Playstation 3 demo at BB. Impressions

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IceWindus

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Amazingly, I was surprised to hear from my former coworkers at Gamestop that our BB actually had gotten in their PS3 demo kiosk. So I rushed to the other side of town to see the hypestation 3.

I probably spent nearly a good 2 hours playing Motostorm as the only other demo was NBA live, and I hate sports games. Here's what i've noticed so far.

1. The loud Kiosk fan preveted me from hearing how quiet the system is.

2. System sure is beautiful and shiny thing, big too.

3. Games either lack AA completely or doing a piss poor job of it it. NBA was horribly jaggy and the character textures were shiny doll like. WTF Sony?

4. Motostorm had some framerate issues. The game runs around 30ish in wide open areas but when a couple vehicles come into the view kicking up dust and or exploding, the framerate easily drops down into the teens. Maybe its just the demo but I hope this big of a framerate drop is not going to be continual

5. Motion control was interesting. The controller without the rumble features feels very light, and honestly, very cheap. I miss the nice weight and feeling that the Dual Shock 2 had. When I engaged motion sension on Motostorm, it was definently a whole new level of playing the game and was very sensative and took awhile to get used to. Alot of people hated it and wanted to go back to the analog stick as they played it.

6. Again, Motostorms textures leave some to be desired. The landscape was all low res with some bumpmapping and shadow texturing hear and their to liven it up. The system seems to have a problem handling tons of particles effect, namely dust and smoke when the screen got crowded and when using the motion sensing function, it makes it real tough to control.

Its to bad they didn't have Fall of Man or some other demos' to give me a better taste, cause im personally not feeling the need to plunk $600 for Sony's third try.

Amazingly, while I was playing, the BB employees were setting up the Wii kiosk next to me. Damn, that system is so small and cute, I can't wait to get my hands on it. Saldy, it wasn't playable but none the the less, Zelda looks pretty damn awesome.
 
Interesting. Any idea if these are going to be popping up all over the place or are they only in certain areas? I still hope to eventually get a PS3, but I'm holding off for a must-have game at the moment.
Lots of people have said the PS3 pad feels cheap. Is it just thin plastic or what?
 
As much as I'm not a fan of Sony right now I can't help wondering that there may be other issues which would cause a kiosk PS3 to be loud.
 
I played it at Toys R Us over the weekend (Times Square) and I have to contest that it's not loud at all.
I don't know but maybe there was a 360 in the vicinity... lol Really, though, I didn't hear a thing.

Next, AA doesn't really bother me nowadays. I play my PC games at 1680x1050 and it's difficult for my frames to keep up at such a resolution with FSAA turned on, so I usually leave it off.
Personally, I don't think it's that big of a deal.

Lastly, I'm not into Basketball videogames nor Motorstorm... but I played them anyway. Needless to say, I won't be getting either at launch.
 
Hmmm, if thats the case, Im wondering if it was the kiosk cooling fan. Actually, it probably was...my bad.
 
Are you sure you were playing on an HD TV? I remember when the X360 kiosks were set up at Gamestop they were hooked up with flat panel SDTVs.
 
solideliquid said:
Are you sure you were playing on an HD TV? I remember when the X360 kiosks were set up at Gamestop they were hooked up with flat panel SDTVs.
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Those Samsungs were all high definition, as mandated by Microsoft. Now wether many of those were actually set at the proper HD resolutions is another question; a question, which, by the way, the answer was found out.

It was found that many kiosks weren't set up correct, and that the 360 was set to display at 480p, rather than 720p or 1080i. This may be the case for the PS3 as well, but I'm not counting on devs to include any kind of AA in any of their games, at least not for a while.
 
Have you tried popping in a ps1 game to see if it works? Also has the console been tested in any other screens, I will be picking up the PS3 next week so It would be a dissapointment to see that the 360 outlive it.
 
ellover009 said:
Have you tried popping in a ps1 game to see if it works? Also has the console been tested in any other screens, I will be picking up the PS3 next week so It would be a dissapointment to see that the 360 outlive it.
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Most of those Kisoks are locked down. I know that in some/most stores only the Sony/Microsoft reps have the key to open the display to change out the disks.
 
The18thLetter said:
Next, AA doesn't really bother me nowadays. I play my PC games at 1680x1050 and it's difficult for my frames to keep up at such a resolution with FSAA turned on, so I usually leave it off.
Personally, I don't think it's that big of a deal.
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It's a rare PC monitor that will get big enough to notice at that resolution. Once you start blowing those resolutions up to living room viewing sizes, the "jaggies" will get worse and worse. I've noticed them in certain Xbox games (virtually all of which have AA) on my relatively small 27" HDTV running at 480p. If I played the same games on a 37" monitor (my next TV, hopefully by Christmas, will be the Westinghouse 37" 1080p) or larger, they'd become even more evident.

I don't know how things are being done on the PS3 (having not yet seen one live in action), but if games skimp on AA then they'll likely be visually disappointing to big-screen players.
 
Interesting. I wonder if my store got theirs today. I didnt work today, nor do I work tomorrow. I guess I have to wait until Thursday to see for myself.
 
theNoid said:
LOL, stopped reading right here. I don't know one person hyped for this $600 box.
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Make that one.
Off-topic but are you paid by Microsoft or something?
 
The18thLetter said:
Make that one.
Off-topic but are you paid by Microsoft or something?
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Just because someone isnt a fan of the PS3 doesnt mean they are on Microsofts payroll. Nor does it even mean the are an Xbox fan. I work in Media at BB, and everyone in our department is more excited about the Wii then the PS3. In fact, the majority of them really dont care about the PS3 at all.
 
IceWind said:
5. Motion control was interesting. The controller without the rumble features feels very light, and honestly, very cheap. I miss the nice weight and feeling that the Dual Shock 2 had. When I engaged motion sension on Motostorm, it was definently a whole new level of playing the game and was very sensative and took awhile to get used to. Alot of people hated it and wanted to go back to the analog stick as they played it.
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When you say this have you ever used a motion sencion controller before? IE the old MS or Logitech controllers that were on the pc a few years ago. Just wondering if it is any better. From what I've read it is just a step above them which worked ok for some games(I had both as I got one real cheap the other for free new). They were fun a few minutes then it wore off. Like flying games and racing games were the only thing they were good for.
 
Raines8416 said:
Just because someone isnt a fan of the PS3 doesnt mean they are on Microsofts payroll. Nor does it even mean the are an Xbox fan. I work in Media at BB, and everyone in our department is more excited about the Wii then the PS3. In fact, the majority of them really dont care about the PS3 at all.
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I'm sorry, but my comment was directed towards this man for a reason.
He's constantly making Microsoft forums, posting forums at the slightest bit of dismay on Sony's part, and when disproven, he dissappears from his own forums completely (See: Devil May Cry on 360 forum).
Thanks.
 
lesman said:
Ok guys, lets keep it sane. ;)
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I apologize. But to be fair, his comment was completely off-topic to begin with... and warranted a response.

But, yeah. I'm done with that. :)
 
The18thLetter said:
I'm sorry, but my comment was directed towards this man for a reason.
He's constantly making Microsoft forums, posting forums at the slightest bit of dismay on Sony's part, and when disproven, he dissappears from his own forums completely (See: Devil May Cry on 360 forum).
Thanks.
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Who the fuck are you talking about? I don't have a MS forum account.
 
The18thLetter said:
I'm sorry, but my comment was directed towards this man for a reason.
He's constantly making Microsoft forums, posting forums at the slightest bit of dismay on Sony's part, and when disproven, he dissappears from his own forums completely (See: Devil May Cry on 360 forum).
Thanks.
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i believe the words you are looking for are "threads" and "posts", not forums. forums are what General Gaming is :p

;)
 
r_a_s88 said:
i believe the words you are looking for are "threads" and "posts", not forums. forums are what General Gaming is :p

;)
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Err... you know what I meant. :eek:
...and relax IceWind, none of my comments were directed to you... except for my first post which was on-topic.
 
A question: What's the difference between plopping down 600 dollars for a PS3 with a blue ray player or plopping down 400 dollars then another 200 for a hd-dvd drive add-on if you want one (will be cheaper naturally without). For the same genre of machines those two will be about equal imho so pricing shouldn't be a major concern i'd think...
Anyway, once it's out (PS3 and Wii) and matured a bit, then i'll make a decision on what console to buy. :)
Aslo, please no flames...
 
The difference is most people dont want to put down that extra $200 for HD movies. With the xbox360 its an option, with the PS3 it isn't. Most people don't give a shit about HD-DVD or BluRay movies. If you want HD-DVD its an option, but in no way necessary to get the entire xbox360 gaming experience. Add to the fact, now MS will have HD Movies for download starting November 22nd.
 
ClearM4 said:
The difference is most people dont want to put down that extra $200 for HD movies. With the xbox360 its an option, with the PS3 it isn't. Most people don't give a shit about HD-DVD or BluRay movies. If you want HD-DVD its an option, but in no way necessary to get the entire xbox360 gaming experience. Add to the fact, now MS will have HD Movies for download starting November 22nd.
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I think the added capacity of Blu-ray is a huge advantage for PS3 game developers - assuming they take advantage of that extra disk space for additional levels, better textures, more cutscenes, etc.

With the xbox 360, there's pretty much a built-in limitation for how much storage space is available to developers and it will certainly show later in the console's life-cycle.
 
zooraf said:
I think the added capacity of Blu-ray is a huge advantage for PS3 game developers - assuming they take advantage of that extra disk space for additional levels, better textures, more cutscenes, etc.

With the xbox 360, there's pretty much a built-in limitation for how much storage space is available to developers and it will certainly show later in the console's life-cycle.
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Whats the cost of a blue ray disk vs a couple of dvds? As the cost goes down it will be null but right now I don't see that as a big problem. Also have you ever not bought a game because it was on 2 or 3 disks instead of 1? Extra space is nice but I have to agree with ClearM4 on this.

Anyway back to my early question. Can anyone comment on how the motion controller compairs to the old school ms and logitech ones that came out for the pc a few years ago?
 
i find it funny people whine about disk space but noone had a problem with FF7 being on 4 disc's i think it was.
 
Filter said:
i find it funny people whine about disk space but noone had a problem with FF7 being on 4 disc's i think it was.
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3.
FFVIII had 4.
FFVII on PC had 4, but disc 1 was the install CD, so technically its still 3.
 
zooraf said:
I think the added capacity of Blu-ray is a huge advantage for PS3 game developers - assuming they take advantage of that extra disk space for additional levels, better textures, more cutscenes, etc.

With the xbox 360, there's pretty much a built-in limitation for how much storage space is available to developers and it will certainly show later in the console's life-cycle.
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I am sure MS set aside an pre-determined amount of space that is not available to the consumer, even after a format. This was, if someone has the HDD, it's there to use, if not, the game will still run. I think MS set aside like 2GB.
Add to the fact, now MS will have HD Movies for download starting November 22nd.
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Where the heck am I gonna put these HD movies?

When I first started game development I was like "There is no way we can fill up a 650MB CD..". I can see how a Blue-Ray disk can be filled today.
 
zooraf said:
I think the added capacity of Blu-ray is a huge advantage for PS3 game developers - assuming they take advantage of that extra disk space for additional levels, better textures, more cutscenes, etc.

With the xbox 360, there's pretty much a built-in limitation for how much storage space is available to developers and it will certainly show later in the console's life-cycle.
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Here's something painfully obvious to chew on, that people with your view never seem to get: Extra content costs a developer $MONEY$. Extra levels? More money. Extra textures? More money. Extra characters? More money. Extra cars? More money. Extra cut scenes? More money.

Do you honestly expect them to spend all that extra money just to fill up the extra space, and then just *give* it to you for no extra charge?
 
What I find funny is that people seem to think that CGI cut-scenes are the only way to tell a story in video games or something. Has anyone played Gears of War? The cut-scenes are rendered in real-time using the game engine and it looks fantastic. And you know what? I personally prefer the method used in Gears of War. In my opinion, It helps to keep you immersed in the game. Gears of War isn't the only game to do this either, I'm just mentioning it because it's one of the latest and greatest.
 
zero002021 said:
What I find funny is that people seem to think that CGI cut-scenes are the only way to tell a story in video games or something. Has anyone played Gears of War? The cut-scenes are rendered in real-time using the game engine and it looks fantastic. And you know what? I personally prefer the method used in Gears of War. In my opinion, It helps to keep you immersed in the game. Gears of War isn't the only game to do this either, I'm just mentioning it because it's one of the latest and greatest.
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Completely agreed. We're at a stage now where *realtime* graphics can look pretty damn awesome without needing to pre-render them. Hell, real time stuff from today looks better than pre-rendered stuff from just a few years ago. Check out any PS1 or most early PS2 games for crystal clear evidence that modern real time is vastly superior to even relatively recent pre-rendered.

Good art design>higher poly prerendered scenes.
 
Who gives a shit about the fuckin XBOX360, HDDVD or Blurray or any of that shit...that isn't even what this thread is about.

god damn shut up already. He had an opinion on the PS3 demo.....how about lets stay on topic.
 
i have an xbox360, and will have a ps3 too. i think the added bluray is a plus, and the storage space for games will come in handy, and NEVER will for xbox 360 :( the hd-dvd addon will be purely for movies.

maybe they could have made the campaign mode of Gears of War longer if they had more room.... i'm going to make a possible ignorant statement and say nicer graphic games take up more room?
 
Jawad said:
maybe they could have made the campaign mode of Gears of War longer if they had more room....
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I don't generally buy this argument... more levels, graphics etc take time and obviously money. The studios know how much time they're willing to put into each game for the reward.
 
Psychotext said:
I don't generally buy this argument... more levels, graphics etc take time and obviously money. The studios know how much time they're willing to put into each game for the reward.
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By your logic then we should still be playing text based line input games because the game companies did not need to hire graphic artists, illustrators, animators or programmers with any skill beyond the FORTRAN level.

Also by your logic Valve would have never gone back and recoded the logic in their Source games for multi-threading, at a huge expense to them.

Innovation drive the game industry, the consumer wants new fancy flashy cool products and games.
 
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