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[In Cold Blood]

What would be your top 5 first party studios for both Sony and Microsoft.
By technical I mean graphics and innovation.

Here's mine

Microsoft
1. I'd. Goes without saying. For years they have innovated with game engines and graphics. Current game engine displays amazing graphics at a rock solid 60fps.
2. The Coalition. Even Epic calls then leaders with the Unreal Engine. Glorious graphics at rock solid performance. I am really interested in what new IP they release to see what they can accomplish outside of the Gears look.
3. Turn 10. For a small studio they have developed an engine that is again delivering amazing visuals at rock solid 60fps even on base Xbox One consoles.
Their new engine is said to be the the first to take advantage of all the XSX and Direct 12 U tech.
4. Ninja Theory. What this small studio can do visually with very little money is ridiculous. The talent is there and judging by what we have seen with Hellblade 2 and Mara the future looks bright indeed.
5. Playground Games. Let's be honest, Forza Horizon is the best looking open world car game out there, and again at rock solid framerates. Some may day that they should be lower as they are using Turn 10s engine and car assets. Regardless they are wizards.

Sony
1. Naughty Dog. Goes without saying, top of the heap. Every game they have pushed the boundaries. Uncharted and the TLOU on PS3 to their amazing games on PS4. The GOATs at Sony.
2. Guerilla Games. While their games have been hit or miss as far as meta scores, their tech and visuals are top notch. Killzone on PS4 still held up to the end of the generation. The Decima engine was chosen by Kojima when he could have any of the Sony first party engines to choose from. That says something.
3. SMS. As we have seen with God of War, they are amazing with the visuals they put out. Their engine is in house and stands up today
4. Isomniac. What's to say? Spiderman, Ratchet, all on their own inhouse engine. They have managed to use Ray Tracing better than anyone else on the PS5. Not only that but they are prolific. The best 250 million Sony has spent.
5. Sucker Punch. In my eyes they are the Rodney Dangerfield of Sony. They don't get their respect. Sure the studios above are hard shoes to fill but both Infamous and Ghosts shows what they are able to do, all on their own inhouse engine.

The last spot with Sony was a toss up with Polyphony Digital, but the last GT game was only a minor upgrade over the previous one, and considering the amount of time they had to do it, we'll SP took their spot.


What say ye?

 

[CatLady]

I agree with all 10 studios you've listed for Xbox and Sony, but I do think it's unfortunate Xbox still can't claim Asobo as 1st party. The reality is, for me, Asobo is the leader in tech for current gen with FS 2020 and the excellent graphics created by such a small team in Requiem.

 

[SlimySnake]

MS.

1. ID Software for sure.
2. Ninja Theory. Been a big fan of these guys since Heavenly Sword. Enslaved and DMC both looked fantastic, and Hellblade looked pretty decent for a game made by 20 people. Hellblade 2 might be the best looking game we've seen so far.
3. Playground Games. Their output has impressed me more than Coalition's.
4. Coalition. Gears 4 didnt look that good but Gears 5 looks very good. They need to blow our minds with their next game for me to put them any higher than 4th.
5. Bethesda. They have typically been terrible but Starfield looks legit amazing at times. They might have turned a corner.

Not including Turn10 because Forza 8 barely looks any better than Horizon 5 despite being linear and a next gen only game. No idea whats going on with that game.

Sony.
1. Naughty Dog. No one can match their cutscenes, facial animations and in game character animations.
2. GG. The fact that Horizon looks better than most next gen games is proof that these guys are simply in another league. Their animation work and some really shoddy lighting in desert areas of HFW hold them back. The performance mode disaster was a blemish on their otherwise perfect record.
3. Sucker Punch. They set the bar with Infamous Second Son showing us open world games on PS4 could look just as good as linear games, and just took it to the next level with Ghost. SSM couldnt top them with GOW Ragnorak nearly 2.5 years later.
4. Insomniac. I am pissed that they hold themselves back by targeting native 4k but their work with RT reflections and ratchet's near pixar quality graphics is very impressive.
5. Bluepoint. SOTC and Demon Souls remakes couldve looked awful but they not managed to retain the artstyle and atmosphere but also made them look just as good as other Sony first party titles. Imagine what they could do if they werent limited by having to stay true to the original vision.

SSM has disappointed me with GOW. It's like they didnt even try to top TLOU2, GoT, Demon Souls, HFW and Miles in visuals. Great studio overall, but not in my top 5 or even top 8. Id put PD, Koji Pro and Bend above them.

 

[remember_spinal]

What would be your top 5 first party studios for both Sony and Microsoft.
By technical I mean graphics and innovation.

Here's mine

Microsoft
1. I'd. Goes without saying. For years they have innovated with game engines and graphics. Current game engine displays amazing graphics at a rock solid 60fps.
2. The Coalition. Even Epic calls then leaders with the Unreal Engine. Glorious graphics at rock solid performance. I am really interested in what new IP they release to see what they can accomplish outside of the Gears look.
3. Turn 10. For a small studio they have developed an engine that is again delivering amazing visuals at rock solid 60fps even on base Xbox One consoles.
Their new engine is said to be the the first to take advantage of all the XSX and Direct 12 U tech.
4. Ninja Theory. What this small studio can do visually with very little money is ridiculous. The talent is there and judging by what we have seen with Hellblade 2 and Mara the future looks bright indeed.
5. Playground Games. Let's be honest, Forza Horizon is the best looking open world car game out there, and again at rock solid framerates. Some may day that they should be lower as they are using Turn 10s engine and car assets. Regardless they are wizards.

Sony
1. Naughty Dog. Goes without saying, top of the heap. Every game they have pushed the boundaries. Uncharted and the TLOU on PS3 to their amazing games on PS4. The GOATs at Sony.
2. Guerilla Games. While their games have been hit or miss as far as meta scores, their tech and visuals are top notch. Killzone on PS4 still held up to the end of the generation. The Decima engine was chosen by Kojima when he could have any of the Sony first party engines to choose from. That says something.
3. SMS. As we have seen with God of War, they are amazing with the visuals they put out. Their engine is in house and stands up today
4. Isomniac. What's to say? Spiderman, Ratchet, all on their own inhouse engine. They have managed to use Ray Tracing better than anyone else on the PS5. Not only that but they are prolific. The best 250 million Sony has spent.
5. Sucker Punch. In my eyes they are the Rodney Dangerfield of Sony. They don't get their respect. Sure the studios above are hard shoes to fill but both Infamous and Ghosts shows what they are able to do, all on their own inhouse engine.

The last spot with Sony was a toss up with Polyphony Digital, but the last GT game was only a minor upgrade over the previous one, and considering the amount of time they had to do it, we'll SP took their spot.


What say ye?

Not sure how Media Molecule isn’t listed

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Guerrilla:
They made a masterclass example of how to produce a new IP (I am not talking creatively) I am talking about production and management wise. And of course they have the best engine, just by the fact that it can manage a variety of games and has been used by different studios.


Playground:
This is what a First Party studio should do. Make it look easy, and offer something that feels industry-leading.

 

[begotten]

Bluepoint should easily be in the Top 5 for Sony currently. DeS is probably still the best looking game out there and they are likely the ones responsible for the PS4 version of Ragnarok. Their next game will solidify them as Top 2/3 easily IMO.

TC is definitely arguable 1/2 for MS. Playground higher. ID is overrated.

 

[feynoob]

No one can do what bethesda does.

Say what you want about their engine. But it always you freedom.

 

[remember_spinal]

No one can do what bethesda does.

Say what you want about their engine. But it always you freedom.

 

[Ghost of Caelid]

Funny enough the studios you posted for both sides are probably their least innovative by the numbers studios. But graphically they are by far the best. Bethesda is innovative but faaaaar from technical.

 

[solidus12]

No one can do what bethesda does.

Say what you want about their engine. But it always you freedom.

Yeah, it just works.

 

[kyliethicc]

Not sure how Media Molecule isn’t listed

they don't make games

 

[Hawk269]

A lot of Playgrounds Tech is routed in what Turn 10 does. Not to take anything away from Playgrounds output, but a lot of the tech they use is founded/built on what Turn 10 does.