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[Riky]

Yeah they are not as good as R* and other devs at open world visuals. But it still looks good, especially at 60fps

Plus 120fps on console, no other developer is getting anywhere near those visuals at that framerate at the moment, nobody.

 

[OmegaSupreme]

Actual words are probably more important than your perceived tone.

There was nothing to perceive. It was quite obvious. Ars Technia is also not thrilled with it. Perhaps your bias is getting in the way a bit? Just a bit.

 

[Ghost of Caelid]

ODST...I wish it wasn't so slept on.

 

[Riky]

There was nothing to perceive. It was quite obvious. Ars Technia is also not thrilled with it. Perhaps your bias is getting in the way a bit? Just a bit.

Coming from you

The thread is about the DF review, the quote is from DF, your bias is the one trying to downplay and ignore actual written and spoken words.........quite sad really.

 

[OmegaSupreme]

Plus 120fps on console, no other developer is getting anywhere near those visuals at that framerate at the moment, nobody.

Those "visuals" are mostly empty landscapes with a single biome and repeating corridors.

 

[Sosokrates]

Plus 120fps on console, no other developer is getting anywhere near those visuals at that framerate at the moment, nobody.

Is the xbox one S version confirmed to be 30fps on the campaign?
Because if its 60fps on the 1S that changes the conversation.

 

[Exanthus]

Don't wanna watch for the sake of media blackout but wasnt the half frame rate thing also a thing in Halo 5?

Yeah for things out in the distance it was. But I don't recall animations etc being half frame rate.

 

[TrueLegend]

Inject RTXGI and/or AO and this game will look amazing.

I agree while the terrain and foliage look really good albiet not the deformation, the lack of AO is just too obvious. Lets hope we can inject it via ENB and then some few tweaks and mods on PC and this will come out great. The interiors looks stunning though. I am only disappointed about the lack of biomes. I will wait before playing, memory leaks are a serious issue with microsoft releases this year Windows 11 has it, Forza has it and now apparently Halo has it. I don't know whats going on with memory issues.

 

[LordOfChaos]

They fixed some things from the initial showing, but others look way scaled back too

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FF6boRzXIAEumvP?format=jpg&name=large

Also 7:17 His armor looks more appropriately scarred, but the background also looks way less detailed. The door opening light bloom is a bunch of stairstepping on the final build

I wonder if the warbling gloves when in the open world are because they switch to FP16 precision

 

[Riky]

"I do think the world is generally attractive thanks to its huge vistas and unique terrain design. It's certainly more inspired than the typical open world environment and there are some features designed to improve the overall look. Volumetric fog is used throughout, lending the environment some additional depth - especially evident during sunset. Meanwhile, the skyboxes impress thanks to 343's use of some kind of procedural system that allows for dynamic, constantly changing cloud cover. The rest of the skybox is attractive with a starry expanse, ships and the halo ring itself filling the horizon. In addition, a cloud shadow layer is used across the terrain - this at least helps offset the lack of typical distance shadows and breathes additional life into the environment."

Those "visuals" are mostly empty landscapes with a single biome and repeating corridors.

"There's a real density to the environments but also legibility - it's easy to parse each scene but it never feels sparse"

DF say otherwise.

 

[Riky]

Is the xbox one S version confirmed to be 30fps on the campaign?
Because if its 60fps on the 1S that changes the conversation.

30fps only on One S.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

Is there really only one biome? That's really disappointing, and seems quite a departure from the original pitch if true

 

[OmegaSupreme]

"I do think the world is generally attractive thanks to its huge vistas and unique terrain design. It's certainly more inspired than the typical open world environment and there are some features designed to improve the overall look. Volumetric fog is used throughout, lending the environment some additional depth - especially evident during sunset. Meanwhile, the skyboxes impress thanks to 343's use of some kind of procedural system that allows for dynamic, constantly changing cloud cover. The rest of the skybox is attractive with a starry expanse, ships and the halo ring itself filling the horizon. In addition, a cloud shadow layer is used across the terrain - this at least helps offset the lack of typical distance shadows and breathes additional life into the environment."



"There's a real density to the environments but also legibility - it's easy to parse each scene but it never feels sparse"

DF say otherwise.

My mistake then. Digital Foundry is the word of gospel above all others. I've seen a number of reviews today and I've clearly got them mixed up.

Review: Halo Infinite’s campaign finishes the fight—but arrives in tatters

Great balance between classic and new ideas marred by serious technical issues.

arstechnica.com

 

[Riky]

My mistake then. Digital Foundry is the word of gospel above all others. I've seen a number of reviews today and I've clearly got them mixed up.

Review: Halo Infinite’s campaign finishes the fight—but arrives in tatters

Great balance between classic and new ideas marred by serious technical issues.

arstechnica.com

I don't know if you have trouble reading but this is a thread about the Digital Foundry review.

 

[Corndog]

True but not every game costs hundreds of millions of dollars. Developers have done more with less. Crossgen is a killer.

I don't thinks is a cross gem problem. Just poor management at 343.

 

[IntentionalPun]

My mistake then. Digital Foundry is the word of gospel above all others. I've seen a number of reviews today and I've clearly got them mixed up.

Review: Halo Infinite’s campaign finishes the fight—but arrives in tatters

Great balance between classic and new ideas marred by serious technical issues.

arstechnica.com

Seems obvious they are playing on the "120FPS" mode?

They don't bother to mention it. That looks like garbage, but 120FPS modes are pretty stupid for single player games.

They really exist for xCloud, is the thing MS doesn't talk about.

 

[Dr Bass]

"I do think the world is generally attractive thanks to its huge vistas and unique terrain design. It's certainly more inspired than the typical open world environment and there are some features designed to improve the overall look. Volumetric fog is used throughout, lending the environment some additional depth - especially evident during sunset. Meanwhile, the skyboxes impress thanks to 343's use of some kind of procedural system that allows for dynamic, constantly changing cloud cover. The rest of the skybox is attractive with a starry expanse, ships and the halo ring itself filling the horizon. In addition, a cloud shadow layer is used across the terrain - this at least helps offset the lack of typical distance shadows and breathes additional life into the environment."



"There's a real density to the environments but also legibility - it's easy to parse each scene but it never feels sparse"

DF say otherwise.

Riky, this honestly reads like someone reaching for words to say anything at all. It hardly feels like they strongly believe what they are writing. "Generally attractive"? High praise indeed.

The skyboxes impress because they have dynamic clouds? And stars? Volumetric fog adds depth? How is it more inspired than the "typical open world environment"? I don't see a shred of evidence of that in any of the videos or reviews.

But at least in addition there is a cloud shadow layer. Cloud shadows do tend to "breathe life" into environments ...

They might as well be saying "the sky, rendered in blue, gives off an incredibly realistic vibe."

It's clearly not a well written summary, or even one with a lot of conviction behind it. There just doesn't seem to be much to actually say. The Arstechnica review seems far more thoughtfully constructed and examined. The DF discussion should be included in a group reviews thread, no matter the game. They really aren't worth dedicated threads.

 

[HeisenbergFX4]

I find this interesting as well

 

[chilichote]

The video was great, John knows how to do this job - even if it was a bit long^^

Halo Infinite looks really nice in parts, especially inside, but the shadows, the grass and other things are not necessarily that nice, but as I said, the game sometimes looks really good in the interior levels, the textures are very three-dimensional (the german word "plastisch" is somehow difficult to translate into english). But the dropouts are bad...!

I'm excited to see how the game will play on Xbox One.

 

[Matsuchezz]

Animation I think does not look that good i would expect something more advanced and intricate, and when a Grenade is thrown, it should rip the bodies of the foes. Probably this has not been part of any Halo game, but it looks kind of dumb. The game design looks solid, but 343i are still not a technical powerhouse. After watching the video, it has a lof of little visual drawbacks all over the game. I want to play it down the road. I hope it is patched. I will probably buy a Series X to play this one once Coop is released.

 

[LordOfChaos]

The video was great, John knows how to do this job - even if it was a bit long^^

Um yeah he was trained from childhood to be a genetically enhanced supersold....Oh.

 

[Deerock71]

Xbox One X second best version?

 

[Mr Moose]

Is the xbox one S version confirmed to be 30fps on the campaign?
Because if its 60fps on the 1S that changes the conversation.

It's 30 on the One S, 30 and 60 on One X/Series S.

Halo Infinite campaign: the Digital Foundry analysis

Tech issues aside, this is a simply brilliant game

www.eurogamer.net

(Haven't watched the vid yet, just going by the pics in this).
Edit: 46 minutes? Yeah I am not watching this, never mind.

 

[elliot5]

Analista has a full comparison up and tbh Xbox One doesn't look like TOTAL ass given how demanding this game seems to be and how shit tier the Xbox One is

 

[Deerock71]

It's 30 on the One S, 30 and 60 on One X/Series S.

Halo Infinite campaign: the Digital Foundry analysis

Tech issues aside, this is a simply brilliant game

www.eurogamer.net

(Haven't watched the vid yet, just going by the pics in this).

Well, I'm in the camp 30 vs. 60 who gives a shit, so if there are other graphical bells and whistles the Series S could do that the XOX could not, then I'd probably lean more towards the Series S. Either way, they both seem totally acceptable.

 

[SlimySnake]

I am surprised by all the technical issues. All of these seem to be bugs that can be ironed out which makes the year long delay even more puzzling. I thought the game was done last year and only needed to be pushed for bug fixing. How can you release something with this many bugs a year later?

Performance is mostly sound, then. However, perceptual performance in cutscenes and with in-game animations was an issue in the preview build and has not been corrected for the final game. Also bizarre is that while the game runs at 60fps or 120fps on Series X, facial animations seem to run at half-rate, creating a serious visual continuity. Let's be clear, the composition and detail in the cutscenes is excellent, but their choppiness in motion is seriously off-putting. Put simply, camera and character movement doesn't appear fluid, while facial animations look off. The renderer is updating as it should, but there's something seriously wrong in the update of the content itself. Thankfully, 343 has contacted us via Microsoft PR to tell us that this is being addressed in an upcoming, post-launch patch but it is surprising to see it at all, especially as reviewing Halo Infinite marketing materials from the controversial 2020 gameplay trailer and even earlier cutscene showcases reveals none of these issues.

In-game, there are other puzzling technical problems. We've talked in the past about reloading and mantling animations running at lower frame-rates (again, not present in the 2020 gameplay reveal) but also strange is how lighting interacts with dynamic objects. Playing through many scenes, you get the impression that enemies don't fully blend in with the environment - so an enemy character in a red room appears to be lit white by an invisible light source. Going back to prior Halo games, I didn't see any equivalent issue, to the point where I wonder if this is an attempt to improve visibility. Also curious is how the view weapon and Master Chief's hands warp in motion - but only in the open world. This one is interesting in that it can also be observed in older Halo titles.

Other issues? I wonder if there are some memory management problems 343 need to address. Several time during my gameplay experience, Halo Infinite would freeze for a short while for seemingly no reason. It looks and feels like a crash, only the game comes back and works just fine several second later. It's very, very bizarre when it happens but it seems like something that could be fixed. Also, after extended play, I started to notice textures visibly loading and unloading when simply turning the camera.

Thankfully all of these are minor issues, but it's still very bizarre. I expect these from covid hit games that HAD to be released this year like BF 2042 and CoD Vanguard, but Phil gave these guys an extra year. My guess is that 343 kept MS top brass in the dark about just how far behind they really were last year.

 

[Mr Moose]

Well, I'm in the camp 30 vs. 60 who gives a shit, so if there are other graphical bells and whistles the Series S could do that the XOX could not, then I'd probably lean more towards the Series S. Either way, they both seem totally acceptable.

I think the Series S had better textures in places, but the One X is a much higher res overall.
Series S quality mode:

One X quality mode:

 

[SlimySnake]

Analista has a full comparison up and tbh Xbox One doesn't look like TOTAL ass given how demanding this game seems to be and how shit tier the Xbox One is

Rdr2 on x1 surprised me. 900p, but otherwise identical settings compared to ps4. Looked great though a bit blurry on bigger screens.

If the best looking last gen game can run on that console without any sacrifices at 900p, it's got some redeeming qualities.

The cross gen period hasn't been kind to it though. Cyberpunk, re8 and cod look really bad on it.

 

[Larlight]

Definitely a downgrade from what they had shown earlier a few years back but more improved than what they were going to release last year that's for sure.

 

[SlimySnake]

Is there really only one biome? That's really disappointing, and seems quite a departure from the original pitch if true

I brought this up in another thread recently but why would they draw, animate and render those wildlife herds and different biomes if they didn't plan on using them? It was a real time trailer running on Xbox one x so clearly all the work was done already. Why downgrade it 3 years into the dev cycle?

This reminds me of the Mass effect Andromeda expose by Jason. He said the team was given 5 years to reboot Mass effect. They spent the First 3 years on prototyping procedurally generated planets before realizing that it won't work. Then they had 18 months to start from scratch and ship andromeda. I wonder if the same thing happened here and we are seeing something that was built in the last 2-3 years instead of the last 6 years.

 

[Exanthus]

I brought this up in another thread recently but why would they draw, animate and render those wildlife herds and different biomes if they didn't plan on using them? It was a real time trailer running on Xbox one x so clearly all the work was done already. Why downgrade it 3 years into the dev cycle?

This reminds me of the Mass effect Andromeda expose by Jason. He said the team was given 5 years to reboot Mass effect. They spent the First 3 years on prototyping procedurally generated planets before realizing that it won't work. Then they had 18 months to start from scratch and ship andromeda. I wonder if the same thing happened here and we are seeing something that was built in the last 2-3 years instead of the last 6 years.

Probably, but I am hoping those biomes will be releasing at a later time as campaign dlc. This is the next 10 years of Halo after all.

 

[ckaneo]

I brought this up in another thread recently but why would they draw, animate and render those wildlife herds and different biomes if they didn't plan on using them? It was a real time trailer running on Xbox one x so clearly all the work was done already. Why downgrade it 3 years into the dev cycle?

This reminds me of the Mass effect Andromeda expose by Jason. He said the team was given 5 years to reboot Mass effect. They spent the First 3 years on prototyping procedurally generated planets before realizing that it won't work. Then they had 18 months to start from scratch and ship andromeda. I wonder if the same thing happened here and we are seeing something that was built in the last 2-3 years instead of the last 6 years.

This is different because the campaign will be expanded later, probably the other biomes

 

[Riky]

You can see Xbox One X clearly runs at reduced settings, look at the background mountains and the trees in the bottom left, both dialled back on last gen.

 

[SlimySnake]

Probably, but I am hoping those biomes will be releasing at a later time as campaign dlc. This is the next 10 years of Halo after all.

This is different because the campaign will be expanded later, probably the other biomes

Well, Campaign DLC is the last thing I want. To have Halo tied to this game for a decade would be the worst case scenario. I want them to immediately start working on a next gen SKU and leave this game, this engine and last gen consoles behind. They are already a year late. It's time to move on.

Halo Infinite PvP can be the thing they support for 10 years like Fortnite or Warzone. Campaign needs to ditch last gen consoles asap.

 

[twilo99]

This is going to be my first halo campaign, I'm mildly excited.

 

[THE DUCK]

Those "visuals" are mostly empty landscapes with a single biome and repeating corridors.

Wait you just described all the halo games, and yet some were very well regarded visually. So I don't think you can justify that statement.

 

[twilo99]

VRR doesn't work?! What's wrong with them.. this would be the game that needs it the most lol

 

[FireFly]

I am surprised by all the technical issues. All of these seem to be bugs that can be ironed out which makes the year long delay even more puzzling. I thought the game was done last year and only needed to be pushed for bug fixing. How can you release something with this many bugs a year later?

According to Staten, the gameplay encounters themselves weren't ready to ship and they went back and reworked the game, adding the custom boss battles, better utilisation of equipment, full marine pathing, and rescue missions. So I bet some of the polish simply got pushed back.

 

[SlimySnake]

VRR doesn't work?! What's wrong with them.. this would be the game that needs it the most lol

It only affects the 120 fps mode. 60 fps mode is pretty much locked.

 

[Coolwhhip]

So in a lot of ways it was downgraded from the 2019 trailer and even more since the 2018 trailer...

 

[EdderTheShredder]

Is there really only one biome? That's really disappointing, and seems quite a departure from the original pitch if true

Apparently it's similar looking forest and dungeons repeating themselves for 20+ hours, which kinda goes against variety seen in other games. They shoud have at least included weather effects, but I guess 6 years of development wasn't enough for them. Artistically this game has nothing on Combat Evolved, Halo 3, ODST or Reach.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

Apparently it's similar looking forest and dungeons repeating themselves for 20+ hours, which kinda goes against variety seen in other games. They shoud have at least included weather effects, but I guess 6 years of development wasn't enough for them. Artistically this game has nothing on Combat Evolved, Halo 3, ODST or Reach.

this game is looking more and more half baked to me. It is surprising that it's scoring mid 80s to me

this game has been in development for an absurd length of time with huge financial resources. The open world looks entirely the same and pretty barren, what is the use of making it an open world ?

 

[twilo99]

It only affects the 120 fps mode. 60 fps mode is pretty much locked.

Well that's the point, 100-120FPS with VRR is much better than locked 60fps.

Why even bother with 60fps for such a nice semi-fastpaced shooter at all..

 

[EdderTheShredder]

this game is looking more and more half baked to me. It is surprising that it's scoring mid 80s to me

this game has been in development for an absurd length of time with huge financial resources. The open world looks entirely the same and pretty barren, what is the use of making it an open world ?

They probably had open world as a vision right from the start and then hit development hell and it was too late to scrap it. It really seems like they just ducktaped together whatever they could of that open world idea.

I think it's scoring high because reviewers really enjoy gameplay and sandbox, aspects that seem to be carrying the game. I'm more of a story and variety kinda guy so I'm not that enthused by it, plus another meaningless open world is a big turn off for me.

I'm gonna give it a shot and see if gameplay alone can keep me engaged to the end, although I highly doubt it.

 

[ZehDon]

Some of those technical issues - 30 FPS updates in cutscenes, interpolation errors, 5 second freezes, missing lighting on characters - aren't exactly small issues. They actually seem like pretty major presentation issues.

 

[Werewolfgrandma]

They probably had open world as a vision right from the start and then hit development hell and it was too late to scrap it. It really seems like they just ducktaped together whatever they could of that open world idea.

I think it's scoring high because reviewers really enjoy gameplay and sandbox, aspects that seem to be carrying the game. I'm more of a story and variety kinda guy so I'm not that enthused by it, plus another meaningless open world is a big turn off for me.

I'm gonna give it a shot and see if gameplay alone can keep me engaged to the end, although I highly doubt it.

I'm the total opposite. Couldn't give a shit about the story is the gameplay is not good.

 

[CamHostage]

They probably had open world as a vision right from the start and then hit development hell and it was too late to scrap it. It really seems like they just ducktaped together whatever they could of that open world idea.

I think it's scoring high because reviewers really enjoy gameplay and sandbox, aspects that seem to be carrying the game. I'm more of a story and variety kinda guy so I'm not that enthused by it, plus another meaningless open world is a big turn off for me.

Yep, it seems like they nailed the "fun" of the gameplay mechanics and mission challenges, and that should be what games are all about in the end, so, critical praise. And once I get used to what it is, it should be enjoyable. (I know, I know, I should be obver it by now, but it is still taking time, since MS have been dodgy about the campaign until the very end, and there's even been people saying that 343 and journalists have mentioned other biomes beyond the preview section, which added to the confusion.) It will be a verifiably good game.

However, it's not the game I pictured in my mind when that Slipspace Engine teaser went up, and that "infinite Halo" world is what I really want to play one of these days.

 

[TheThreadsThatBindUs]

All in all, not bad.

Variable Rate Shading, however, seems to have really underdelivered on all the pre-launch promises. What a shitshow of a feature that has turned out to be.

 

[Markio128]

It looks decent enough, though I don't think you could argue with those expecting a bit more visual flair.

 

[StateofMajora]

Yeah... It looks sort of nice in places but really rough in others.

I'm glad Ps5 doesn't have a variable rate shader equivalent as it only hurts picture quality. We are supposed to be getting better visuals as time goes by, not worse. Vrs is trash, add it to screen space reflections for the list of techniques that should die.