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Massive's Snowdrop Engine: The Division

Going by a pure graphics perspective:


This one is easily the saddest I think. The picture on the right looks like a level editor screenshot with all effects disabled. It hardly even looks like there's any lighting at all. The skybox is also gone or covered up.



Looks like a very primitive screen space reflection. Basically they take the lightest parts of the screen, and reflect it at super low blurred resolutions on objects with set to reflect it in it's materials properties. That or dynamic cubemap (It's been so long since I've worked with those, I'm not sure how good they've gotten).

As for the second picture, looks like generic baked lighting to me. The issue I have here is look at the trash bags in your first picture. Notice that inbetween them, it's almost black in terms of lighting? Then look at the I beam girders, and it's all lit up in there. It looks flat because of that and unnatural.

edit: Hit submit button early darn it.

I agree. It is definitely not true indirect illumination. At most, it may be using a technique to fake it somehow. There are many ways to do this, but the end result always ends up looking washed out with too much ambient light on the screen instead of having primary or secondary light sources indirectly brighten up or change the color of other objects locally/accurately.
 

theWB27

Member
Yes the lightning is totally amazing.

Yet the interactivity with the world is non existent. A nice looking world with no way to interact with the enviroments.

Meh

What kind of interaction are you wanting? Glass shattering, walls getting shot up, shooting paint cans and rats and dogs and TV screens and tires and blowing up cars is environment interaction.
 

Kiant

Member
It's a shame my friends are all on PS4, would look great on my PC. Excellent OP.

Doesn't hurt it's only like £23 on PC too.
 

Theorry

Member
How is the graphics on the Xbox One version?

screen3edrnu.png


screen4n0qka.png


screen1cyqac.png


screen2sloyh.png
 

Some PS4 shots:

24089691523_fb0d5e3d3f_o.png

24348868719_7e155964c8_o.png


I saw a comparison version between all three platforms and the visual differences were minor. Mostly in shadow details and LOD on far distant buildings in the background. Some people are asking for xbox one screens as if that game is missing objects flat out or something when that isn't the case.
 

Orca

Member
could someone test the car glass breaking dynamics in a video? in the original footage there seemed to be a complex simulation going on. shooting holes in close proximity made the sections in between fall away realistically (basically a more realistic version of what happens in resistance fall of man). so you could essentially "cut out" holes in glass with gunfire. another thing that impressed me in the reveal but i've not seen in footage so far. same goes for the billboard bullet holes with light passing through. is that still present and correct?

Side windows look really good when you shoot them out, with smaller pieces falling and all that. The windshields weren't able to be destroyed that way, at least that I noticed. Probably because you can walk on them when you're jumping on the car to shut the hood/trunk.
 

golem

Member
Probably more of a gameplay choice than an engine issue, but i am disappointed by the seeming lack of bullet penetration on any cover in the game
 
As stated above it is

-Tomorrow Children.
-Kingdom Come: Deliverance
-Fable Legends?

That is it for real time.
All Crytek games since Crysis 2 have dynamic gi as well, however their approach is very limited, as it relies on screen space data.

Fable legends uses the same idea, but it uses a voxel structure instead of screen space, so it can handle situations Crytek's engine can't.

Quantum break also has dynamic gi, they are mixing screen space and voxel approximations to get the beat performance per quality ratio.
 
All Crytek games since Crysis 2 have dynamic gi as well, however their approach is very limited, as it relies on screen space data.

Fable legends uses the same idea, but it uses a voxel structure instead of screen space, so it can handle situations Crytek's engine can't.

Quantum break also has dynamic gi, they are mixing screen space and voxel approximations to get the beat performance per quality ratio.

Completely forgot about that. That will be interesting to see in its final game form.

I think Crysis 2 and 3 on consoles shipped with LPV being off though. It is on on PC though.
 

ethomaz

Banned
I don't know why this thread because the game took a massive downgrade.
The difference between announce and Beta is crazy.
 

Foffy

Banned
Isn't the PC version fucking doomed because you can hack the game via client side and the server side does nothing about authenticating it?

I feel so sad for those getting it on PC, knowing in hours it will be hacker city.
 

tuxfool

Banned
Isn't the PC version fucking doomed because you can hack the game via client side and the server side does nothing about authenticating it?

I feel so sad for those getting it on PC, knowing in hours it will be hacker city.

Instead of propagating suppositions as if they were facts, how about we wait until they say something or the game releases, before making such claims with certainty?

It also bears repeating that such an architecture doesn't insulate consoles from man in the middle attacks.
 
Probably more of a gameplay choice than an engine issue, but i am disappointed by the seeming lack of bullet penetration on any cover in the game

There is definitely cover that can be penetrated. In particular, there is plywood covering glass in many spots that can be shot through. I do think weapons should have penetration ratings though, and materials should take that into consideration,
 

Disxo

Member
He does.

I agree, this was the most important question to be asked. I'm surprised it took this long for this vital piece of technical information to be clarified.
Funnily enough I thought that wasnt in the game and now it kinda hypes me.
 

BigTnaples

Todd Howard's Secret GAF Account
I don't know why this thread because the game took a massive downgrade.
The difference between announce and Beta is crazy.

Aside from blanket statements can you articulate your opinion a little bit better?


Also, this thread is not so much about the downgrade, the comparison was to get the downgrade out of the way. Yes GI was stripped from the game, at least the current form.


However, can you name an effect specifically that was in the trailers that is not in the beta? Or can point to specific things that are better in the older builds?

Regardless of the announce. That was 3 years ago. A lot of game changed in between then, and any reasonable individual should understand that. A lot changed in the game even between 2014 and this beta. Game development is not static.

However, the game is capable of making streets just as crowded and congested with trash and debris as the announce, and some street ARE like that. But, for gameplay reasons, IE its hard to have firefights on bags of trash, assets were moved. It's not that the game can't handle it. It's that the game is still a game, not a movie.


But on topic, this thread was meant more as a celebration of the amazingly impressive engine/gameworld that massive has created. Not to say "Well it still is not as good as the vertical slice from 3 years ago!". Yes, certain things like GI were downgraded, others, like model detail, textures, etc, were upgraded.
 

Foffy

Banned
Instead of propagating suppositions as if they were facts, how about we wait until they say something or the game releases, before making such claims with certainty?

It also bears repeating that such an architecture doesn't insulate consoles from man in the middle attacks.

Fact is you can already get proof of what I am talking about, and by the very nature of how they designed the game, they all but promised this to be an easy as hell thing to do. They didn't plan an anti-cheat model until people complained about cheating? Really?

Ubisoft and PC have worked so well like waterfalls in a desert. I don't even think I have to give previous examples of their efforts to even make my point here. You're probably better off finding ones that don't meet the mold of being busted than ones that are, really.

All they've said is "they're looking into a solution." And again, considering this is Ubisoft, such comments absolutely have to be considered suspect because of their company history of being bullshit on PC.
 

BigTnaples

Todd Howard's Secret GAF Account
Even just running down a street brushing up against cars they will close them. It's a nice detail.


You can also shoot car doors to make them close. (Or conversely, become ajar).


And when you run on the top of a car, not only will it move to absorb shock, but you will close the hood with your feet, and leave footprints if the roof is covered in snow.
 
Completely forgot about that. That will be interesting to see in its final game form.

I think Crysis 2 and 3 on consoles shipped with LPV being off though. It is on on PC though.

My memory is foggy on that one, I also couldn't remember whether they had it turned on or not on Ps360 XD
 
Some of the street shots look very detailed. Others look very empty.

None of it looks as clean as that infamous shot of the player's backside and ultra realistic taxi.

Also, on some shots on PS4, it seems like the distance isn't as good as the trailer.

I appreciate the little details though. Animations go a long way. Hopefully I can try an open beta.
 

hydruxo

Member
It's a gorgeous game. I particularly love how it looks when a blizzard rolls in. Looks even better in motion.

tomclancysthedivisiontbaiy.png


This is on PS4 btw.
 

ethomaz

Banned
Aside from blanket statements can you articulate your opinion a little bit better?
I played the Beta (PS4) and watched HD videos two days ago.
It is far way from what showed in 2013... I had the same look what they did with Watch Dogs... the downgrade is heavy.

Is it matter that much if they downgrade? No... it is not a issue for me but it is a downgrade.

The announce trailer was close to photorealistic.... so good.

And I'm not tech expert to say which effect is missing or things like that.
 

Oneself

Member
While they definitely didn't achieve the visual target of 2013, it still is a visually impressive game IMO.
Even the console versions, including the whole "parity" talk, are impressive IMO.

The lighting and weather / time of day tech really look amazing and definitely help the game's immersion level.
 
You can also shoot car doors to make them close. (Or conversely, become ajar).


And when you run on the top of a car, not only will it move to absorb shock, but you will close the hood with your feet, and leave footprints if the roof is covered in snow.
When in cover behind a car and moving towards an open door, does the player character reach out an arm to close it as it's passed?

Need to get to the bottom of this door business.
 
I shoot through a window and it also shoots through the windows behind it.

I shoot through a window and seat and it still shoots through the window behind it.

I spent 5 minutes unloading all of my ammo into a police vehicle to see if any of the impact marks disappeared and I couldn't see any missing.

I then spent 5 minutes shooting up a concrete barricade. Disappointingly, they have an indestructible core about 80% of the inner mass.

The destructibility is amazing.

[XBO edition]
 

T.O.P

Banned
Thread is making me want to pre-order the pc version

I tried the alpha on X1 but in the couple of hours i spent on it it didn't really click with me
 

RoboPlato

I'd be in the dick
I do think this is the most technically impressive open world game at the moment and will remain so for the forseeable future. Horizon and Mass Effect are the only others that come to mind.

BTW does anyone know why most of Ubi's engines seem to shun motion blur? Many would benefit greatly from it but they seem to omit it in many cases even on PC, despite having it in promotional footage. Watch_Dogs is the only one I can think of that actually has it. Would really love to see it in this because the gaps in animation seem more obvious than other titles.
 

RexNovis

Banned
Here's the thing, the graphics in this game are incredibly inconsistent. Some areas/times of day look great. Some areas/times of day look absolutely horrendous. Combine that with frequently recycled assets, recycled textures, copy pasted clutter spreads and lack of wear or dirt buildup where you would expect to see it then you get an immersion breaking incoherent mess. This is all compounded by the massive gap between the character model renders and literally everything else in the game world. There is simply little to no cohesion when it comes to the graphical presentation in the game.
 

low-G

Member
The engine being so deluxe, and the game being a good one to turn my brain off and play are the two reasons I'm buying.
 

alexbull_uk

Member
Yeah it's a good looking engine. I was impressed with the visuals overall on PC, and I'm looking forward to playing the full game.

Here's one of my favourite screenshots:


I do wish it were possible to allow your HUD to fade away when you don't need it though. Playing with no distractions would be a great experience.
 
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