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Digital Foundry vs Uncharted 3

You can't compare the Gears 1 train level to Uncharted 2's. The train level in Gears (or any other game) is a static level like all the rest with a moving background to create the illusion of a train. Uncharted 2's train is actually moving through scenery. And the fact that you can move on these movable, dynamic levels adds a ton of complications.

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/new...Dog-Says-Train-Level-Almost-Broke-Uncharted-2

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/among-friends-how-naughty-dog-built-uncharted-2
 
Some people are trying too hard to put UC3 down, it is a monumentally impressive game, its showcase set pieces are insane and only rivaled by God of War 3.

Anyway, that's a poor technical analysis like I said in the UC3 OT.
 
Usually love these articles, but this is total bullcrap:

Uncharted 2 was the game that changed everything, redefining the third-person genre, setting new standards in technology, production values, characterisation and gameplay. Its legend is so powerful that any faults it may have had are perhaps forgotten in a haze of happy nostalgia.

You need only look at other third person shooters or action games released between then and now to see this is false. Reads like a fanboy jerking off.

Whatever, didn't get to the good part yet.
 
Aklamarth said:
Using duplicated data to overcame the seeking speed of the shitty bluray drive is hardly "unparalleled". Also let's get 1 thing straight : the game looks gorgeous in some places (yemen, france) and kind of ugly in others (syria). But just because ND has some great texture and shader artists doesn't make their tech "unparalleled" . I mean, come on, it's a 3rd person shooter (without open spaces i might add) with gorgeous graphics . What's so unparalled about that ?!
I'm sorry, but you don't know what you're taking about.

There is no other game on the market today with real time scenes like the cruise ship and cargo plane in U3. Most developers don't even attempt scenes like those, let alone execute them so well.
 
Aklamarth said:
Using duplicated data to overcame the seeking speed of the shitty bluray drive is hardly "unparalleled". Also let's get 1 thing straight : the game looks gorgeous in some places (yemen, france) and kind of ugly in others (syria). But just because ND has some great texture and shader artists doesn't make their tech "unparalleled" . I mean, come on, it's a 3rd person shooter (without open spaces i might add) with gorgeous graphics . What's so unparalled about that ?!

Doesn't sound like you read the article. ^_^

They didn't mention duplicated data on BR. They talked about streaming long animation from BR, with no mandatory HDD install.

They also mentioned the new DOTS system with physics based objects, rather than artist animation (like in U2). The entire boat level is a dynamic physics system with Nate fighting in a large object, rocking on simulated waves. It's unique every time you play it.

Etc.
 
Aklamarth said:
Using duplicated data to overcame the seeking speed of the shitty bluray drive is hardly "unparalleled". Also let's get 1 thing straight : the game looks gorgeous in some places (yemen, france) and kind of ugly in others (syria). But just because ND has some great texture and shader artists doesn't make their tech "unparalleled" . I mean, come on, it's a 3rd person shooter (without open spaces i might add) with gorgeous graphics . What's so unparalled about that ?!

Do you know they're using duplicated data or are you just making shit up?
 
lool another uncharted 3 thread

One 8 hour game gets 30 threads
Dark Souls gets banished to the community forum


I love both games :)

Uncharted deserves all the recognition it can get for its technical prowess, I haven't seen a game that comes close to it in that area.
 
Those set pieces in UC3 are awesome. Now if they would get some character animation tips from Rocksteady or Ubisoft, we'd really be on to something.
 
Riposte said:
Usually love these articles, but this is total bullcrap:



You need only look at other third person shooters or action games released between then and now to see this is false. Reads like a fanboy jerking off.

Whatever, didn't get to the good part yet.
Which ones to be exact? There are very few games, on consoles, that rival the full UC2 package.
 
I posted in the OT that this was like a semi-review from Digital Foundry. Very uninformative mostly, he mentions nothing about the AA.
 
Conciliator said:
Those set pieces in UC3 are awesome. Now if they would get some character animation tips from Rocksteady or Ubisoft, we'd really be on to something.
Ubisoft? The fist fighting animations in Arkham City were fantastic so I get Rocksteady but all of the climbing and jumping stuff looked way better in UC3 than in AC.
 
That desert scene was a sneak peak at next gen..soo good.

I question the call to use MLAA over the previous games AA though. I'm not sure what that freed up in terms of power but it hurts the vistas due to shimmering imo.

Oh well, the game is mindblowing throughout, props to ND.
 
Lion Heart said:
That desert scene was a sneak peak at next gen..soo good.

I question the call to use MLAA over the previous games AA though. I'm not sure what that freed up in terms of power but it hurts the vistas due to shimmering imo.

Oh well, the game is mindblowing throughout, props to ND.
I'm pretty sure the game doesn't use MLAA but ND's own AA solution.
 
RoboPlato said:
Ubisoft? The fist fighting animations in Arkham City were fantastic so I get Rocksteady but all of the climbing and jumping stuff looked way better in UC3 than in AC.

If a teleporting Nathan were part of the narrative, it would make more sense I think.
 
Uh, what makes the Uncharted 2 train sequence (and falling building, and the last level) impressive is that it's entirely dynamic.
 
Sullichin said:
lool another uncharted 3 thread

One 8 hour game gets 30 threads
Dark Souls gets banished to the community forum


I love both games :)

Uncharted deserves all the recognition it can get for its technical prowess, I haven't seen a game that comes close to it in that area.

By the gods, what injustice to Dark Souls. No wonder I haven't seen the thread lately.
 
Massa said:
Uh, what makes the Uncharted 2 train sequence (and falling building, and the last level) impressive is that it's entirely dynamic.

Cool? It's still hardly "revolutionary". It's incredibly impressive technically, but ultimately it's a case of Naughty Dog doing something well, not doing something new.

Also, define dynamic in this case. The train is moving through an endlessly looping set of terrain that changes when you make enough progress, from what I recall.
 
Sol.. said:
Red Dead Revolver had a phenomenal train stage.

Siphon Filter too.

BigJiantRobut said:
Cool? It's still hardly "revolutionary". It's incredibly impressive technically, but ultimately it's a case of Naughty Dog doing something well, not doing something new.

Also, define dynamic in this case. The train is moving through an endlessly looping set of terrain that changes when you make enough progress, from what I recall.

Read the article to identify the differences.
 
BigJiantRobut said:
Cool? It's still hardly "revolutionary". It's incredibly impressive technically, but ultimately it's a case of Naughty Dog doing something well, not doing something new.

"It's too hard / it's not possible / it's not worth it" is what a programmer would say to Uncharted 2 on paper.

Instead ND looked at that problem and said "ok, let's do it". The results speak for themselves and those scenes are still among the most impressive in video games ever.

But no, they didn't invent 3D. :p
 
Sol.. said:
Red Dead Revolver had a phenomenal train stage.

Siphon Filter too.

It was GREAT for a sandbox game but frankly its hard to compare to any of the uncharted2/3 set pieces. The level of detail in a dedicated shooter like uncharted is obvioulsy much greater.
 
BigJiantRobut said:
Cool? It's still hardly "revolutionary". It's incredibly impressive technically, but ultimately it's a case of Naughty Dog doing something well, not doing something new.

Also, define dynamic in this case. The train is moving through an endlessly looping set of terrain that changes when you make enough progress, from what I recall.
Well, when something hasn't been done that way before, it's new. The concept of gameplay on a train wasn't new. It was the execution that was so amazing.

Have you played the train level in Uncharted 2?
 
Massa said:
"It's too hard / it's not possible / it's not worth it" is what a programmer would say to Uncharted 2 on paper.

Instead ND looked at that problem and said "ok, let's do it". The results speak for themselves and those scenes are still among the most impressive in video games ever.

But no, they didn't invent 3D. :p

BruiserBear said:
Well, when something hasn't been done that way before, it's new. The concept of gameplay on a train wasn't new. It was the execution that was so amazing.


I'm not trying to slight ND here, I'm just pointing out that the article is a bit of hyperbole. Uncharted is undoubtedly master class from a technical perspective, but I don't think it's "revolutionary" in the sense that its setpiece programming has caused a dramatic shift in the industry. How many other games have we seen with Uncharted 2's approach to level/setpiece design since Uncharted 2? Enslaved is all I can think of, and I highly doubt Enslaved's scenes were constructed the same way Uncharted's were. What's impressive is Naughty Dog's design approach, not Uncharted's long lasting imprint on the industry.

BruiserBear said:
Have you played the train level in Uncharted 2?

Of course I have. What sorta question is that?
 
It's too difficult to follow ND's implementation !

Although to be fair, like other first parties, ND did share some of their techs out.
 
Conciliator said:
Those set pieces in UC3 are awesome. Now if they would get some character animation tips from Rocksteady or Ubisoft, we'd really be on to something.

Uncharted 3's character animation is on a whole other level than anything anyone else is doing in videogames. That goes for the stupendously varied in-game animations, and the hyper detailed facial animations in cutscenes. Un-real.
 
I think it shows how bad of an Uncharted 3 tech analysis this is when most of the tech talk in the thread is about Uncharted 2.


Anteater said:
I wonder if someone is going to make a thread when the patch is out
Probably an OT thread title update.
 
Angelus Errare said:
Not sure if serious. The train is basically staying still and the background is moving. You can click anywhere in the video and Gabe and the train will be in the same area. That's what they're getting at. In Uncharted the train is moving from point A to point B.
Of course I'm not serious. It's just so funny, lol. That run animation to where we are today with Drake.
 
Y2Kev said:
Of course I'm not serious. It's just so funny, lol. That run animation to where we are today with Drake.

And then you watch the new Rainbow Six concept video and suddenly the where-we-are-with-tech is not so funny anymore.
 
RoboPlato said:
I think it shows how bad of an Uncharted 3 tech analysis this is when most of the tech talk in the thread is about Uncharted 2.



Probably an OT thread title update.

I wouldn't call it bad but it does lack major info, like details on volumetric lighting, insight on how they optimized from u2 to u3 when ND already fully utilized available resources, the drugged effect (post processing ?), sand and fire simulation techniques in U3, better eyes animation, MP design, etc.

U3 seems to have a lot more content than U2, when everything is considered.
 
hey_it's_that_dog said:
Drake most definitely does not. Marlowe and Elena sometimes do. Sully is usually fleshy.
Nope, still too plastic like.They need better mapping on the faces like crysis.
 
There are a few console games that are on the same level of Uncharted 3. Some of them are multiplatform so people ignore them.
 
charsace said:
There are a lot of console games that are on the same level of Uncharted 3. Some of them are multiplatform so people ignore them.
Yeah the fuck right. Uncharted is in a league of its own, shared only by other PS3 exclusives and maybe Gears 3.
 
charsace said:
There are a few console games that are on the same level of Uncharted 3. Some of them are multiplatform so people ignore them.

As long as DF analyzed them, people talked about the outcome. Not sure why you think people ignored them.

This thread is only 2 page long.
 
Y2Kev said:
Of course I'm not serious. It's just so funny, lol. That run animation to where we are today with Drake.
That video makes me want naughty dog to make a syphon filter game
 
TacticalFox88 said:
Yeah the fuck right. Uncharted is in a league of its own, shared only by other PS3 exclusives and maybe Gears 3.
Agreed. Only PC games running much more recent hardware look and run better.
 
TacticalFox88 said:
Yeah the fuck right. Uncharted is in a league of its own, shared only by other PS3 exclusives and maybe Gears 3.
ROFL. Gears 3 is top notch in every way. And there are great looking multiplatform games.

Battlefield 3
Crysis 1 and 2
Metro 2033
RDR
GTA4
Assassin's Creed Brotherhood

Are all technically impressive and all multiplatform. People on here love to act like Uncharted is on its own level. That isn't the case.
 
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