- 900p
- Vistas are let down by the appearance of noticeable level-of-detail (LOD) transitions between lower and higher resolution artwork
- Despite fine details appearing a little soft, scaling quality is generally excellent, leading to well defined sub-pixel imagery and a reasonably crisp presentation.
- Aliasing issues, the problem lies with the game's post-process anti-aliasing solution, which can leave plenty of jaggies on-screen, leading to frequent shimmering around objects more than a few metres away from the camera
- Mostly solid 30fps, only disrupted by occasional minor drops in frame-rate
- At worst, frame-rates occasionally down to the upper twenties when the engine is heavily taxed
- Even when the screen is littered with particle effects and goop from exploding enemies, overall consistency remains impressive
- The game appears to use an adaptive v-sync, with screen-tear manifesting only at the very top of the screen
Sunset Overdrive - the Digital Foundry verdict
Sunset Overdrive represents an interesting evolution for Insomniac Games. While the game shares some technical underpinnings with Fuse, the experience is dramatically different, switching more traditional shooting for a fully explorable city containing platform action and blasting clearly influenced by the likes of Jet Set Radio alongside the studio's own Ratchet and Clank series. Far more important than the tech is the sense that the Insomniac DNA itself has transitioned across beautifully into the new console era: the developer's love for outlandish weaponry and interesting opportunities for layered level design comes through in spades, and the mixture is more impressive in scope and just as much fun as its titles on last-gen platforms.
From a technological perspective, it's a solid showcase. While 900p resolution may be a concern in some scenarios, this game doesn't rely on the kind of single-width pixel geometry or high-frequency texture detail that looks best at native 1080p, and the upscaling technique used here is a good match for the artwork. The 30fps target may disappoint Insomniac purists, but it's a relatively solid lock and clearly instrumental in rendering the sheer volume of outrageous art and effects work.
Overall, we rather like this first next-gen effort from Insomniac. The game is a lot of fun and Microsoft deserves kudos for investing in a title that feels fresh and different. Insomniac has been given free rein to create an entertaining new IP that also serves as a solid technical demonstration of what the Xbox One is capable of, while playing to the studio's strengths in gameplay and weapon design. It's not an Xbox One killer app, but it's a highly worthwhile title.
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2014-vs-sunset-overdrive
