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[Gaiff]

Ooh, boy. That's a bad one.

• Performance Mode on Series X/PS5 runs at 720p upscaled to 1440p using FSR2
• Performance Mode on Series S runs at 540p upscaled to 1080p using FSR2
• On every platform, the game does a good job at maintaining the target 60fps. PS5 and Series S have areas where they inexplicably drop to the 50s but overall do a good job
• FSR2 is utterly ruinous to image quality with tons of image break ups, particle fizzlings, shimmering, and other artifacts
• It's especially bad on water surfaces where it destroys the reflections on Series S Performance Mode
• It also has tons of ghosting and under undesirable effects stemming from its low internal res on every console
• Overall, the game never looks stable in Performance Mode on any console
• FSR2 hurts image quality more than it helps it
• Quality Mode on Series X/PS5 runs at a native 4K, no signs of upscaling
• Quality Mode on Series S runs at native 1080p, again, no signs of upscaling
• Quality Mode maintains a rock solid 30fps but 30fps feels very laggy and unresponsive. 60fps is just acceptable in comparison
• The game uses SSR for reflections, leading to them constantly breaking, resulting in frequently disappearing reflections
• Reflections also very unstable and grainy on Series X/PS5
• They're so bad on Series S that they're almost unrecognizable in Performance Mode
• Uneven textures that are often a mash of high-quality and low-quality textures
• Sometimes, textures don't load at all
• LOD is quite bad with a lot of pop-in and objects sometimes not appearing at all
• Lighting quality is poor
• RTGI is available on PC/PS5/SX but only works on and inside the ship. It doesn't work outside. As a result, the ship only appears to have better AO
• Particles and post-processing seem to render at 1/4 res, resulting in them looking low-res and blocky, especially on Series S
• Particles effects seem to render at 30fps no matter what
• Has a bunch of bugs such as button prompts not showing, textures not loading, lens flares breaking, etc
• The menus look good on PC

 

[fatmarco]

Locked 720p on Series X and Ps5 in performance mode, to full 4k native on resolution mode.

Genuinely insane.

 

[ManaByte]

 

[intbal]

Don't agree with his take on the wave-crash particles. They look wrong. Like suddenly the water turns to a flood of cotton balls.

 

[ManaByte]

The video is wrong. Black Flag on the Xbox One is 900p, not 720p.

So this game is running at a LOWER res than Black Flag on the Xbox One.

 

[Gaiff]

The video is wrong. Black Flag on the Xbox One is 900p, not 720p.

So this game is running at a LOWER res than Black Flag on the Xbox One.

He said Xbox 360 lmao.

 

[Xtib81]

That amount of pop in should be illegal.

 

[havoc00]

Quadruple A title baby

 

[ManaByte]

UbiSoft is charging $70 for this piece of shit!

Buy Sea of Thieves for $40 instead. Get addicted.

 

[SJRB]

> AAAA game
> 720p

 

[Denton]

Don't agree with his take on the wave-crash particles. They look wrong. Like suddenly the water turns to a flood of cotton balls.

tell me you watched only first few minutes without telling me you watched only first few minutes

he literally criticizes the low particle resolution in the video

Also, what a great analysis by DF as usual

Also, what a great shitshow from Ubisoft as usual

 

[Aenima]

UbiSoft is charging $70 for this piece of shit!

Buy Sea of Thieves for $40 instead. Get addicted.

Is it enjoyable solo? Sea of Thieves water is beautifull, every stream i watched felt super relaxing. But not sure the ship management is doable solo.

 

[ManaByte]

But not sure the ship management is doable solo.

Sloops are for solo players.

 

[intbal]

tell me you watched only first few minutes without telling me you watched only first few minutes

You're talking about yourself, right?

He literally says exactly this:

"I think the particle simulation they've developed for near-shore waves is neat."

 

[Gaiff]

Is it enjoyable solo? Sea of Thieves water is beautifyll, every stream i watched felt super relaxing. But not sure the ship management is doable solo.

I never tried it solo but I imagine not. One of the coolest parts of the game is how the crew synergizes and how everyone gets to do different things to help out. For instance, I was playing with my mate and manning the ship while he was in the crow's nest guiding where I was going.

At another point, we found an island with buried treasure but needed a vantage position to spot exactly where they chests were so anchored the ship next to the shore. I went on foot and he remained on the crow's nest and was telling me where to dig.

We also sank on our ship's maiden voyage.

It might be fun solo but the appeal is really to be part of a pirate crew. Even just two is a lot more fun. A whole crew (6-8 people) is honestly a blast.

Also, yeah, sloops are for 1-2 players but are still easier to manage with two.

 

[Gaiff]

You're talking about yourself, right?

He literally says exactly this:

"I think the particle simulation they've developed for near-shore waves is neat."

Yes, the simulation as in how the particles interact with the environments, not how they look. Later on, he rips on them for being blocky and low-res.

 

[intbal]

Yes, the simulation as in how the particles interact with the environments, not how they look. Later on, he rips on them for being blocky and low-res.

And I said I don't agree with him.
I don't think it's a good simulation at all.

 

[ManaByte]

A whole crew (6-8 people) is honestly a blast.

Crews max out at 4.

 

[Gaiff]

Crews max out at 4.

Is it that low? Could have sworn there were 6 of us lol.

 

[lh032]

• Quality Mode maintains a rock solid 30fps but 30fps feels very laggy and unresponsive. 60fps is just acceptable in comparison

This is the reason why i despise 30fps only game.

 

[Kurotri]

So the game's not just a design disaster, but also a technical one? Maaan

 

[winjer]

This game is a failure in so many ways...

 

[squarealex]

I love how Alex amplifies the fact FSR2 using low resolution for reconstruction on consoles, but hidding all this mentions for PC when it's for DLSS.

So much pro and without intention.

 

[Bojji]

Locked 720p on Series X and Ps5 in performance mode, to full 4k native on resolution mode.

Genuinely insane.

I think they require 2x more power to render this game in 4k 30fps vs 720p 60fps. I don't know what the fuck is happening lol.

 

[SJRB]

I like how he praises the wave swirl near beaches and you see the most terrible blurry white sprite shit you've ever seen in your life.

"A near realistic look":

 

[Portugeezer]

I didn't want to hate on the game too much, but in a technical level, it's aaaa steaming pile of garbage.

AAAAhahaha!

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

AAAA

 

[ManaByte]

Also, yeah, sloops are for 1-2 players but are still easier to manage with two.

Solo slooping is a lot of fun. You'd think people who jump on every Soulslike would enjoy the challenge.

 

[skyfinch]

I'm personally buying the Series X version because the St Anne section is where it's at. And the best part, now that Xbox games are gonna be one PlayStation 5, I'll play the Series X version on PS5 so that St Anne runs at a flawless 60fps. Fuck I love being a gamer in 2013.


Edit, 2024.

 

[ManaByte]

I'll play the Series X version on PS5 so that St Anne runs at a flawless 60fps. Fuck I love being a gamer in 2013.

 

[Panajev2001a]

Ooh, boy. That's a bad one.

• Performance Mode on Series X/PS5 runs at 720p upscaled to 1440p using FSR2
• Performance Mode on Series S runs at 540p upscaled to 1080p using FSR2
• On every platform, the game does a good job at maintaining the target 60fps. PS5 and Series S have areas where they inexplicably drop to the 50s but overall do a good job
• FSR2 is utterly ruinous to image quality with tons of image break ups, particle fizzlings, shimmering, and other artifacts
• It's especially bad on water surfaces where it destroys the reflections on Series S Performance Mode
• It also has tons of ghosting and under undesirable effects stemming from its low internal res on every console
• Overall, the game never looks stable in Performance Mode on any console
• FSR2 hurts image quality more than it helps it
• Quality Mode on Series X/PS5 runs at a native 4K, no signs of upscaling
• Quality Mode on Series S runs at native 1080p, again, no signs of upscaling
• Quality Mode maintains a rock solid 30fps but 30fps feels very laggy and unresponsive. 60fps is just acceptable in comparison
• The game uses SSR for reflections, leading to them constantly breaking, resulting in frequently disappearing reflections
• Reflections also very unstable and grainy on Series X/PS5
• They're so bad on Series S that they're almost unrecognizable in Performance Mode
• Uneven textures that are often a mash of high-quality and low-quality textures
• Sometimes, textures don't load at all
• LOD is quite bad with a lot of pop-in and objects sometimes not appearing at all
• Lighting quality is poor
• RTGI is available on PC/PS5/SX but only works on and inside the ship. It doesn't work outside. As a result, the ship only appears to have better AO
• Particles and post-processing seem to render at 1/4 res, resulting in them looking low-res and blocky, especially on Series S
• Particles effects seem to render at 30fps no matter what
• Has a bunch of bugs such as button prompts not showing, textures not loading, lens flares breaking, etc
• The menus look good on PC

540p XSS? 720p XSX|PS5?

 

[StreetsofBeige]

720p.

Game took 11 years to make............ 720p / 11 years

This has got to be the lowest P ratio ever for a game at 65p/year! lol

 

[platina]

Omg!!! What a fucking joke! The 2018 demo looked much more interactive and next gen! LOL this was two years before the consoles came out, how in the fuck did it get downgraded this much? It’s even a current gen game!!!

Look I’m not gonna fool myself to be delusional anymore, this new age of pathetic triple a games and lazy woke ass developers is getting tiring, you have so much more horsepower to make fresh new ip’s but decide to play it safe. How is it possible that ps3/360 had so many amazing new ip’s when the PlayStation 3 in particular took MONTHS to get a single damn pixel on screen things are too easy now huh? Just glorified pc’s these consoles are, no exotic cpus like the cell anymore? We really need a shake up in the current age games industry.

 

[Darsxx82]

Offering different modes and options is always something to be appreciated...... but that does not mean that there are times where one of the options is unnecessary.

It is clear that it is one of those cases where the 60fps mode is available only to "comply", for marketing and fear of possible penalty.

I think they require 2x more power to render this game in 4k 30fps vs 720p 60fps. I don't know what the fuck is happening lol.

I think FSR 2 uses "quite a bit" of computational resources on consoles. 720p FSR 2 is equivalent to ~1080p TAA in compute. I suppose the Studio would have understood that IQ is better with that option.
But yes, the difference with the quality mode seems too exaggerated because the latter also offers extra asset improvements.
Perhaps the simplest reason to understand this situation is that the game is definitely made and optimized with 30fps in mind... adding a little optimization time for 60fps.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Omg!!! What a fucking joke! The 2018 demo looked much more interactive and next gen! LOL this was two years before the consoles came out, how in the fuck did it get downgraded this much? It’s even a current gen game!!!

Look I’m not gonna fool myself to be delusional anymore, this new age of pathetic triple a games and lazy woke ass developers is getting tiring, you have so much more horsepower to make fresh new ip’s but decide to play it safe. How is it possible that ps3/360 had so many amazing new ip’s when the PlayStation 3 in particular took MONTHS to get a single damn pixel on screen things are too easy now huh? Just glorified pc’s these consoles are, no exotic cpus like the cell anymore? We really need a shake up in the current age games industry.

As for a 2018 demo, I quickly found this E3 2018 clip. I dont know if this is the clip you are referring to, but close enough.

Who knows what they were doing in the 6 years since then. Maybe that clip was a condensed bullshot where there was really nothing else in the game made yet aside from the demo section. Or perhaps most of the game was kind of done, but it took 6 years of slogging off to finish it off bit by bit. Who knows.

The clip was so long ago, Xbox One X just came out the past year and there werent even any PS5/X spec rumours yet.

 

[Rentahamster]

Quadruple Ass quality what a bargain.

 

[Bojji]

Offering different modes and options is always something to be appreciated...... but that does not mean that there are times where one of the options is unnecessary.

It is clear that it is one of those cases where the 60fps mode is available only to "comply", for marketing and fear of possible penalty.


I think FSR 2 uses "quite a bit" of computational resources on consoles. 720p FSR 2 is equivalent to ~1080p TAA in compute. I suppose the Studio would have understood that IQ is better with that option.
But yes, the difference with the quality mode seems too exaggerated because the latter also offers extra asset improvements.
Perhaps the simplest reason to understand this situation is that the game is definitely made and optimized with 30fps in mind... adding a little optimization time for 60fps.

Fsr2 isn't even near that level of "heavy", but even if so I think native 1080p upscaled to 4k would produce better results, and that's 4x less resolution than 4k.

That also had "just" many, many years to optimize this pile of garbage.

 

[R6Rider]

 

[Gaiff]

Surely, if this game is 4K30 locked, then 1080p/60 with TAA and no FSR2 is possible? They should have gone for that.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

Maybe that clip was a condensed bullshot where there was really nothing else in the game made yet aside from the demo section.

As always with E3 demos it was scripted to hell, which is why all companies always mentioned how long it takes to make one.

 

[Skifi28]

So they built the game on the ps3 version of black flag. Should have delayed a few more years to add another couple AAs to the budget.

 

[Beer Baelly]

 

[Zathalus]

I love how Alex amplifies the fact FSR2 using low resolution for reconstruction on consoles, but hidding all this mentions for PC when it's for DLSS.

So much pro and without intention.

Generally when he praises DLSS it is reconstructing from a much higher resolution, usually 1080p.

That being said, DLSS using 720p still looks far better then FSR, although obviously not as good as native.

 

[Elysium44]

This game looks 10-15 years old but has unfathomably high system requirements? What is going on, is there a shortage of talent in the industry these days?

 

[Zathalus]

This game looks 10-15 years old but has unfathomably high system requirements? What is going on, is there a shortage of talent in the industry these days?

Actually yes, the game industry pays rather badly and the crunch culture is terrible. The really good software engineers all bugger off to the much better jobs unless that are at a really good studio or are really passionate about games.

 

[YCoCg]

What the hell happened? Like where is the performance going? It's doing everything poorly, even the Ray Tracing seems to be just on one ship for the AO and that's about it. This just makes Black Flag looks even better beyond its means and that's a decade old!

 

[Fake]

Expect the expected.

 

[McGILLAZ]

This has been in development since 1921, but hey at least the menus on PC look good

 

[Dr. Samuel Hayden]

Lol 720p. Ubisoft is such a joke.

 

[adamsapple]

Shitty package overall, but it has more CPU bottleneck related drops on PS5 that neither Series consoles have, the resolution situation on the otherhand is just abysmal, especially considering what the final output looks like.

Perhaps we were too harsh on the string of 1080p performance mode games earlier in the gen.