Watching Watch Dogs' graphical downgrade - videos inside

I must be getting old because it's only some effects that seem to be downgraded and some parts actually look better in the new PS4 footage. I don't see what the fuss is about. The biggest differences are some lighting differences but that's all I can see.
 
I think it's not necessarily a downgrade; however I believe the 1st demo was the Ultra PC version whereas this is the PS4/High graphic setting .
 
You guys...

Not to say the game doesn't look good...It just doesn't look next gen anymore which is what they were shouting about at E3...So they effectively showed us this is what the game will look like and bragged about being graphically amazing..1000's of people pre ordered it (I am guilty of this as well) and now the new vid looks nothing like the E3 one..not even close.

Also before anyone jumps in and says game play is way more important than graphics bla bla bla...Ubisoft were the ones making a huge deal about the graphics.

I honestly wish I didn't pre order and pay for this...I am sure the game will be amazing...but shit like this fucks me right off.
 
The Joker said:
You guys...

Not to say the game doesn't look good...It just doesn't look next gen anymore which is what they were shouting about at E3...So they effectively showed us this is what the game will look like and bragged about being graphically amazing..1000's of people pre ordered it (I am guilty of this as well) and now the new vid looks nothing like the E3 one..not even close.

Also before anyone jumps in and says game play is way more important than graphics bla bla bla...Ubisoft were the ones making a huge deal about the graphics.

I honestly wish I didn't pre order and pay for this...I am sure the game will be amazing...but shit like this fucks me right off.
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Already canceled my preorder for the game. Will do the wait and see tactic again because you know still loads of people will buy it.
 
Crzwaco said:
Already canceled my preorder for the game. Will do the wait and see tactic again because you know still loads of people will buy it.
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Really? You don't even wait for confirmation or for Ubisoft to say something? I suspect it's a storm in a teacup and is explained by the difference between consoles and PC.
 
Wyzak said:
Really? You don't even wait for confirmation or for Ubisoft to say something? I suspect it's a storm in a teacup and is explained by the difference between consoles and PC.
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Ubisoft already said that gameplay matter more than graphics..I'll try find the quote..
So they don't give a shit.
 
The Joker said:
Ubisoft already said that gameplay matter more than graphics..I'll try find the quote..
So they don't give a shit.
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I wholeheartedly agree with their statement, gameplay is far more important than graphics. But they also said this
Ubisoft has hit back, saying that there is no visual downgrade on the game, that it is delivering on its vision, and that the PC version will in many ways be better than the E3 2012 build that first grabbed our attention.

The game’s creative director, Jonathan Morin, has said that the latest story trailer is not a good graphical reference for the game, although it is also confirmed that the trailer footage was running on PS4 – so this doesn’t quite make sense.
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Which heavily hints that the differences are between a PC running it on max and a PS4.
 
Wyzak said:
I wholeheartedly agree with their statement, gameplay is far more important than graphics. But they also said this

Which heavily hints that the differences are between a PC running it on max and a PS4.
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PS4...Next Gen...
Watch Dogs...Current Gen graphics...

The point is the lied. Like pretty much all developers do...If I bought a PS4 to play WatchDogs I would be incredibly fucked off now.
 
I completely agree that gameplay is better than graphic, but you can definitely see the difference in the comparison video, still looks great though.
 
The Joker said:
PS4...Next Gen...
Watch Dogs...Current Gen graphics...

The point is the lied. Like pretty much all developers do...If I bought a PS4 to play WatchDogs I would be incredibly fucked off now.
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If graphics is so important you should be playing on a PC and if you buy a brand-new console just to play one game you are penny-wise-pound-foolish.

Crableg said:
I completely agree that gameplay is better than graphic, but you can definitely see the difference in the comparison video, still looks great though.
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Can you say with absolute certainty that you are comparing apples to apples? Both videos running on the same platform, both videos taking place at the same location and under the same day/light conditions, both videos recorded and encoded similarly?
 
I'm sure we'll see comparitive videos when it launches, then we can all discuss this issue again, I'm almost 100% sure the pre-launch trailers we saw for Watch Dogs (and other pre-launch next gen titles - Star Wars - 1313 anyone?) was shown on high end PCs which we can all agree are better specced than either of the new generation of consoles.

It comes down to preference, playing everything on max graphics on PC or playing on your console on your couch in front of your tv
 
As I've said in some other Watch Dogs topics so far, I really don't get all the fuss. Sure it doesn't look as great as it supposedly did, and I still think it looks pretty great and people are seriously exaggerating when they say it no longer looks like a next-gen game. We have no idea how big the world is yet and open-world games usually have graphics considerably toned down compared to linear AAA titles. IGN had a hands-on preview article this week and made no mention of the lack of civilians on the streets that some people are going on about. In fact, they had this to say:

Firstly is the much-touted “living world.” Ubisoft’s take on a slightly-futuristic Chicago that becomes more and more relevant with each installment of the nightly news manages to handle the concept of urban density in a way that few other open world games have captured. Standing on a street corner near what looked like Michigan and Adams, I found myself taking pause and just soaking in the details. Being able to pull out my phone and profile any and all NPCs that walked by brought an odd, sometimes uncomfortable level of realism to Watch Dogs’ Chicagoans.

I discover that a man who brushes my shoulder just got diagnosed with terminal cancer. A woman on her phone has an income well-below the poverty line. Another man looking into the window of a bar is borderline-obsessed with hentai. While these details might not have a major effect on the core plot of the game – though still vague, we do know that our hero Aiden committed some grave mistake many years ago that led to the death of his niece, and suddenly he finds himself wrapped up in similar danger once again – being able to gain a bit of insight into each and every NPC is pretty amazing.
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I have to say, after watching the comparison video: it's not the same game any more. Sorry, but graphics play a vital role in delivering the overall atmosphere of the game. That's why you're a lot more engrossed in playing Mass Effect compared to when you're playing tetris or pac-man. Gameplay has a place, just like graphics, sound and story.

This game was supposed to be a next-gen flagship title. It was supposed to be a system seller for the PS4 this year already. Compared to the "current" state of the game, it looks no better than what GTA 5 does on current-gen systems. And that's a huge insult, considering that they're punting it for next-gen consoles and asking a next-gen price.

Here's the scenario:

You pay +/- R7000 for a new "next-gen" console and fire up Watchdogs to show your friends and family what it's all about. Only to realize that it looks no better than some currently available games on "older" consoles. You're going to look like a fool. They don't care what the "gameplay" is like. The question which you won't be able to answer is "why didn't you buy it on your XBOX360 or PS3 then? It looks the same!"

To those who say that good quality graphics do not matter; honestly, you're the market that's driving "mobile gaming". I don't think you understand how important graphics are to some. Fair enough. But we're talking about a next-gen title here...and what we are seeing here is NOT a next-gen title. Well, not any more. I mean, look at the way his coat moves. It doesn't look realistic any more, at all. What they've taken away from this title is more than just some lighting here and there. They've taken away details. Details which allow you to be immersed into the game.

If the PS4 "next-gen" version is as watered-down as it is now, I'm terrified to think about what the PS3 and XBOX360 version will look like. Ouch.
 
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Neo said:
If the PS4 "next-gen" version is as watered-down as it is now, I'm terrified to think about what the PS3 and XBOX360 version will look like. Ouch.
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You'll probably find that the console versions all look similar, but will run anywhere between 720p and 1080p.
 
PsychoFish said:
You'll probably find that the console versions all look similar, but will run anywhere between 720p and 1080p.
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It also takes a long time for graphics to develop. If you look at screenshots of the first games on PS3 and compare them to the last games on PS3 they differ enormously.
 
Neo said:
Here's the scenario:

You pay +/- R7000 for a new "next-gen" console and fire up Watchdogs to show your friends and family what it's all about. Only to realize that it looks no better than some currently available games on "older" consoles. You're going to look like a fool. They don't care what the "gameplay" is like. The question which you won't be able to answer is "why didn't you buy it on your XBOX360 or PS3 then? It looks the same!"
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I envy the people that can spend that kind of money simply to show it off to their friends. I for one bought the console for my own enjoyment and the game still looks really fun in my opinion. I don't care what my ignorant friends say. I tried to impress them with Tomb Raider's graphics and all they could go on about is how unrealistic her hair moves and how annoyingly she screams and that's one of the best looking games out right now on next-gen (yes I know it was on last-gen too).
 
Wyzak said:
It also takes a long time for graphics to develop. If you look at screenshots of the first games on PS3 and compare them to the last games on PS3 they differ enormously.
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Exactly, we also need to realize that Watch Dogs is running on a new engine (and a ton of middleware) which might still require some tweaks to get the best performance. Judging by the minimum memory requirements for the PC version it looks like they might have some memory management issues, but I could be wrong as this requirement could also relate to the amount of objects they have loaded and are manipulating simultaneously as the city environment seems to have quite a large number of people that move about.
 
brendanvb said:
I envy the people that can spend that kind of money simply to show it off to their friends. I for one bought the console for my own enjoyment and the game still looks really fun in my opinion. I don't care what my ignorant friends say. I tried to impress them with Tomb Raider's graphics and all they could go on about is how unrealistic her hair moves and how annoyingly she screams and that's one of the best looking games out right now on next-gen (yes I know it was on last-gen too).
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I really envy people who can spend that kind of cash on a new console and NOT expect (no, DEMAND) a better experience than what is available on consoles less than half the price of a PS4.
 
Neo said:
I really envy people who can spend that kind of cash on a new console and NOT expect (no, DEMAND) a better experience than what is available on consoles less than half the price of a PS4.
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The first year or so of a new console is always like this, ESPECIALLY with cross-gen games like Watch Dogs. I know I'll get my money's worth in terms of graphics eventually, beginning with InFamous next week. People expecting a purely next-gen experience from a game that needs to be built to work on the last generation of consoles too only have themselves to blame if they don't get that from the game.
 
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