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Dilli Gee

If Wii has more power than an Xbox...

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... why does a 2004 game still blow many Wii ones out of the water, in terms of graphics?

 

This is a serious question.

 

Halo 2 is a last generation 2004 game (that many mistake for an Xbox 360 title), so just by default every Wii title should look better than it, or at least equal. Excite Truck, Red Steel, Metroid Prime 3 and Zelda seem to be the only titles that clearly are a entire step above Halo 2, but that's a few games out of many. All the others look the same, or like below, even worse.

 

Is there an actual reason for this?

 

wingisland03.jpg

 

halo-2-20041107100419285.jpg

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Yes, there is. The devs are being lazy and they shouldn't be aloud to show images of a game with out finishing them graphically.

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You should have shown Ninja Gaiden Black, that's even better looking than Halo 2. And runs 60 FPS constantly. Yes I am a bit disappointed in some Wii games, but at least Metroid Prime 3 and Super Mario Galaxy look quite good. Remember that the best looking games of a console always come a few years after a console is launched. Most PS2 and Xbox titles didn't look that spectacular when those consoles launched.

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factors include:

 

-unfinished games. eg. That flying game is VERY early in the works

-production time. eg. How many years to create a Halo, Final Fantasy or a Zelda game?

-production team. eg. Squaresoft > Hudson

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I don't think that's really much of an excuse if their developer's kit is more powerful than an Xbox.

 

Their pre-finalised designs should still look better than Halo 2, from the start, right?

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I don't think that's really much of an excuse if their developer's kit is more powerful than an Xbox.

 

Their pre-finalised designs should still look better than Halo 2, from the start, right?

 

Wrong, because it stills requires a lot of code even with more advanced tools, also most games are ports from cube dev kits and don't use the latest updates.

 

I think they're still trying to figure out the Wii-mote, but thats no escuse for them to show this, just keep it to themselfs until they have REALLY something to show, the public can't perceive innovative gameplay just by screenshots.

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According to you, as those graphics can't even match Rogue Leader, a first generation GC game, the Wii must be weaker than the gamecube?::shrug:

 

Oh, and by the way : that particular Halo 2 screenshot also looks worse than Rogue Leader. I wonder what conclusions we can draw from that ...

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Dilli Gee, you obviously don't understand what's going on. Go away.

 

Firstly, you don't know what it takes to make good graphics. A game doesn't automatically look good by running on a powerful system, I don't know where you get that idea. It takes time and work to use a console's power, a console doesn't do its maximum by default, that's ridicilous.

 

Graphics don't matter any more. You're comparing a flying game aimed at people new to gaming to Halo 2. Why on earth would the audience for that game care for those graphics? Seriously, why are you comparing those games? The developers of this game couldn't care a rat's ass for the graphics.

 

Secondly, obviously these games are far from finished. Graphics are second to gameplay mechanics. There seems to be something wrong with the devkit as there are plenty of (first party) games make good screenshots but third party games generally look like crap on first sight.

 

Finally, take a look at the first (20 MB) video. This is probably the exact same game as on those screenshots and it's looking absolutely gorgeous.

 

If you need prove that the Wii is more powerful than the Xbox then take a look at Red Steel, Mario Galaxy, SSBB and even Metroid Prime 3. Even the GameCube was at least as powerful as the Xbox and the Wii is quite a bit more powerful than the GameCube.

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DCK got it mostly but to cover why a game will not automatically look better on a more powerful system from the get go:

A game generally starts its life as a concept on a drawing board. From their it is taken to the programmers to make a game world and controls in which to test it. Now here is where it matters. Programmers that are making the game (staring at screens for hours on end, replaying the same section over and over to find bugs) really don't want to spend the time (weeks) making the game look good if the chance is there that they may have to redo it. Say they create a plane model, make it look all nice and good. They load this model into the game world and find out there is a bug in the animation of the model (propeller doesn't spin, wing flaps don't bend, somthing). They then have to recode the way the plan works and if they cannot fix the problem the will make a work around (fixed wings, jet, etc...). This then calls for a reworking of the model plan since it was styled as one type and now has to be another type. They may have to throw the entire thing out if they thing it would come off looking like a hack job. Now thing about every aspect of a game that you can see. This is why early productions always look sub par.

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Why does the Simpsons look worse than Star Wars? It's much more recent, so it should be more impressive.

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Nice one Dilli. :rolleyes:

 

You seem really disappointed by the graphics of the Wii. And you seem to be picking on certain games as a way of generalising the power/ability/potential of the Wii and ignoring many of the fully developed high end games. This therefore gives you a very biased and skewed opinion of the system.

 

For instance it's like me saying this: The original Halo looks amazing but the single player is shite. Bad level design and lack of any imagination for most of the gameplay. It's crap! But look at the games that came out on the N64: GoldenEye was absolutely awesome single and multiplayer. And Zelda is considered one of the best games of all time by many. Therefore as the level design on Halo is crap and the gameplay of a few of the other Xbox games are crap then that means the system is lame and is going to lose!

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I'm actually thinking of buying an XBOX today with a few top games while it is still in the shops.. the games are all pretty cheap now, and a pre-owned XBOX is £49.99..

 

If I do decide to get one, it'll mean I don't get the Wii for a good while.. maybe well into next year or longer..

 

..anyone able to give me any good advice?

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..anyone able to give me any good advice?

 

For 50 £ Xbox is very good bargain. You get access to some interesting classics that weren't available to Cube, and get play graphically better versions of most multiplatform games. Microsoft has also released new classics range that retails at 9 £ price point, and contains some great stuff like Ninja Gaiden, Project Gotham Racing 2 and Fable: Lost Chapters.

 

Plus, if it is older model, you can install modchip to it without any soldering. Usually modchips are frowned upon, but with Xbox you can do some really neat tricks, like turn you Xbox into full-fledged Media Player that supports everything from MP3 to xVid. In addition of that, modchip also enables you to play games from all regions, making importing both easy and fun.

 

Does this help?

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You all have to remember, game design is far more important than the tools the system has.

 

When you compare Viva Pinata to Pikmin 2.. when you compare Metroid 3 to Halo 2, Resident even 4 to Silent Hill.

 

Everything has it's pros and cons.. I'm no hardware expert but I know people who have played pre-release demos, and some of the games are looking poor even for GameCube standards.

 

Tony Hawks Downhill Jam and Call of Duty being serious offenders..

 

It's not HD, but if you select your games right.. do a little research and review hunting, check some screens you can steer clear of the bogeys.

 

Stop whinging.. there are gonna be a ton of shite games with lazy design.. just look at every Ridge Racer launch title on practically any console.. rushed and unpolished.. compare it to Wipeout which always makes the launch since Sony bought out Psygnosis.

 

Apparently Mario is looking the best thus far.. with Metroid in a close second.

 

I'll leave on the note that I am not buying a Wii for a sit back and enjoy the visuals experience, a PS3 or 360 can do that for me.. Wii is different, it's about immersion and involvement in different ways.

 

PS my cash converter has all consoles minus the 360 for £30, but the classics you speak of in there and most pre-owned stockists will set you back £10-15, eg Halo 2, PGR2, yadda yadda.

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Thanks.. I probably wouldn't be going down the mod chip route but I have seen games like Ninja Gaiden Black, PGR, Halo, Halo 2, Forza Motorsport and others all relatively cheap (around £10) and in GAME there is a Buy One Get One Free on some games (which I think Includes Ninja Gaiden Black) and 3 for 2 offers on many others.

 

Would it be worth paying £79.99 for a completely new XBOX since they don't have any preowned in the store or should I try to find one somewhere.. maybe Xtra-Vision? I'm thinking about stocking up on some games and then I can play them over the next few months/year until I'm ready to get something next-gen..

 

Thanks again Teppo!

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eBay, also my mate has his box modded, many of the decent games don't save properly or stop functioning on certain levels.

 

I'm not sure if he got it done by someone reliable or whether it was a shit job.. but from his experiences I'd steer clear of modding as it just seems hit and miss.

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Would it be worth paying £79.99 for a completely new XBOX since they don't have any preowned in the store or should I try to find one somewhere.. maybe Xtra-Vision?

 

New is always new, but to be honest, Xbox is built like a brick and under normal circumstances it doesn't break up. So there shouldn't be any risks in buying pre-owned Xbox. Xbox's only vulnerable part is the DVD-drive, and even that depends on which of three Microsoft's drive suppliers made it. Thompson model is prone to break up, and is quite shitty. Fortunately only some early models use Thompson drive, as Microsoft decided to end their contract with Thompson due poor quality. Later models have Samsung drive, which is really good and reliable.

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Be patient, devs are just focusing on getting their control schemes right from the start. They focus on polishing up the graphics later on. Look at the improvement in Metroid and Red Steel for example.

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New is always new, but to be honest, Xbox is built like a brick and under normal circumstances it doesn't break up. So there shouldn't be any risks in buying pre-owned Xbox. Xbox's only vulnerable part is the DVD-drive.

 

..the DVD feature isn't a particular concern really.. I'd like a new one but I don't think I can part with that much money for something that won't be in the stores much longer.. the problem is finding one second-hand..

 

..I think I will ask in my GAME store if they can contact the other one relatively near it (in Antrim.. the one I go to is in Ballymena) to see if they have any in stock before I'd make a pointless journey up there.. but I'll check Xtra-Vision in Ballymena first..

 

Anyone wanna make any game suggestions? I'll probably be limited to maybe 4 or 5 games if I buy one today (IF!) and currently I'm thinking about Ninja Gaiden Black, Rallisport Challenge 2, Top Spin, Halo and Pro Evolution 4/5..

 

(sorry to be off topic but I don't think I'm causing too much trouble.. :horse: )

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Nando, i know its a bit of a drive but GAME in Forestside, Belfast have 2 preowns. Im just out of it 10 mins ago.

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