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Battlefield 3 and id Software's RAGE represent the best visuals the current generation of consoles is capable of. That's according to DICE, developers of said BF3, with both titles offering an optional high-resolution texture install to ensure gamers can enjoy both games at the highest visual fidelity possible. However, don't expect DICE's or id's next offerings to offer as big a jump forward; as to do so, developers require another line of consoles with next-generation horsepower. Translation? This generation has reached its peak.
"Both Battlefield 3 and Rage are pushing console hardware as much as developers can now, and I don’t think anyone will make something better with this generation of consoles," DICE producer, Patrick Liu, told Now Gamer. Both games are running on all new engines - RAGE boasts id Tech 5, whereas BF3 is rocking Frostbite 2.0 - and both developers have been pretty open in admitting these engines are flexible enough to work on next-gen consoles.
"If we were to do something bigger – which we can – then we would require a next generation console," Liu went on to explain. As for what he'd like to see from a new console, Liu admitted more "processing power" was a must, but top of his list would be an increase in RAM. The Xbox 360 has 512MB of RAM available, whereas the PS3 has the same overall amount, albeit split into two 256MB portions. By today's standards that's incredibly low, with even low-scale PCs and laptops running with 4GBs of RAM.
"We could do so much more," Liu enthused, in regards to more RAM. "So I think more memory would give us more bang for our buck." It'll be interesting to see what the final specs of the Wii U are like, and whether DICE might find their next-generation console in Nintendo's amorphous machine. [Now Gamer]
