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[Kralamoonard]

Fallout 4: Is It Next-Gen Or Not?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCI-I7LADdM

Frame Rate Tests

Fallout 4 PS4 vs Xbox One Frame-Rate Stress Tests

Fallout 4 PS4 vs Xbox One Frame-Rate Test

Graphical Comparisons And Technical Analysis

Fallout 4 Console vs PC Graphics Comparison

Fallout 4 PS4 vs Xbox One Graphics Comparison

Fallout 4 HDD's Improving Performance On Consoles

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/d...d-drives-boost-xbox-one-fallout-4-performance

What Does It Take To Run Fallout 4 At 1080p60?

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2015-the-best-pc-hardware-for-fallout-4-4023

Read The Full Article For More Info

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2015-fallout-4-face-off

...but to summarise:

"Fallout 4 is a game at odds with itself; an arresting open-world adventure with a staggering number of moving parts, but also one where its engine trembles under its demands. Having picked apart all three versions at length, it's fair to say PlayStation 4 and Xbox One each have unshakeable performance issues that can't be ignored. However, in visual terms they fall very close to one another - and at its top settings, PC adds some interesting touches over the console experience.

Let's rattle off the basics first: the 1920x1080 checkbox is readily ticked for both consoles, and pixel-counting gives us the precise same return. It's a state of affairs that perhaps points to Xbox One as the focus for Bethesda at the start of Fallout 4's development, and visuals are almost entirely matched with PS4. We have an accomplished implementation of temporal anti-aliasing on each console too, while texture map quality, shadows and even the quality of specular mapping in rain are a direct match...

Overall, while visuals on all three formats are closely matched at a micro level, PC's broader draw distances, higher shadow quality and more refined god rays set it apart, while the ability to run at custom resolutions and higher frame-rates clearly improves the overall experience. As for PS4 and Xbox One, parity is achieved at just about every visual setting; from the native 1080p image, to texture quality, effects and shadows. Even LOD settings are identical, save for one long-distance shot of Lexington - a one-off example of Xbox One resolving more geometric detail. We cast a wide net out to find any other contrasts, but in every other area, each console is even.

The frame-rate situation on console is disappointing though. Scenarios such as an empty corridor producing a locked 20fps are just one example among many of a title that could really use some thorough optimisation. Fallout 4's stutters and hiccups only add to the trouble here, especially on Xbox One when switching weapons mid-fight. PS4 has its own struggles though, with effects-heavy battles taxing the hardware to a greater degree, despite holding a better frame-rate while traveling the world at large. And of course, our tests can't feasibly factor in the state of play with hundreds of hours on the clock - though we hope that lessons have been learned from Skyrim here.

The game's stability also bears mention. We've suffered numerous crashes on each format; three times on PS4, and twice on PC and Xbox One. Thankfully, the game auto-saves regularly, though in one case our latest save file appeared corrupt on return. Elsewhere, we've been caught several times in an infinite loop of loading screens, having died a split-second after auto-saving. It's the unpredictability in the glitches that adds to the issue - there are variables that will create frustrating situations unique to each player. Technically, it's a disappointing result, but only because there's a high-quality game underneath the technical issues..."

TLR

• Both consoles have graphical parity, and with PC they have graphical parity at ultra settings (such as the ambient occlusion method, alpha effects, motion blur, water shaders, screen-space reflections, texture quality and filtering), except the god rays, draw distances, shadows and resolution/frame rate, which can all be higher on PC.
• Frame rate sees drops down to the 20's on both consoles w/microstutters, PS4 drops when heavy alpha effects are seen (e.g. shooting) whereas X1 sees more drops in general open world traversal.
• Both consoles run a native 1080p display with a good implementation of texture filtering (~8x AF?) and a good AA solution (they use TAA, temporal anti-aliasing).
• Poor shadow draw distances however with a cascade effect exacerbating shadow pop-in, and pixelation can creep around volumetric light shafts producing a stair-stepping effects, and are rendered at 480x270.
• Low resolution textures, coupled with low level implementation of ambient occlusion, basic tessellation of some objects and low shadow draw distances means the game can look rough in places.

Screenshots Comparing The Graphics

A Quick GIF Highlighting The Difference Between Console And PC [Thanks Li1quid]*

*I just thought I'd add some perspective to the GIF above, courtesy of Tom from Digital Foundry:

From a distance like that, obviously, a lot is cut away on PS4 - but it's all there on the ground level. That's just the most extreme case of LODs at play.

Personal Thoughts

Of course Bethesda's Fallout 4 is bigger and better than ever, and a tangible upgrade over its predecessor is certainly evident. Although some questionable changes to the various systems can prove to be controversial, one cannot deny the sheer scope, scale and atmosphere of the world. However, since this is strictly a technical thread, let's keep the topic about that.

Despite looking better than Fallout 3 (which one should naturally expect from last-gen game compared to a current-gen game), the graphics and technical performance leaves a lot to be desired. To simply put it, Fallout 4 feels graphically unimpressive in 2015. This is apparent when you notably have other open worlds that are just as open, yet more graphically impressive than Fallout 4 (Witcher 3 for example). But these issues are bigger than just the graphical fidelity; it's a problem that is at the core of Bethesda's engine. You have animations that still have the same 'Bethesda jank' to them, and in 2015, this is simply not acceptable. You can also clearly see in the videos above that the Gamebyro/Creation engine just does not cut it anymore, doing the hardware at hand a great disservice. The engine on consoles and varying PC's is actually struggling in many areas of the game where there isn't even any strain/demand on the hardware at all. And then you have the engine unable to cope with the hard drives of the consoles thus causing noticeable stuttering, which has to be fixed with a SSD hard drive until it's patched.

Whether Bethesda will continue using this engine for the next Elder Scrolls game remains to be seen, but I can guarantee one thing: the reception will be even less amicable if the same problems and issues plague the next game (even if Fallout 4's issues/bugs/glitches have been reduced compared to Bethesda's last game).

 

[cyberheater]

Disappointing frame rates on consoles.

How is it possible that the Xbox One and PS4 perform the same when the PS4 is a lot more powerful. It sucks.
I'm not going to support a dev that does this.

 

[Garlador]

Disappointing frame rates on consoles.

How is it possible that the Xbox One and PS4 perform the same when the PS4 is a lot more powerful. It sucks.
I'm not going to support a dev that does this.

Bethesda finds a way. Bethesda always finds a way.

 

[cheezcake]

Disappointing frame rates on consoles.

How is it possible that the Xbox One and PS4 perform the same when the PS4 is a lot more powerful. It sucks.
I'm not going to support a dev that does this.

CPU limited?

 

[Zombie James]

Forced parity on top of shit performance. Fuck off, Bethesda. The level of technical incompetence is mind blowing.

 

[timlot]

Disappointing frame rates on consoles.

How is it possible that the Xbox One and PS4 perform the same when the PS4 is a lot more powerful. It sucks.
I'm not going to support a dev that does this.

Maybe they forgot to use PS4's hUMA?

 

[Your Entertainer]

I still maintain that you're really missing out by playing a bethesda game on consoles

 

[c0de]

CPU limited?

Could very well be, of course. But I think it will be discussed to death and there will still be people who expect more.

 

[ElTorro]

CPU limited?

On the PS4 I see effects-related frame drops in virtually every fire fight, for instance, the splatter effects after shooting somebody with a shotgun. The problems are not all CPU-related.

 

[Mastperf]

It's a great game but I'm disappointed in the visuals and performance.

 

[Elios83]

CPU limited?

Nope, unoptimized and bugged code the PS4 is brute forcing.
Make no mistake, the PS4 version got the least development time.
Bethesda's priorities are PC->XB1->PS4 in that order.

We'll see with patches but I doubt they'll care. They'll fix bugs shared across all the versions.

 

[warheat]

Summary

Overall, while visuals on all three formats are closely matched at a micro level, PC's broader draw distances, higher shadow quality and more refined god rays set it apart, while the ability to run at custom resolutions and higher frame-rates clearly improves the overall experience. As for PS4 and Xbox One, parity is achieved at just about every visual setting; from the native 1080p image, to texture quality, effects and shadows. Even LOD settings are identical, save for one long-distance shot of Lexington - a one-off example of Xbox One resolving more geometric detail. We cast a wide net out to find any other contrasts, but in every other area, each console is even.

The frame-rate situation on console is disappointing though. Scenarios such as an empty corridor producing a locked 20fps are just one example among many of a title that could really use some thorough optimisation. Fallout 4's stutters and hiccups only add to the trouble here, especially on Xbox One when switching weapons mid-fight. PS4 has its own struggles though, with effects-heavy battles taxing the hardware to a greater degree, despite holding a better frame-rate while traveling the world at large. And of course, our tests can't feasibly factor in the state of play with hundreds of hours on the clock - though we hope that lessons have been learned from Skyrim here.

The game's stability also bears mention. We've suffered numerous crashes on each format; three times on PS4, and twice on PC and Xbox One. Thankfully, the game auto-saves regularly, though in one case our latest save file appeared corrupt on return. Elsewhere, we've been caught several times in an infinite loop of loading screens, having died a split-second after auto-saving. It's the unpredictability in the glitches that adds to the issue - there are variables that will create frustrating situations unique to each player. Technically, it's a disappointing result, but only because there's a high-quality game underneath the technical issues.

In review, Bethesda's ability in world-building is in strong evidence across Fallout 4. The team has put together a ruined cityscape that bubbles with creative flair; a world that's well worth the time and energy to explore, and at a pace of your own choosing. However, a certain tolerance for technical issues is needed to fully enjoy it, especially on console. If you're at all sensitive to frame-rate drops, the PC version comes especially recommended. If only for the performance boost, it's simply the version that lets you get to the game's genuine strengths with the fewest distractions.

 

[hwy_61]

Forced parity on top of shit performance. Fuck off, Bethesda. The level of technical incompetence is mind blowing.

Forced parity? Because of the marketing deal with MS?

 

[Saucycarpdog]

PC stay winning.

 

[endlessflood]

I still maintain that you're really missing out by playing a bethesda game on consoles

I agree. You could be using that time to play a console game by a different developer. One who uses an engine which is fit for purpose, for example.

 

[Kabuki Quantum Lover]

Forced parity? Because of the marketing deal with MS?

Some folks found a strange entry in the main gb_settings.ini file.

forceParity = TRUE;

 

[Einchy]

PC stay winning.

Not really, it has a lot of FPS issues as well. If you check out the performance thread you will see people getting a lot of sub 30 FPS drops in cities and anywhere with a lot of geometry.

 

[fluffydelusions]

I'm playing on PC and it runs great even on my laptop. Ultra textures / high everything else minus god rays and getting mostly 1080p/60 fps. No crashes 25 hours in. (Asus g751 with 970m laptop BTW)

 

[Breakfast at Noon]

I agree. You could be using that time to play a console game by a different developer. One who uses an engine which is fit for purpose, for example.

Bugs and frame rate aside, I'm personally loving this game

Also what other dev makes games that are similar to fallout and elderscrolls? And dint say witcher because.. its not.

 

[Starfield]

PC stay winning.

well its a PC

 

[c0de]

So again we have an op which doesn't make clear who won so people have to read the article? Good.

 

[jet1911]

Forced parity? Because of the marketing deal with MS?

Because of tales from his ass.

 

[Kezen]

The PC version is not without its fair share of issues across a wide spectrum of hardware but on capable hardware (modern Core I5 + 960/R9 285) it is no small jump over what consoles have to offer.
http://www.techspot.com/review/1089-fallout-4-benchmarks/page2.html

Not impressed graphically but the art saves it in most cases. Much higher framerates (hovering between 50 and 60fps with vsync) helps appreciating the game even more.

 

[orochi91]

Some folks found a strange entry in the main gb_settings.ini file.

forceParity = TRUE;

Lmao

 

[Li1quid]

Half the game is missing in the console version

 

[Gurish]

PC stay winning.

Like it did with Batman?

Seriously, PC is obviously much more powerful but this is a disastrous port on consoles, it's hard to draw any conclusions and comparisons other than Bethesda messed up.

 

[hwy_61]

Some folks found a strange entry in the main gb_settings.ini file.

forceParity = TRUE;

Rofl

 

[Ysiadmihi]

Difference is HUGE. So many details are lost in the console version..

lol jesus christ

 

[ShamePain]

From what I remember hearing Bethesda's programmers aren't very comfortable with any API other than DirectX, so maybe developing for ps4 was hard for them. idk, sounds bullshit of course.

 

[RowdyReverb]

Some of those stutters and dropped frames on the consoles described really sound more like bugs than performance problems. Hopefully the performance gets better with patches (or mods?)

 

[On Demand]

Disappointing frame rates on consoles.

How is it possible that the Xbox One and PS4 perform the same when the PS4 is a lot more powerful. It sucks.
I'm not going to support a dev that does this.

People really thought Bethesda was going to give PS4 a graphical advantage? Come on.

They probably developed it on XB1 first then ported to PS4. PS4 version is literally the XB1 version. XB1 being at 1080p meant PS4 will be getting its sacrifices too.

 

[Mifec]

Like it did with Batman?

Seriously, PC is obviously much more powerful but this is a disastrous port on consoles, it's hard to draw any conclusions and comparisons other than Bethesda messed up.

runs better on PC now even though it's still shit :3

But yeah basically like it does with about 98% games.

 

[Gurish]

From what I remember hearing Bethesda's programmers aren't very comfortable with any API other than DirectX, so maybe developing for ps4 was hard for them. idk, sounds bullshit of course.

Well maybe they are like CDP that seemed to have some trouble with PS4's API as well, but at least they fixed most of the problem, would you bet on Bethesda doing the same? yea right.

 

[KKRT00]

Half the game is missing in the console version

And thats without uGrid and other distance tweaks like grass rendering.

 

[ironcreed]

It's a fun game, but it's got some sho nuff jank. As is the case in all Bethesda games, but the cracks are really starting to show more for a new title in 2015. While I am having a good time, it still feels like a step back in ways and does not even come off as grand as Skyrim did for me back in 2011.

 

[Orayn]

From what I remember hearing Bethesda's programmers aren't very comfortable with any API other than DirectX, so maybe developing for ps4 was hard for them. idk, sounds bullshit of course.

I've got a friend doing work in a primarily DirectX environment on PC and XB1, but he said porting his game to PS4 was a pretty painless process and they achieved the framerate they were aiming for pretty quickly.

Other sources have generally described Sony's API as being pretty straightforward and easy to work with, so I don't really buy the idea that it's a major limiting factor.

 

[Gurish]

runs better on PC now even though it's still shit :3

But yeah basically like it does with about 98% games.

The bottom line is that this is a bad port on consoles more than which platform is more powerful, it shouldn't run like this and it's all on Bethesda.

 

[Kralamoonard]

Half the game is missing in the console version

Thanks, will add that to the OP (if you don't mind of course!) as that is quite a large difference.

 

[Saucycarpdog]

Like it did with Batman?

Seriously, PC is obviously much more powerful but this is a disastrous port on consoles, it's hard to draw any conclusions and comparisons other than Bethesda messed up.

All these flavors and you choose to be salty?

 

[KingBroly]

Half the game is missing in the console version

Holy shit.

 

[Li1quid]

Thanks, will add that to the OP (if you don't mind of course!) as that is quite a large difference.

Sure, no problem but always credit where is due

 

[Saty]

Sometimes i don't get the comments made by the authors. You don't need to see the PC and PS4 versions side by side to notice the glaring lack of shadows on consoles.

 

[Caayn]

Half the game is missing in the console version

Is this with or without the ini tweak that allows graphic settings beyond ultra?

 

[Li1quid]

Is this with or without the ini tweak that allows graphic settings beyond ultra?

Picture is straight from digital foundry, so I guess standard F4 without tweaks.

 

[Trago]

Sometimes i don't get the comments made by the authors. You don't need to see the PC and PS4 versions side by side to notice the glaring lack of shadows on consoles.

But it's tech analysis between the different versions. Why wouldn't they?

 

[tuxfool]

I've got a friend doing work in a primarily DirectX environment on PC and XB1, but he said porting his game to PS4 was a pretty painless process and they achieved the framerate they were aiming for pretty quickly.

Other sources have generally described Sony's API as being pretty straightforward and easy to work with, so I don't really buy the idea that it's a major limiting factor.

It would depend greatly if he is traditionally a console developer. It should be simple to port between DirectX and GNMX, but not so to GNM. That would be akin to porting between DX11 and DX12 (or any other low level api).

 

[nubbe]

Shadows do so much for the visual experience

 

[Crossing Eden]

Is this with or without the ini tweak that allows graphic settings beyond ultra?

Pretty sure that's without.

 

[gogojira]

It's a lot more than just shadows, but that's what draws the eye initially. There are so many ground level things missing, but up close they've got to be in, right? That has to just be a draw distance thing.

 

[Radec]

Sony getting assed again even with the better hardware.

Classic Bethesda.