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[Toadthemushroom]

A New video from Digital Foundry comparing Monster Hunter Generations across both, er, generations of 3DS hardware has been published:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Orbz3Astxx4

In short: It's N3DS enhanced like 4 Ultimate, but the list of enhancements doesn't extend anywhere near as far as it did in 4U. For instance, unlike 4 Ultimate, which featured improvement to shadow resolution, texture filtering and texture quality, there are no visual improvements whatsoever in Generations.

The framerate advantage that N3DS enjoyed in 4U no longer exists because Generations does not have an uncapped framerate, instead it's locked to 30fps which both models can sustain. Uneven frame pacing plagues both versions of the game but is marginally less of an issue on N3DS, so I'd imagine N3DS is likely to hold 30fps in areas with framerate dips on both versions. DF didn't come across any areas in their testing where the original 3DS couldn't sustain 30fps, though.

One area where N3DS does noticeably excel at is load times, so I guess all three "game" CPU cores are being used, along with the extra level 2 cache.

The list of improvements is disappointing, especially as the game is actually N3DS, so I'd imagine extra testing would have been done to ensure the game runs well across the board in both original 3DS mode (1x 286Mhz ARM11) and New 3DS mode (3x 804Mhz ARM11, 2MB Level 2 cache). I guess this is why Sony has mandated all PS4 games include a NEO mode with enhancements post-October, as some publishers or developers aren't going to see a business case for it unless the platform holder goes all-out on it and makes it clear that the new model offers a technical advantage across the board.

Hopefully we see more New 3DS/3DS comparisons in the future. Please find a thread documenting all the games with enhancements to date over here.

 

[Nachtfalke]

What a bummer, but nice to see some handheld love at Digital Foundry.

 

[ArtHands]

So in summary: only advantages are faster load time and better hold at 30fps on the n3DS

I was told there's lesser "pop in" effect too

 

[L.O.R.D]

When you exit the game using n o3DS the system restart,but in n3DS it's exit normally.

 

[PotionBleue]

The lack of visual enhancements is really disappointing. Is it because this game was rushed (the ridiculously lacklustre monster intros being another clue)? Is it because of the flashier gameplay?

Even then, CAPCOM noticeably zoomed in the default camera view, which should have logically spared some resources…

This test by Digital Foundry is a bit of a joke though. It shouldn't be hard to go online with 3 other players and fight a big monster. I've noticed huge fps drops sometimes on my New 3DS when there are special effects such as snowballs involved.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

What a bummer, but nice to see some handheld love at Digital Foundry.

they had no real side by side rival platforms to compare games on, which is sad
at least they are trying to find ways to do this

 

[wwm0nkey]

Game looks sooooo bad on my N3DS XL compared to 4U

 

[Toadthemushroom]

When you exit the game using n o3DS the system restart,but in n3DS it's exit normally.

Aye, though that requires no work on the developer's part and is more an OS enhancement than an in-game software one. N3DS has more RAM so the OS doesn't need to reboot itself and disable some services in order to allocate more RAM for the game.

they had no real side by side rival platforms to compare games on, which is sad
at least they are trying to find ways to do this

I'd like to see a Zero Time Dilemma comparison. I plumped for Vita because I heard its framerate was better, but that's not the case after I went hands-on with a friend's copy of the game on 3DS.

Both games have an unlocked framerate but the framerate in escape rooms on 3DS is far smoother, which results in much more responsive and fluid analogue and touch controls, and the framerate in cutscenes is generally a match for Vita, sometimes smoother, sometimes less smooth.

Same goes for menus: the flow chart on 3DS is much more responsive and fluid than the Vita version. I thought it wouldn't be an issue given the game's genre but it makes such a difference in escape rooms and when navigating menus and the flow chart that I sometimes wish I went for 3DS instead. Especially game's assets seem primarily designed for 3DS as well. There are a lot of low-poly environments and objects which appear round in 3DS resolution but jagged on Vita. But at the same time some of the puzzles require you to pixel hunt, which is easier on the higher resolution Vita display. It's a tough call, really, it feels like the developers didn't know which format to truly focus all their resources on so the result is a hodgepodge that never feels perfect on either.

 

[Vandiger]

So in summary: only advantages are faster load time and better hold at 30fps on the n3DS

I was told there's lesser "pop in" effect too

Agree.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Disappointing after the MH4U improvements, but I guess they optimized it way better for vanilla 3ds systems

 

[Boney]

Disappointing after the MH4U improvements, but I guess they optimized it way better for vanilla 3ds systems

It really is.

 

[Mutagenic]

I wish I could transfer from my N3DSXL back to a regular 3DSXL and use my frankenstick. I like it a hell of a lot more than the nub. And because I put the game to sleep, I don't notice the increased boot up time as much.

 

[Luigiv]

When you exit the game using n o3DS the system restart,but in n3DS it's exit normally.

That probably explains why textures are the same in both versions. Running in that mode means the OG 3DS can match the N3DS in usable RAM.