First ever 4k next gen gameplay

[Frequency]

Pemalite said:

Frequency said:

If you can run a game at 4k, then it runs at 4k, 4k is just a resolution as such the topic claims this to be the first game to run at 4k, which given that its a pc title, its extra silly.

again, games will always show better results at higher resolutions except for objects extremey close to the screen, as more pixels of each texture as visable on models further away that otherwise would be a muddy mess.

To make it absolutely clear, heres battlefield 3, prior to take off from the carrier, both at the same settings the only difference is the left is upscaled from its native 1080p to match the size of the 4k image.

Edges and aliasing are not the only thing that improves, as i have now said multiple times.

I'm not arguing that 4k is just a resolution.
However, StarCitizen is doing more than just rendering at a higher resolution with a High-Resolution texture pack to look fantastic at 4k.
They aren't merely stretching a texture over a surface and calling it a day, they aren't baking details into the textures, they are using real geometry for everything.
That Battlefield 3 picture is a perfect example, where the metal rings on the hanger deck are baked-in texture details, in StarCitizen small details such as that would be geometric.
Problem with that approach however is that, when you scale up in resolution, it also removes jagged edges, so low-poly assets with little aliasing are more obvious with their flat sides.

You normally don't notice such small details in a console game, because compared to even 1440P/1600P/4k the 720P/1080P console games look downright blurry and low definition, that it hides most of those flaws.

Essentially in the end, this level of fidelity is only possible on the PC and because the game is going to be so popular, with mod support, I wouldn't be surprised if this ends up being the best looking game on any platform for several years.

Take it from me, if they really go to that level of detail for normal environments and not just the ships while in space, you can be sure that the game wont be doing so at 4K unless youre running a rediculously expensive pc.

There is very little gain over a high resolution texture and high resolutin normal map for small things like the bolt plates on the ground in the provided picture, the geometry being done in 3d would look almost identical to a high resolution texture with a high resolution normal map, as the geometry wouldnt extrude far enough to be worthwhile, clearly the issue with the BF3 bolting rings isnt the texture, which scales just fine, but the specular map, as reflected light is bouncing off the sections of the ring that would normally be submerged, were they done more accurately there would be little difference between them and 3d versions, even at 4k.

Its also a bold claim, considering a large portion of the surfaces on the craft in star citizen are just that, high res textures with high res normal maps, only key geometry accents are actually modelled, the same as most modern games would.

Besides all that, going to that level of detail will result in:

A game most people cant play at a usable framerate, even at lower resolutions.
A game that requires a card with enough power to store all of this highly detailed geometry, textures, shaders and so on, and display them all at 4k, most of the current highest end cards would not cut it.
A game with very long loading times.

PC games generally arent built with specific resolutions in mind, they are built with SPECIFICATIONS in mind, while its all well and good filling your world with high resolution geometry and textures, but if in the end the customers you intend to sell the game to cannot run it, you have a big problem.

Dont get me wrong, i do agree with you on 4k warranting more higher detailed geometry and assets, i just dont believe that this game is going to deliver on that, not because of the developers or their vision, but simply because there isnt hardware available to support that vision, and unless they spent a lot of time and money making various LODs for every mesh (have fun with that if youre going to the extremes), it would end up running like crap even at lower resolutions for an extrmely large portion of the potential install base.

 

Also for reference.

Hardly cutting edge stuff here, the ships in the trailer arent much better either, i could pull stills from it all day and point out the low poly geometry, but that isnt the point, the game looks beautiful, just not for the reasons people are claiming.