this may be the last generation with such a big graphical leap

when compared to the previous gen, the 128 bits era.

Simply put, producing games cost too much and only those who have their backs covered can sustain it. what about "AA" devs? who do not have the same resources? They basically either die or resort to the indie market, as stated by different devs, Epic Games being one of those.

so, where are we going from here? advancements, yes, but what kind? and more importantly, what role will graphics play next gen?

My safe guess is that it won't be a big role at all, considering what I wrote above. I believe that the differences we see now between Pc and consoles are what we're gonna experience next gen, with the next consoles doing what a gaming Pc does now, that is higher performance, mainly higher framerate and resolution; because this gen taught us that optimization is the way to go, not horsepower, cause it's just too costy, risky and takes a lot of resources and not many teams are equipped to do that.

well thoughts?

No, it won't.

Graphical leap, I don't know, and I don't care. What I do care about is that they start improving the physics in games. With better physics, the gameworld can be much more imersive not mentioningthe fact that new avenues open up in terms of gameplay elements.

Glad I'm building a PC then.

No, it won't.

amaneuvering

Graphical leap, I don't know, and I don't care. What I do care about is that they start improving the physics in games. With better physics, the gameworld can be much more imersive not mentioningthe fact that new avenues open up in terms of gameplay elements.

Another-World

I thought the last generation was huge , look at GOW3 vs GOW2 or RE5 vs RE4 . I think it will be massive next gen as well.

It´s allways possible to improve. Bigger worlds, real time destruction, physics, stuff on screen, etc, etc....

One thing I actually agree with zero punctuation guy is we are getting very close to the point were graphics don't get hugely better.

What can actually be done in game will continue to grow

360 and PS3's graphics are just fine, hell the original Xbox graphics still holds up today. What it matters is the overall game.

No point in sugarcoating a bad game with good graphics.

At first glance it would seem like that, but what many fail to realize are the smaller details life that subtly add realism. There are much more physical aspects about life that we still have not incorporated into games.

Have we reached photorealism yet?:P

I think there's another large step to go graphics-wise - look at the new Unreal engine and compare it to most games today.

Technically? Maybe not.

Though they won't look nearly as drastical as N64->GC.

I honestly don't see much of a difference from SMG to GoW3. They both "look stunning" to me, but I can understand how the latter is technically a big leap, get it?

In other words, it is likely that I won't be wow-ed as much as before. Going from Banjo 2/Conker/Perfect Dark to Rogue Squadron and Metroid Prime was literally jawdropping for me. I couldn't fathom what I was experiencing.

MGS4 was also a wow factor for me but not nearly as big, as it goes gradually up, not big leaps.

As long as the prices for the next gen console is within reach, it should be just fine.

Not played The Witcher 2?:lol:

Looks even better in-game. The fact that consoles have held back PC so much this gen means there will be a huge leap in graphics with cards 10x more powerful. Console are going to come into 1080p, anti aliasing, anistropic filtering, two DirectX versions ahead....Hmmm not much of a leap is it?

Lets not forgett the physx :)

I'm hoping for near CGI quality graphics on the next Xbox and PS4 (and medium-end PC graphics on the next Nintendo).

Have we reached photorealism yet?:P

mitu123

Yes, Mortal Kombat 1 and Phantasmagoria say hello :P

they won't look nearly as drastical as N64->GC.

SuperFlakeman

I think the jump from SNES to N64 was much more drastical. Sure, GC could push way more polygons and stuff but the later N64 games like DK64 and Majora were pretty amazing too (considering the cartridge limits).

I'm hoping for near CGI quality graphics on the next Xbox and PS4 (and medium-end PC graphics on the next Nintendo).

[QUOTE="mitu123"]

Have we reached photorealism yet?:P

nameless12345

Yes, Mortal Kombat 1 and Phantasmagoria say hello :P

I don't think last gen to this gen was even as big as 16 bit to 32 bit or 32 bit to PS2/Xbox/GC. I mean, I look at games like RE4, Doom 3, Half life 2, and Halo 2, and the games on 360 don't look like they've made such a massive leap from those.

Not played The Witcher 2?:lol:

Looks even better in-game. The fact that consoles have held back PC so much this gen means there will be a huge leap in graphics with cards 10x more powerful. Console are going to come into 1080p, anti aliasing, anistropic filtering, two DirectX versions ahead....Hmmm not much of a leap is it?

Lets not forgett the physx :)

mattuk69

Ew, bloom :P

The game doesn't look that great on the screen-shots but considering how impressed many are I guess it must look great in motion.

We've been here before. There came a point in time when developing a gaming engine in house that met gamer's expectations was no longerfeasible for small devs. This led to the practice of licensing gaming engines. I think we will begin to see a lot more high quality shared assets and companies that license asset packages or even larger thematic templates.

Right now, development costs are high, but potential payouts are even higher. I don't think the efficiency of the development process has fallen under scrutiny because companies are still making bank. So in short, I think you are wrong. The gaming industry as a whole isn't going to stagnate. Rising development costa are a problem and the first few companies to present an economical solution will make a fortune.

[QUOTE="mattuk69"]

Not played The Witcher 2?:lol:

Looks even better in-game. The fact that consoles have held back PC so much this gen means there will be a huge leap in graphics with cards 10x more powerful. Console are going to come into 1080p, anti aliasing, anistropic filtering, two DirectX versions ahead....Hmmm not much of a leap is it?

Lets not forgett the physx :)

nameless12345

Ew, bloom :P

The game doesn't look that great on the screen-shots but considering how impressed many are I guess it must look great in motion.

Yeah, people mistake great amounts of lightning for incredible graphics. But the game does looks incredible, especially chapter 1 forest.

I'm hoping for near CGI quality graphics on the next Xbox and PS4 (and medium-end PC graphics on the next Nintendo).

[QUOTE="mitu123"]

Have we reached photorealism yet?:P

nameless12345

Yes, Mortal Kombat 1 and Phantasmagoria say hello :P

Not played The Witcher 2?:lol:

Looks even better in-game. The fact that consoles have held back PC so much this gen means there will be a huge leap in graphics with cards 10x more powerful. Console are going to come into 1080p, anti aliasing, anistropic filtering, two DirectX versions ahead....Hmmm not much of a leap is it?

Lets not forgett the physx :)

mattuk69

[QUOTE="nameless12345"]

I'm hoping for near CGI quality graphics on the next Xbox and PS4 (and medium-end PC graphics on the next Nintendo).

[QUOTE="mitu123"]

Have we reached photorealism yet?:P

mitu123

Yes, Mortal Kombat 1 and Phantasmagoria say hello :P

That's unlikely to happen imo. It would require too much work to model everything right down to the smallest detail. But of course ten years from now games should look atleast ten times better than Crysis.

[QUOTE="mitu123"]

[QUOTE="nameless12345"]

Yes, Mortal Kombat 1 and Phantasmagoria say hello :P

nameless12345

That's unlikely to happen imo. It would require too much work to model everything right down to the smallest detail. But of course ten years from now games should look atleast ten times better than Crysis.

[QUOTE="nameless12345"]

[QUOTE="mitu123"] I want them in Arma-sized maps.:o

mitu123

That's unlikely to happen imo. It would require too much work to model everything right down to the smallest detail. But of course ten years from now games should look atleast ten times better than Crysis.

I think an arcade machine made out of the best PC hardware you can get today would already provide next-generation (however you define that term) graphics.

[QUOTE="mitu123"]

[QUOTE="nameless12345"]

Yes, Mortal Kombat 1 and Phantasmagoria say hello :P

nameless12345

That's unlikely to happen imo. It would require too much work to model everything right down to the smallest detail. But of course ten years from now games should look atleast ten times better than Crysis.

I think it will be many generations before graphics will no longer have a huge leap. It is possible by that time that graphics in handheld system will equal those found on home consoles and PCs. Will we be alive to see this happen?

There is certainly a leap to be made. Even brute forcing console ports provide a significant difference in quality between PC and console games right now.

"HD" console games look "perfectly fine" the same way that ps2 games did, IE they don't run as well and are nowhere near as pretty as you remember them to be 1 year down the line.

I don't think last gen to this gen was even as big as 16 bit to 32 bit or 32 bit to PS2/Xbox/GC. I mean, I look at games like RE4, Doom 3, Half life 2, and Halo 2, and the games on 360 don't look like they've made such a massive leap from those.

magnax1

I personally think the gap between consoles and pc's is too large and console can't catch up why ??

HEAT - Consoles are small and powerful specs on a current pc level are too hot for a small console ie RROD anybody

POWER - Power supplies are bulky and cause even more heat can't fit into a console

PRICE - Speed cost money and nobody wants a 600 usd console

So yeah consoles will get faster but I think they won't be able to come close to the jump we saw this gen. The next gen pc parts are month's away and the should be 2x as fast as the current top end hardware for the same price no way can consoles close the gap. PC games on the other hand won't make the next big jump till dx11 is standard on most pc's in 2012. So it is not that the pc does not have the power it is devs don't want to make games that only a small section of the pc gamers can run. Devs already have the next gen game engines ready for pc it is only a matter of time till devs make use of the power then the consoles will be left way behind. In the near future on pc real time ray tracing will be handled by the gpu in the next 2 gens and really blow consoles into the 20th century.

I'm actually comforted by that. Keep the visuals improving slightly on that goal to realism, but focus on triple digit frames per second and vast amounts of content and length. A game with modern Crysis visuals and the size of Just Cause 2 would be stellar.

I'm actually comforted by that. Keep the visuals improving slightly on that goal to realism, but focus on triple digit frames per second and vast amounts of content and length. A game with modern Crysis visuals and the size of Just Cause 2 would be stellar.

SPYDER0416

Like this gen? PC multiplats have been relying on driver level tweaks a lot of the way while console games are right now "playable" at sub 30 fps.

I think it will be many generations before graphics will no longer have a huge leap. It is possible by that time that graphics in handheld system will equal those found on home consoles and PCs. Will we be alive to see this happen?

thom_maytees

Yes, there's a limit to how much power a device uses, and how small it's components can be, I think we'll hit that wall in our life times.

I heard somewhere, I think from Carmack, that he thinks that the next, next gen is the last gen, past that we'll have no more progression in in-home technology and we'll likely be resorting to servers to provide us with a superior experience (onlive 'n such..)

In the end, Onlive/clouds win, since it'll give the power of any computer to any device that can connect to it, but that's a good ways off :)

I personally think the gap between consoles and pc's is too large and console can't catch up why ??

HEAT - Consoles are small and powerful specs on a current pc level are too hot for a small console ie RROD anybody

POWER - Power supplies are bulky and cause even more heat can't fit into a console

PRICE - Speed cost money and nobody wants a 600 usd console

So yeah consoles will get faster but I think they won't be able to come close to the jump we saw this gen. The next gen pc parts are month's away and the should be 2x as fast as the current top end hardware for the same price no way can consoles close the gap. PC games on the other hand won't make the next big jump till dx11 is standard on most pc's in 2012. So it is not that the pc does not have the power it is devs don't want to make games that only a small section of the pc gamers can run. Devs already have the next gen game engines ready for pc it is only a matter of time till devs make use of the power then the consoles will be left way behind. In the near future on pc real time ray tracing will be handled by the gpu in the next 2 gens and really blow consoles into the 20th century.

Rude_Bwoii

AMD and Nvidia are both working on slim lined powerful GPU's . So most likely the next consoles will use these.