Jimquisition: Children of the Resolution

[PuckFuppet]

Resolution remains a pointless and arbitrary debate, hell in a broad sense all purely graphical arguments as to why something is better than another thing are pointless and arbitrary. It doesn't matter how pretty it looks if I can't do anything with it.

That preciously rendered medical equipment? Nah you can't use that, it isn't even affected by physics.
Those metal stairs that you can see through? Actually function as a complete solid.
All those doors? Just painted on.

In that respect the argument that gameplay should be given precedence over prettiness gains some ground. Jim is right about 720 being a stupid thing to defend but my decision to not waste money on a product that I can pick up for half the price (and with a well established game library) at the end of its development cycle wasn't based on it anyway...

Many games turn into the 360 version with better framerates and resolutions when you plug in a controller.

Source?

 

[Erttheking]

Seriously, was something like that really worth getting angry over?

Probably not, but I was in an angry sort of mood.

And frankly I'm kinda glad I did, I feel much better now.

You know, you can't just fly off of the hook at someone like that just because you're in a bad mood.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

I see Jim has been partaking in Personal Computing as of late...

I'm not sure if I should be elated or worried that more and more people are shifting towards the PC.

Nonetheless, the argument is a bit silly, amplified by the fact that this is an "on-release" problem that could be resolved later down the line with new variants of existing consoles.

Besides, all the next gen games look good anyway, and are still better looking than a lot of current games in the 360/PS3 generation.

Also, I dont notice that much of a difference between my old monitor (768p) and my current one (1080p) aside from more space to work with and a better view of things in Civ V(and I bought the new one about two weeks ago, so no, I haven't just adjusted to it).

 

[C.S.Strowbridge]

Microsoft claims the XBox One will be around for a decade. 4K TVs are already entering the marketplace. Granted, they need to be larger than 60 inches for the average person to notice the upgrade, and frankly my office isn't large enough for 4k to make a difference, but in a decade 4K will likely be standard.

 

[JarinArenos]

When I saw some forums exploding about 720p vs 1080p vs 900p because then people started arguing that 900p 60FPS is better than 1080p 30FPS I just had to say, "Hey guys, you know, 1440p at 120FPS is pretty awesome, so let me know when you get there. Then we can talk."

Yeah, I found this whole kerfluffle baffling as well. I mean, don't consoles at least try to give PCs a run for their money at the start of a generation? I could have sworn that the pattern in the past was they only started lagging horribly behind as they aged...

 

[attackshark]

love the haircut, jim.

when are you going to draw some more frames for the show? i miss those.

 

[Erttheking]

Seriously, was something like that really worth getting angry over?

Probably not, but I was in an angry sort of mood.

And frankly I'm kinda glad I did, I feel much better now.

You know, you can't just fly off of the hook at someone like that just because you're in a bad mood.

Oh relax, I'm sure the guy will survive the horrible ordeal of someone yelling at him over the internet because of video games.

If anything, it might make him check his facts the next time he's about to spout blatant disinformation.

You know, someone posting something that is incorrect really doesn't warrant someone losing their cool and going on a rant against him.

And if it wasn't such a big deal, people on this website wouldn't get warnings over it.

 

[Rabidkitten]

I think Dark Souls PC tells the importance of having a good resolution. Dark Souls looks pretty shoddy locked at 720 on PC monitor and is fucking gorgeous with DSFix playing at 1600x1200. So yeah...

 

[PuckFuppet]

Many games turn into the 360 version with better framerates and resolutions when you plug in a controller.

Source?

Do you need someone to draw you a diagram or something?

Read what I quoted again, then read what you read, then think about it before you respond.

I can see what he meant to say but the way it was phrased implied that there was somehow a hidden super secret 360 controller only way of improving the graphics.

 

[Catrixa]

The really, really funny part: if more amazing games come out for the Xbone, someone somewhere will say it's because 720p is the superior resolution (in a "look, proof my insane theories were right!" kind of way). In the end, really, quibbling over what the damn games look like shouldn't matter, it should be, "yes, but what GAMES are coming out for this thing?"

I work in video--the difference between formats exists. 1080p takes more space (them gigabytes), requires data be sent a different way from 1080i (not really applicable on consoles, but definitely a thing for TV streams), etc. It's similar to 720p in terms of data sent (needlessly complicated because old people run everything), but 720p has less of itself by its very nature than 1080p (dem files be of different sizes when using the same compression format for both). So, yes, for good TV's, the difference will be noticeable. But really, it should be: Is this game formatted better for this machine? Is this game exclusive to this machine? Will I notice/care when using other (non-game) apps? (Spoiler alert: Most video equipment I can think of does 720p50/60, 1080i25/30, and PAL/NTSC primarily. Stations might support 1080p streams, but it's not the standard yet.)

 

[Falseprophet]

It definitely is the best part. Your probably right to be concerned too. I think the only way the console market won't be a technical (and innovative) drag on computer gaming is if both the PS4 and XBone are financial flops and the console market becomes significantly less influential. That's why I'm liking the indie scene more and more. A lot of the more interesting game play advances seem to come from there because they have more wiggle room to try something new.

I'm already convinced this will be the last console generation. Already, the Xbone and the PS4 are just dedicated gaming PCs with off-the-shelf components and a walled garden OS and ecosystem. Despite all this hoopla over physical media, both are building digital distribution platforms. Once they've reached the end of their service life, I don't think we'll see new consoles.

We might see a general multimedia box of some kind, assuming they haven't built all that functionality into Smart TVs by that point (probably 6 or 7 years in the future?). But a dedicated gaming console? Why bother? By then we'll have a new generation of kids who grew up playing games on their mobile devices, and won't have any special attachment to console gaming. Unless console gaming is going to bring some unique social or cultural element to gaming not done just as well or better by PCs or tablets (e.g., making local co-op prominent again, or some new party game phenomenon a la Guitar Hero/Rock Band), I don't see a place for a 9th console generation.

 

[Luminos564]

Really? Resolution Wars on consoles? This is a thing? I guess people need to be at constant war when it comes to consoles. Sheesh, given how people will defend their console of choice, I'm surprised XB1's original policies even bothered with their Draconian Pledge of Allegiance.

But personally, resolution matters very little to me. I play shit like Disgaea and other 2D sprite games so a resolution in 720p vs. 1080p means nothing. That said, I personally don't do my gaming on PC either since pretty much any game I play has not had a PC port. Funny how that works out I guess.

 

[Slash2x]

Sorry I lost all track of what the video was about. My head almost imploded when I was blessed to hear I can now get all my Jim fix at one website instead of two. That is a significant time saver!

*edit*
Oh lord do I agree. I stopped buying games for consoles about 4 months ago when this shit hit the fan. Yes that even means I am waiting for GTA V, and I will happily wait too! Why invest in subpar systems when PC is KILLING consoles on content and updates? SteamOs for the win!

 

[veloper]

The Xbone CAN render at 1080p, the question is just how fast or slow.

The PS4 has faster memory and a bigger GPU than the Xbone, so the developers will have to choose what bits to sacrifice for the Xbone port of a non-exclusive game: framerate, resolution, complexity of the pixelshaders, complexity of the geometry, texture quality or a combination of these.

In some (many?) cases the devs may consider going 720p the least bad alternative. It lookes like the BF devs didn't go for lower framerates in this case, so that's something atleast.

Anyway, it should make the choice for all you console gamers even easier. If you must have a new console and if you don't care about knect, just go for the cheaper brick of the two and it will look prettier as a bonus.

 

[Makabriel]

Screw the resolution, as long as I have good FPS and good content.

The best reply I have to this debate is what I've said before. There's a YouTube series: The beauty of GTA V, or something like that. It shows you a bunch of locales and pieces of the game that are actually very pretty to look at. They did a really good job on that game.

But you know what? When I'm blowing by at 200 MPH in my custom car escaping a 5 star threat rating, dodging between police and SWAT barricades, the game is all a blur. You don't see one iota of that detail and you never will. That goes for ANY FPS game. It's a waste. The only type of game this would matter on is some cinematic play-by-rail type interactive movie. And that's Great. I'd love to see that.

 

[Elyxard]

As much as I agree with all sentiments, I do feel like it's silly to indict the XBox for being unable to render 1080p because of.. Call of Duty of all things. The people assigned to the task of making an even two year turnaround of on their annual Michael Bay Military Shooter shouldn't be held as a benchmark for next gen consoles on launch day. I can see no reason for the Xbox One to be unable to handle Call of Duty with its specs other than the developers not having the time to make it work on the ever so slightly weaker hardware.

That said, we're still definitely going to have the same problem with big publishers pushing graphics over smooth frame-rate for the duration of this next generation. I don't see that changing with new hardware.

 

[saxman234]

First, great video Jim. Second, darn people can be condescending. Would everyone really be this uptight and defensive in real life over a joke?

Come now. There is absolutely no benefit to a controller. EVER.

No need to capitalize a full word to prove your point, especially when it is just opinion. I love using controllers because in my opinion, they are more comfortable and because I can easily take it to a couch to play games. Platformers, action games, retro games, pretty much everything besides strategy games are easier for me with a controller compared to a mouse/keyboard. I haven't played to many first person shooters on pc yet, since I'm kind of tired of the genre, but for console gamers a controller is pleasant in games that do aim assist well. For pc, Spelunky is way more difficult with a keyboard compared to a controller. All I see is people just going "HAHAHAHA, FPS with a controller HAHAHAHA", lets calm down a bit.

I see console users spout that kind of disinformation constantly and completely without irony, without some actual sign that he's being facetious there is no reason to assume that he is.

Again, it seems like you are being condescending and just grouping all console gamers together. Its the problem of each group blames the other group for needing to be aggressive. One side is yelling whatever opinions, which forces the other side to start yelling whatever opinions, which riles up the other people, and on and on, until each group just blames the other for their ultra defensiveness.

Hmm, I see the suspension banhammer has come down on some people in this thread.

 

[Slash2x]

Wait, people hate Adam Sessler? I thought he was all around liked by most.

He is loved ... until he says a thing about videogames, then he's hated for a week or two.

Kinda like most games critics, really.

I do not even know the guy personally but he seems like that guy that everyone wants to be like because he speaks his mind..... but are afraid to say the things he does. I say if people hate you for your opinion.... Fuck em, besides crying there is nothing they can do about what you think.

 

[nodlimax]

Hmmmmmmm resolutions? Yeah, let's start talking about when they're on the same level as the PC....

On a different note. It's funny how people always claim that consoles are much cheaper than PCs. If I take a look at my game library and compare the number of games I have with the money I'd have to pay for it in consoles I don't even want to care about consoles anymore. Console games are at least 10-20% more expensive than PC games (bargain and steam sales not counted). The more games you buy the better the PC gets in terms of value. You get more features and cheaper games and an open system.

Why again should I buy a console?

 

[Trishbot]

I still can't believe I can play Silent Hill 2 on PC at higher resolution than the HD version, and yet somehow Konami screwed up the simple act of making a bare-minimum, 720 HD version of the game....

... on topic, yes, games and gameplay matter more than graphics, but when two great games with great gameplay come out on two systems, it's just common sense to get the one that looks best and plays just as well as the other version does.