[Pcper] Sony PS4 and Microsoft Xbox One Already Hitting a Performance Wall

[ChrisxIxCross]

 

In a recent email from an anonymous member of the AC: Unity Team has brought some very interesting information about the current capabilities of these consoles and where they stand today. Despite addressing other issues on value of pixel count, visuals, fps etc. The dev asserted that we may have already peaked on the graphical compute capability of these two new gaming consoles. Here is part of what he said -

 

 

The PS4 couldn’t do 1080p 30fps for our game, whatever people, or Sony and Microsoft say. ...With all the concessions from Microsoft, backing out of CPU reservations not once, but twice, you’re looking at about a 1-2 FPS difference between the two consoles.What's hard is not getting the game to render but getting everything else in the game at the same level of performance we designed from the start for the graphics. By the amount of content and NPCs in the game, from someone who witnessed a lot of optimizations for games from Ubisoft in the past, this is crazily optimized for such a young generation of consoles. This is really about to define the next-generation unlike any other game beforehand. We are bound from the CPU because of AI. Around 50% of the CPU is used for the pre-packaged rendering parts.

 

So if we take what this dev said as being true there are a few things we can take away from this statement. 

 

1. The PS4, the more graphically superior console of the two was not even capable of handling 30fps while rendering 1080p in AC: Unity. 

 

2. The Xbox One after having Kinect dedicated resources released to devs is now within a 1-2 fps margin of the PS4. 

 

3. The Ubi team see Unity as ALREADY being "crazy optimized" for the architecture as we approach 1 year after launch. 

 

4. Half the CPU compute time is being used to help the rendering engine by unpacking pre-baked lighiting models for the global-illumination and this the game is being limited by the 50% remaining performance power for AI, large amounts of NPC's etc. 

 

Unfortunately the hardware inside the PS4/Xbox One undershoots the needs of game developers to truly build "next-generation" games. If as the dev states we are less than year into the life cycle of hardware that was planned for a 8-10 year window and we have already reached performance limits, that's is a very bad sign for game devs that really want to be able to use the full extent of their creative imagination in order to create vast and expansive game worlds. This time around it's not custom built cores or power pc cell architecture. We are talking about very basic x86 pc based cpu/gpu hardware that ALL software devs are already very familiar with. It is not surprising at all that even the most skilled development teams have hit peak performance. 

 

All in all the cold hard truth is that Sony & MS dug themselves into a pretty deep hole here with seriously under powering these consoles with the future in mind. They wanted to make a profit on each system so they decided to seriously undercut the hardware unlike the XB360/PS3 release where those consoles were sold for lower than what they cost to produce and were just as powerful as mid-range to high-end pc's at the time. At the rate at which technology has been evolving so exponentially fast these past couple years especially with computer graphics it is quite clear that it is impossible to make something "future-proof" anymore. Imo if they wanted to make these consoles successful they should have just had an low-end pc that is the "base-model" with easily swapable/ upgradeable cpu/gpu or apu. 

 

edit: Sony is apparently already looking at releasing a "PS4 Slim" with upgraded internal hardware in Fall 2015 http://www.loadthegame.com/2014/10/20/ps4-slim-announced-e3-2015-hardware-aesthetics-improvements-expected/

Microsoft is as well - http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2014-smaller-cheaper-cooler-xbox-one-processor-in-development

 

edit 2: I'm aware that this informatiopn isn't necessarily "New" to those of us who understand hardware, of course we all laughed when we saw these specs a year ago. But what is new is that the Devs are now publicly acknowledging that these things just won't cut it. We're seeing stories about MS & Sony forcing devs to cap fps on the PC, downgrading the engine as we saw with the whole Watch Dogs disaster, Far Cry 4 on console supposedly looking like "Ultra" settings on PC, Absurd AC: Unity PC requirements etc. 

 

Source: http://www.pcper.com/news/General-Tech/Sony-PS4-and-Microsoft-Xbox-One-Already-Hitting-Performance-Wall

[Clyne]

Makes me laugh that these "current gen" consoles are already in a hole.

[flibberdipper]

These things were at their limit at launch.

 

Sorry, 2-4 years before launch.

[Aniallation]

When and why should this be considered surprising? PS4 and Xbone basically have 8-core versions of the AMD 5350.

[connorpiper]

The PS3 lasted for so long though. 

 

Still great. Consoles need to upgrade. The PS3 had $800 of hardware. It should have stayed that way.

[Clyne]

The PS2 lasted for so long though. 

*Edited

12 Years old, 2 months shy of it's 13th birthday.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation_2

[Pugs501]

Sorry but...

/r/PcMasterRace

[connorpiper]

*Edited

12 Years old, 2 months shy of it's 13th birthday.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation_2

 

That's because it was popular. I'm saying the PS3s hardware was enough for devs for quite some time. 

[XTankSlayerX]

Good job guys. You nailed it on the head with these consoles.

[SkilledRebuilds]

When and why should this be considered surprising? PS4 and Xbone basically have 8-core versions of the AMD 5350.

Not surprising, but an article was made, yesterday, people like to share, even its the same news you already know in a different style, have at it or don't click.

[Clyne]

That's because it was popular. I'm saying the PS3s hardware was enough for devs for quite some time. 

Well i want a PS3, just to play Gran Turismo 5 and Gran Turismo 6

[connorpiper]

Well i want a PS3, just to play Gran Turismo 5 and Gran Turismo 6

 

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue is the best I assure you.

But if you do get one, you have to play shadow of the colossus, Journey, and LittleBigPlanet.

[ChrisxIxCross]

When and why should this be considered surprising? PS4 and Xbone basically have 8-core versions of the AMD 5350.

Of course this isn't new we all laughed when we saw the specs a year ago. What is new is that the devs are now publicly acknowledging that these things just won't cut it. We're seeing stories about MS & Sony forcing devs to cap fps on the PC, downgrade the engine as we saw with the whole Watch Dogs disaster in an effort to not make the PC version look that much "better". 

[ComradeHX]

Not a surprise there; you know it's going to be cpu-bound when developer wants to add big maps and lots of npc while using underclocked mobile amd cpu.

Ubisoft...actually trying to dig self out of hole instead of keep digging deeper?

[Victorious Secret]

I don't trust anything Ubisoft says lately.

Here you have other developers saying "we're going as high as we can for the consoles and nothing less" and then you have Ubisoft making excuses left and right instead of just making the fucking games.

[ChrisxIxCross]

I don't trust anything Ubisoft says lately.

Here you have other developers saying "we're going as high as we can for the consoles and nothing less" and then you have Ubisoft making excuses left and right instead of just making the fucking games.

Yea well notice any kind of info where the Devs are actually saying they're pushing the consoles as hard as they can and that they are already limited by the hardware are anonymous, however any kind of "Official" word from Ubisoft is PR Garbage and just excuses so the console gamers dont feel bad. Of course 30fps is more "cinematic" and "resolution is just a number" is total bullshit. 

[Equlix]

this pc masterace bullshit is a cancer on this forum. games are only limited by a developer's imagination.

[ChrisxIxCross]

this pc masterace bullshit is a cancer on this forum. games are only limited by a developer's imagination.

I'm not advocating pcmasterrace here in any way. MS/Sony shot themselves in the foot here plain and simple. If the hardware is under-powered of course the game dev wont be able to do what they would like had they more resources available. The sky is the limit on PC they can create a insanely amazing and huge game and scale it down to the consoles, but they would never do that as that would be "unfair" and they're not going to put in that much more work for a single platform. 

[ComradeHX]

this pc masterace bullshit is a cancer on this forum. games are only limited by a developer's imagination.

Games are limited by hardware.

 

Games do not run on magical pixie dust.

 

I see your sarcasm.

[Victorious Secret]

this pc masterace bullshit is a cancer on this forum. games are only limited by a developer's imagination.

How else are people supposed to gain artificial superiority over other gamers, if not through that bullshit?

Normal gamers, PC and console, couldn't care less about this stuff. Only the hardcore idiots on both sides seem so concerned.

[ComradeHX]

How else are people supposed to gain artificial superiority over other gamers, if not through that bullshit?

Normal gamers, PC and console, couldn't care less about this stuff. Only the hardcore idiots on both sides seem so concerned.

You never got the point.

 

It was never about "PC Master Race"(you don't know what it stands for anyway)...  It was about games being held hostage/dumbed down/downgraded to the lowest common denominator, yet everyone pays around the same price.

[AudaciousGnome]

Unchartered 4 might have something to say about that. 

 

[AudaciousGnome]

[Psykomantis00]

Nice pre rendered cutscene. :rolleyes:

[Ren]

The Diablo 2 cinematics were fucking good, even now I love them.

But that won't hold a flame to actual gameplay and shit being rendered while other stuff is going on. Why. Why why why.