Rise of the Tomb Raider Face-Off: PS4 vs. PC vs. Xbox One
By Adam Beck on October 10, 2016
After nearly a year since its debut, Rise of the Tomb Raider is finally hitting PlayStation 4. With it comes a couple of new additions, but how does it hold up against the Xbox One and PC from a graphical perspective? As you’d expect, PC will always be the more visually impressive experience, but between the two consoles, there’s a surprising amount of compromises.
Correction: Both console versions run at native 1080p during gameplay, but knocked down to 1440×1080 during cutscenes on Xbox One. Apologies for the confusion.
Ambient Occlusion has also been adjusted on the PS4 version. Overall, it’s had an advantage over Xbox One, but only in certain spots as various cutscenes see it removed, or at the very least adjusted. For example, the one scene in which Lara is on the ground in the dark, ambient occlusion seems to be taken out. Same with a close up screenshot of Lara holding a glowstick as AO on Lara’s fingers are present on the Xbox One, whereas removed on PS4. But then you look at the environments in which it’s far more apparent on Sony’s console.
Oddly enough, foliage seems to be toned down on PS4, but in specific spots as only small patches are less detailed. To counter this, the level of detail has been improved on environmental models such as trees, but further distant locations have been darkened in a shroud, hiding and imperfections in the level of detail.
The PS4 version also seems to have some details removed in certain spots, such as in the picture where Lara is leaning up against a table with maps and newspapers pinned up behind her. The map on the left was originally tattered with rips and holes; now, it’s a pristine piece with no faults. At the same time, in the same image, there seems to be additional depth of field present on PS4. In the comparison below that where a hooded Lara is sticking her head out the window, the windowsill has stronger bump mapping not even seen on PC.
Finally, smaller adjustments have been made to objects, such as Lara’s couch is now a blue as opposed to beige, and Jonah’s backpack has turned from brown to white. Strange little changes that don’t really add much.
In the end, PS4 is technically better thanks to the higher resolution (in cutscenes), but there are some strange changes and a couple compromises. It should be interesting how this shapes up for the PlayStation 4 Pro next month.
For comparative screenshots, scroll to the bottom of:
