically reflected in the review as an overall indictment of the game in questions quality, not some weird diatribe about how they are a petulant child and From pissed in their cereal. The sense of entitlement, institutionalized bias, and catering to vocal minorities who act like spoiled adolescents (maybe some actually are) is why games journalism is a joke. Oh and the widely accepted bribing too.

Please keep the above in mind when pursuing your line of questioning, folks.

I'm not saying no one has the right to be upset, and it's clear there have been some changes since earlier builds we've seen. However, in From's self-published videos/interviews, they have either used CG/in-game cutscenes, or talked about features such as the lighting as "goals for the E3 build/network beta test".

If you feel like you've been promised something that hasn't been delivered in the retail product, or advertised something falsely, you'll need to take it up with Bandai Namco, as they are responsible for the vast majority of the marketing/promotional material.

Even so, if you feel you're entitled to an explanation then I will say good luck to you, because BN has probably covered their trail with fine-print or legal shenanigans at some point down the line.

I'm not trying to apologise on From's behalf, and I'm not part of some internet defence force with nothing better to do than toot the horn. I'm just asking people to be rational and try approaching this from another perspective. I realise that as consumers, many are disappointed with what they are seeing, and I think From would be the first to admit that they run into both technical and artistic issues when it comes to optimising their games. However, as developers they have delivered the product they set out to achieve, with interesting gameplay at the heart of their philosophy. Whether they met their goals in this respect is subjective, and as Daschysta says, should be examined as part of the completed product.
 

Soriku

Junior Member
Well, From weren't kidding when they said "current-gen still holds more possibilities for us."

lol. Many more possibilities...

Serious question though. Do you guys think if this game were in the hands of more competent devs, would it be possible for the game to retain the original (intended?) look throughout the whole game, or is it really beyond the scope of current gen consoles?
 

GribbleGrunger

Dreams in Digital
I suppose they have to decrease the quality so that the next gen versions look much better ...

I'm still getting this game though. I've seen a couple of let's plays and it looks great.
 

Ahasverus

Member
lol. Many more possibilities...

Serious question though. Do you guys think if this game were in the hands of more competent devs, would it be possible for the game to retain the original (intended?) look throughout the whole game, or is it really beyond the scope of current gen consoles?
No doubt about it. Last gen gave us Tomb Raider, GTAV, DmC, Halo 4, the Uncharteds o course, GoWs, the LoS, Metro, Witcher 2 on 360, it could be achieved by a ood team. I know I'm in the minority but I've always thought Dark Souls looked like horrible crap, but this is somehow just as crap with worse artstyle.
 
lol. Many more possibilities...

Serious question though. Do you guys think if this game were in the hands of more competent devs, would it be possible for the game to retain the original (intended?) look throughout the whole game, or is it really beyond the scope of current gen consoles?

Let's put it this way: the original demo doesn't look better than Uncharted 3 (THE RETAIL VERSION. Apparently we have to make that distinction now...), which is obviously possible. EDIT: and has plenty of dynamic lighting + torches in the game as well

I really don't want to trash From for not delivering as good a graphical showcase as U3. I'm not a Souls fan for its graphical prowess, although a sublime art direction was definitely part of the appeal. But I'm saying these changes aren't inherently because of the currrent gen hardware.
 

Curious_George

Neo Member
Mansion of dragons pics make me sad but I can also totally see why they had to downgrade it. In the original they had torches all over the place. If PS360 can barely handle one torch with decent FPS, that many torches would have been Blighttown all over again or worse. Clearly they either overestimated their ability to optimize for last gen or overestimated the hardware's ability to handle their new engine. I suppose that, or they just never planned for that version to make it on PS360 to begin with (and in that case, they should have be much more forthright from the beginning about what was being shown).
 

Soriku

Junior Member
I suppose they have to decrease the quality so that the next gen versions look much better ...

I'm still getting this game though. I've seen a couple of let's plays and it looks great.

Has a dev downgraded a game to this extent to do this before? They even got rid of the importance of the torch mechanic which seems really drastic. People keep saying this, but I think it's just jumping to conclusions.

1080p/60 FPS and just being available on a next gen system seem like enticement enough...

Let's put it this way: the original demo doesn't look better than Uncharted 3 (THE RETAIL VERSION. Apparently we have to make that distinction now...), which is obviously possible.

I really don't want to trash From for not delivering as good a graphical showcase as U3. I'm not a Souls fan for its graphical prowess, although a sublime art direction was definitely part of the appeal. But I'm saying these changes aren't inherently because of the currrent gen hardware.

Souls games are bigger than Uncharted though, and Dark Souls 2 is supposed to be even bigger than the first game. Would it still be possible to maintain the lighting and such across the whole thing?

Maybe with more time and a bigger budget?

You really have to wonder how well From is going to manage into next gen.
 

Garcia

Member
Even so, if you feel you're entitled to an explanation then I will say good luck to you, because BN has probably covered their trail with fine-print or legal shenanigans at some point down the line.

Yes, they have. That's why there are disclaimers below the released trailers and in the kilometric agreement that pops up once you put the disc in the console.
 
for the 'it's because of the consoles being so old'
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zju9n3NHIU&t=4m40s

dd dark arisen is an open world rpg and the dark arisen expansion is very similar to dark souls
(it also has the torch mechanic and pitch black darkness and enemies that can two shot you and whatnot it is amazing, go play it while you're waiting for the hopefully non neutered pc version of DS2)

compared to this...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C74ISJe3RBs&t=17m10s
that is just frigging tragic
 

web01

Member
Mansion of the dragons doesn't just look like a downgrade looks its has been completely gutted and missing final texture and shaders. How can they think its acceptable to release a game that looks like that? No one could genuinely believe that is finished. Seems like Bandit Namco is pushing out another unfinished game early.

Also playing the Network test the torch mechanic was fantastic knowing its been stripped form the game because of the graphics downgrade is completely sad.
Clearly the game is unfinished when a major gameplay mechanic is axed right before release and there wasn't even time to remove all the remnants of it.
 

doofy102

Member
What is Vaati's involvement with Dark Souls again? Is he just a very famous youtuber, or does he have some bigger involved on the development/marketing side of it?

At this point Vaati has access to as much information as anybody else and is really just a youtuber so people should stop hassling him.
 

Damigos

Member
it is indeed a downgrade.
I am hoping for a PS4 release so i can play maybe the best game of all time on glorious 1080p60
 
At this point Vaati has access to as much information as anybody else and is really just a youtuber so people should stop hassling him.

Yeah, I was about to say... :/

He's just a very excited fan who's having fun with the game. I think we need to focus our Twitter efforts toward Namco-related accounts.

Hey, I actually made a video comparing the original demo to the final game. Sort of shot for shot.

Dark Souls 2 - April 2013 Vs Retail Lighting and Graphics Comparison

Fantastic video! OP should edit the first post to put this front and center, it perfectly summarizes the issues with the retail release in just over 4 minutes. Much better for thread newcomers to watch the video than read 53 pages of us ranting our heads off.
 
Woah that video, seeing it side by side like that at the same time
where the hell did all the geometry in the environment go like the clutter and the bricks on the doorframe etc? also the specular highlights on the wall ...

the first 2 mins, if we hadn't seen what happened to the game yet (pretend it's 6 months ago) and someone told you that video is a mod for oblivion that someone made to recreate that part of the trailer for the lulz, noone would question it
 
What is Vaati's involvement with Dark Souls again? Is he just a very famous youtuber, or does he have some bigger involved on the development/marketing side of it?

At this point Vaati has access to as much information as anybody else and is really just a youtuber so people should stop hassling him.

As others have replied, he is a YouTube personality, has a lot of fans and has done a lot in the community to keep the fires/passion for Souls going with his vids and lore.

Although I personally liked his early stuff. He seems torn between being an apologist for From and being an objective pundit, but with his large subscriber base he has a pulpit.

Edit, I wasn't trying to hassle him, he didn't think so and said I was reasonable.
 

doofy102

Member
As others have replied, he is a YouTube personality, has a lot of fans and has done a lot in the community to keep the fires/passion for Souls going with his vids and lore.

Although I personally liked his early stuff. He seems torn between being an apologist for From and being an objective pundit, but with his large subscriber base he has a pulpit.

I'm just tired of people saying things to him like, "You have to admit though the graphics are worse." What's the point? We don't need him at all to push this.

edit: looking forward to his lore and interesting facts vids though
 
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