Graphics in The Witcher

[Badmagic.677]

Graphics in The Witcher

So, although the vast majority of what I have seen so far has impressed me greatly there seems to be a few individuals that keep popping up in different forums that seem to think the visuals in this game are somewhat lacking. ???As I think these people must be on some form of medication that’s altering their perceptions I decided to try and break that illusion by uploading a tiny (less than a minute long) look at one of the very first environments in the game (during the tutorial phase) so as not to spoil anything for anyone.Its worth noting although it has “Bedroom” in the name its not that kind of movie, its just a quick look at one of the countless stunning environments in the game running of a decent user rig (not an uber games show rig).I recorded the clip at the full 1680x1050 resolution I play at with the frames per second limited to 29 in fraps but as I needed to convert the file from the 2 Gb avi file that Fraps created I used Windows Movie Maker to make it a much more manageable 1280x720 25 fps wmv file that weighs in at less than 30 Mb.The only problem now is finding a free video streaming host that allows that res to display for uploads I tried everyone I could find with the aid of google but at this point none of them retain quality or even work in some cases so I have resorted to using FileFront, sorry I know people don’t like downloading files but I just cant find a single video host that can handle what it needs to.Anyway, here a couple of quick images showing the room followed by the link to the mini-vid.[IMAGE Link] The Witcher – Location 01a (1680x1050)[IMAGE Link] The Witcher – Location 01b (1680x1050)[VIDEO link wmv (31mb) version shrunk to 1280x720][VIDEO link divx (22mb) version 1280x720][VIDEO link divx (7mb) version 600x400ish]

 

[darian]

Many gamers seem to expect every game to look like BioShock, Crysis, or whatever high-spec game is out at the moment. For what it is, The Witcher's visuals are very impressive.

 

[darksharp]

"For what it is" What it is? It's an RPG. Is there some universal reason RPGs can't look as good as Assassins Creed, Bioshock, Crysis, etc. No. There isn't. The only possible reason is you have to create alot of content that publishers don't want to pay for. So larger teams to create all the content = cranky, cheap publishers.Considering it's a heavily revamped Aurora engine it looks solid but not stunning. I've seen better screens of the game. Some of the vistas, and outdoor sunset shots I've seen of the game are real nice for sure. The lighting in your screens looks kinda flat, tbh.What settings you playing on?Is shadows on? Is self-shadowing on? Is there a self shadow option with low/med/hi settings?

 

[Badmagic.677]

Everything at maximum, strange, I thought it was the animations you didn’t like? Getting back to the topic at hand though can you tell us what RPG looks better, I don’t remember seeing it but as we all know there things are subjective so it would be interesting to know what you think looks good by comparison?

 

[robosatan]

I agree completely. Games that spend 90% of their processor budget on graphics and over the top hollywood physics aren't always great games. I think Bioshock was extremely over rated. While I do think it was a good game both fantastic graphics and narrative, from the view of a PC gamer it was extremely mediocre when it came to game play. It had the feel of a console to PC port and tactically it was pretty much a a no brainer, which is bizarre considering how their psychic power system could have made it so much more interesting.Games like the Witcher are RPG's, which in my opinion do not need good graphics. Final Fantasy 7, now while completely dated graphically, is a phenomenal game still worthy of it's great reviews. Will titles like Bioshock and Crysis age this well? I doubt it. So long as the Witcher has an immersive story, good graphics are just a bonus. People who judge game soley on their graphics should take a moment to go through a "greatest games of all time" list and try some of them out, I guarantee you won't have sense nostalgia when you go back to one of your "AMIGAD THE GFX ARE HAWT" titles in 10 years time.

 

[link006]

Gameplay > Graphics.I agree, the visuals in that scene look great.

 

[Seeker.217]

From what I can tell just form this Vid alone the Graphics look good the shodows look like there well done the movement seem not to be lagy or clicky at all. it seem to run veary smooth to me.Grapics alone dose not make a good game

 

[Badmagic.677]

I admit, while recording with fraps my fps was anywhere from 20-30 but on my last run through I kept the fraps counter on display, as long as I was not recording I was maintaining 60-70 fps, I can only guess this is either v-sync or set in an ini file somewhere.I also totally agree that with any RPG (or game for that matter) it’s the game-play and immersion that makes or breaks it but when I read various posts about the game having outdated visuals I was compelled to post this thread.I had been through that chamber a couple of time times on different difficulty settings then when I realised I was going to start again with the patch I grabbed this video quickly before deleting all my previous saves.The last game I can remember that even approached this kind of visual quality was an extremely heavily modded TESIV including texture replacers for everything from avatars to environments to objects, (many GB of mod textures) I really cant think of any RPG that can or has rivalled this yet and I am simply confused over such statements.I would like to say also I am not trying to bolster peoples beliefs in the game as I had an absurd email on my modding account accusing me as such, I am simply trying to illustrate that what the developers have shown was indeed true, there is none of that dodgy show one thing and deliver something entirely different that almost every title released these days seems to utilise.

 

[username_2062352]

Well I haven't played the game yet, as it hasn't been released here in the US yet, but I have to agree with BADMAGIC, after looking through a lot of the screen shots the game looks pretty sweet to me to! In my opinion Graphics isn't all that makes a game. For me if the game with a good nonlinear storyline, and freedom to do what you want or "open-ended" game play, that is what I look for in an RPG game. And from what I have read about The Witcher, it has all of that going for it, I hope. That is what I love most about TES Oblivion, if you get tired of doing the main quest you can explore runes, and forts for riches, and treasure or anything else you can thank of. The game doesn't presser you to fallow a certain path. And Oblivion has some pretty amazing graphics. When it comes to graphics in an RPG game, Oblivion is what I use to compare with. And The Witcher looks about the same as far as that go's. As far as Bioshock go's, I run it in DirectX 10 with max settings, and sure it's got the eye candy going on. But the game is just to linear, and way to short for my tastes. So that sort of rune it for me.

 

[username_2061709]

"For what it is" What it is? It's an RPG. Is there some universal reason RPGs can't look as good as Assassins Creed, Bioshock, Crysis, etc. No. There isn't. The only possible reason is you have to create alot of content that publishers don't want to pay for. So larger teams to create all the content = cranky, cheap publishers.Considering it's a heavily revamped Aurora engine it looks solid but not stunning. I've seen better screens of the game. Some of the vistas, and outdoor sunset shots I've seen of the game are real nice for sure. The lighting in your screens looks kinda flat, tbh.What settings you playing on?Is shadows on? Is self-shadowing on? Is there a self shadow option with low/med/hi settings?

Ah here comes the complainer again...Come on dude witcher is by far one of the most stylish games out there, if u are "hardware" geek sure you can see that it is missing some "cool and uber" dx10 L77TN3S.When do you poor soul realize thats not the point. You said bioshock looks great i say it looks okay in my books, sure theres nice effects and the shadow/light system looks cool etc and when taking into account what the game can do with the graphic engine it has it is one of the prettiest games out there BUT it´s not on the same level with Witcher when it comes to feel, depth and immersion. Let me further clarify my point, the characters in bioshock looks mediocre without the damn effects, when you turn the effects on all you see all boom and gloom and stuff but atleast i can realize and SEE the model behind the gloom and boom and stuff, it certainly doesnt make bioshock look bad but thats just "hardware" stuff you see.When the pre-work is so well made in witcher, the details of the characters in Witcher (wich by the way have shitloads of more of those said characters than bioshock) i can not understand how you can critize Witcher.Dude you really say its bad thing that the lightining in witcher works so, that you may actually see where you are heading. Coz there´s no light vision goggles for you my friend.

 

[Badmagic.677]

Ah, that explains it, sorry when I read that post previously I did not click on the mention of Bioshock.That game ceased to be an RPG for me as soon as I have played it for an hour or two, after the second play though just to see the alternate ending I doubt I will be loading it again unless I was looking for a quick first person shooter fix.I know other people will disagree with that assessment and I wont waste my time or theirs trying to change their minds about it.

 

[robosatan]

Ah, that explains it, sorry when I read that post previously I did not click on the mention of Bioshock.That game ceased to be an RPG for me as soon as I have played it for an hour or two, after the second play though just to see the alternate ending I doubt I will be loading it again unless I was looking for a quick first person shooter fix.I know other people will disagree with that assessment and I wont waste my time or theirs trying to change their minds about it.

OMG! You actually finished it once? I got bored about 4-5 hours in.

 

[MADPADDY]

Well they got the name right bioSHOCK i didnt see what everyone was banging on about graphics good but not amazing and gameplay,just another shoot'em up.Anyone who thinks the witcher graphics are not fantastic are on drugs or should be.

 

[darksharp]

Ah here comes the complainer again...

Ah and here come the irrational, inability to accept divergent opinions fanboys. Anybody who doesn't agree with them is a complainer, a whiner, a nitpicker, etc. (Those Eurogame and Gamestar guys are sure complainers aren't they? Bunch of whiners! The nerve of them! The nerve of them giving your beloved game only a 7! How dare they! They are wrong! WRONG! *Froths at mouth!!!!*) Gotta love fanboys they don't read what you really say. They skim posts you make to support their own close minded ideas and then run with it regardless if the person actually said that.Very much like religious fanactics (note the word FAN in fanatic) who refuse to hear divergent opinions, they just stick their fingers in their ears and shout "INFIDEL!".Let's take a look at the facts:I said the game looks solid. READ IT. That is not saying it looks bad however if it's your interpretation you're wrong. I DID say the screenshots Badmagic took don't look that good. There are better screens to use as showpieces (see the Eurogamer review some great stuff in there). So you'll note in my post that I said the game looks much better in other screenshots.

Everything at maximum, strange, I thought it was the animations you didn’t like?

I didn't say I didn't like the graphics of the Witcher. I said I thought your screenshots looked flat. And how does this have anything to do with animations? I am only allowed one subject to make comments on.

Games like the Witcher are RPG's, which in my opinion do not need good graphics.

Art has NOTHING to do with story and gameplay. They are 3 separate depts in a modern gamestudio. It's not like the artists are writing the story and programming the AI and physics (well maybe at Spiderweb software or other tiny shops). This argument does not wash. So don't say I'd rather have gameplay over graphics. Or RPGs never have good graphics. This is a myth and it's false. If you're going to tell me that CPU processor has something to do with story...well don't bother. That's just ridiculous wrong. Why not tell me the world is flat and that a big giant sky fairy is going to take me to a magical place when I die. While it's true, AI, Physics, Graphics, Sound all compete for the CPU/GPU any studio worth it's weight has planned way in advance for that to maximize performance and balance on PC load.

Games that spend 90% of their processor budget on graphics and over the top hollywood physics aren't always great games

Has nothing to do with story or genre or gameplay. Good graphics and physics help sell immersion. Frankly, most people don't want story. Yeah, yeah I know INFIDEL! Get him! Just because you do and I does not mean everyone does. I love a good RPG story. I'm sick to death of cliche ones that's for sure. i.e. Evil Wizard wants to destroy/enslave the world. You, a farmer, are the Chosen One, although you don't realize it yet. ZZZZZZZZ. Oh wait that's the NWN2 story.

OMG! You actually finished it once? I got bored about 4-5 hours in.

Haha I love when people react like this.Yes YOU are the Center of the Universe. Because YOU didn't do something, you're shocked when someone else doesn't do exactly what you did. Lots of people I know finished Bioshock. It's a short game (10 hours). I gave it a 8/10. /shrugs it's a good game. I love the universe of it. End boss sucked.Did you know, lots of people could care less what the story of a game is? I've sat through Halo 3 focus group testing and Half Life 2 focus group testing and over 80% of the people couldn't tell you what the story is or really cared. People are lazy and what everything to explode real good. Which is sad but it's the truth. Most people said they just want to kill shit. RPGers are different but they are also a much, much smaller group (read: makes less money). This is the game business and it's about making money unfortunately. Which is why so few RPGs get made. Publishers are not giving a dev money to make the greatest story ever told. They want to make their stockholders money.

Dude you really say its bad thing that the lightining in witcher works so, that you may actually see where you are heading.Coz there´s no light vision goggles for you my friend.

Anyone who thinks the witcher graphics are not fantastic are on drugs or should be.

I didn't say that. I said the lighting in THOSE screenshots looked flat compared to the other screenshots of the WITCHER. Which is why I asked if Bad Magic had shadows and self shadows on. READ WHAT I WROTE. Stop skimming, your reading comprehension skill is the suck because you missed my point entirely. Is English your first language?Additionally, most industry professionals, guys and girls who dedicate 40-80 hours a week to making the games you play, would disagree with you that Bioshock is just "ok" looking. Bioshock is considered a great looking game . Assassins Creed is considered a great looking game. Mass Effect. Final Fantasy XII. Resident Evil 4, Downplay it if you want. Call them dumbed down console games. Note: They are all on PC but developed for consoles because this makes the publisher money. /shrugs. Just to clarify I think Witcher looks great in alot of the screenshots. Clear? Could I be any more clearer?

 

[username_2061709]

Ah and here come the irrational, inability to accept divergent opinions fanboys.

Hah you really think that im so narrow minded not to see the faults, or so incabaple to see my own "fanboysm" that i dont understand what looks good and what bad.I admit im a fan of the Witcher especially after ~10 hour gameplay.It has its flaws yes but i like it.The thing i dont understand is that why you complain on every damn minor flaw you can "find" in the game that you dont even own according to your user profile.Or lets put it other way: i cant see the point of your posting about single screenshot and dismissing it with "not good looking, me right." attitude.If your opinion was about single screen shot as you claim, in my opinion then it was obvious flame bait and i falled into it (yes i like to "fall into flamebaits" and kick the baiters ass afterwards).

I said the game looks solid. READ IT. That is not saying it looks bad however if it's your interpretation you're wrong.

Then im wrong and your flamebaiter. (altho i must admit you conceal it quite nicely, you reveal yourself by posting too much and every post you make has something negative to say).

Art has NOTHING to do with story and gameplay.

Just please roll back, sit back for a moment and think how wrong you are.Let me explain this to you there is no DIRECT relationship between those BUT we are speaking of games, CRPG´s especially atm, and games are made with man years. Now you take the % of man years used to create that said art in to one single game that has LIMITED man years to use in its production and you dare to say they are have no relationship at all, no link whatsoever.

Games that spend 90% of their processor budget on graphics and over the top hollywood physics aren't always great games

Has nothing to do with story or genre or gameplay.

So you claim that using 90% of games man years into graphics dont affect the story

RPGers are different but they are also a much, much smaller group (read: makes less money). This is the game business and it's about making money unfortunately. Which is why so few RPGs get made. Publishers are not giving a dev money to make the greatest story ever told. They want to make their stockholders money.

Im suprised to see that you have some sense in you there might be hope........

Is English your first language?

aww shite no hope most used fail to cover your own mistakes that can be used against you.and no english aint my first language, im suprised you did not notice coz i know i make a lot of grammar mistakes.

 

[darksharp]

The thing i dont understand is that why you complain on every damn minor flaw you can "find" in the game that you dont even own according to your user profile

Ah so, I guess the videos/screenshots of the game are completely different in your game than what's been showing. I'll have the game tonight.I've said lots of positive things about the Witcher. It's not my fault you chose to skim or chose to ignore what I said.

Just please roll back, sit back for a moment and think how wrong you are.

I'm not wrong. You're basing this on what experience in the industry? You obviously don't understand project management on games.A publisher gives you a budget to make a game.You divide the cost up into depts and schedule it out. Very rarely are schedules successful because of many, many factors. Look at the Witcher (it shipped late).You staff depts based on those needs. So if you are developing an RPG you cost out the story, the gameplay, the programming, the sound and the art. If you skimp on the art (nowadays, even with RPGs) you are going to take a hit in the reviews. Smart developers and publishers know this. Look at Mass Effect and Fallout.They know alot of people make initial judgements and purchase decisions based on screens and movies.They also know with RPGs it's important to have story and gameplay with depth.They also know if they have an unpolished game it will affect sales dramatically. The consumer can go buy a competing product and they've lost that sale.That's the way it works. Now what's your point?Note: I was referring to SGG with "English is your first language" Tweety.

 

[username_2061709]

The thing i dont understand is that why you complain on every damn minor flaw you can "find" in the game that you dont even own according to your user profile

Ah so, I guess the videos/screenshots of the game are completely different in your game than what's been showing.

Actually the game looks much different from the videos i have seen simply becouse of the feel and becouse the vid´s quality that get released are often sub par.

I've said lots of positive things about the Witcher. It's not my fault you chose to skim or chose to ignore what I said.

actually i think im not the first person in these boards who said same things about you posting that i did.and im not ignoring you becouse atm you are a fun toy that amuses me.

Just please roll back, sit back for a moment and think how wrong you are.

I'm not wrong. You're basing this on what experience in the industry? You obviously don't understand project management on games.A publisher gives you a budget to make a game.You divide the cost up into depts and schedule it out. Very rarely are schedules successful because of many, many factors. Look at the Witcher (it shipped late).You staff depts based on those needs. So if you are developing an RPG you cost out the story, the gameplay, the programming, the sound and the art. If you skimp on the art (nowadays, even with RPGs) you are going to take a hit in the reviews. Smart developers and publishers know this. Look at Mass Effect and Fallout.They know alot of people make initial judgements and purchase decisions based on screens and movies.They also know with RPGs it's important to have story and gameplay with depth.They also know if they have an unpolished game it will affect sales dramatically. The consumer can go buy a competing product and they've lost that sale.That's the way it works. Now what's your point?Note: I was referring to SGG with "English is your first language" Tweety.

Oh and how many years exactly have you in the industry ? I dont need an answer in all fairness coz im not giving you a one.My point to even further clarify it is that there is major game developer companies and releasers that release a game entirely based on graphic´s hype (good example for you: bioshock, crysis)The decision about how they divide the money is the link and the key here, it takes consideration also how they are gonna market the game, aka are we making crysis and marketting the game as an most beautifully looking game ever (wich cuts a fair share of other "divisions" money) or are we going to make a long story telling RPG and market the story (wich in turn takes a something out of everything else.)

 

[darksharp]

you are a fun toy that amuses me

Haha, we were saying the thing here about you. Now who's the flamebait? Subtle (like a panzer tank)! Anyways got work to do don't time to respond. I'll be back to rattle your cage later, Sweety, if Witcher isnt' on my doorstop./prods Tweety with a sharp stick.I kid.

 

[username_2061709]

you are a fun toy that amuses me

Haha, we were saying the thing here about you.

Then it is good thing that we both enjoy ourself

I'll be back to rattle your cage later, Sweety,

I hold you on that...

 

[Lightzy]

I have a GTX 8800, ok computer.. played both bioshock and witcher on highest settings...Witcher is so much prettier there's no contest whatsoever.Simply better artists and MUCH better art direction. Bioshock is pretty, but the witcher is a class of its own. It's one of the only games ever where I didn't automatically pass over in-game cutscenes..Its all down to art direction.. these people are geniuses on a scale that I've never seen before