Gears' Lessons Applied to UT3

PC Games Hardware has an interview with Tim Sweeney in which he makes some comments concerning Gears. While the interview is primarily centered around Unreal Tournament 3, Gears fans will find some interesting bits.

[TheMART]

For all those that said that DX10 isn't on the 360, and those that said it does the same but it isn't called DX10 but an own form of API control of the great 360 GPU:

"In Gears of War on Xbox 360, we implemented multisampling using the platform's extended MSAA features. On PC, the solution is to support multisampling only on DirectX 10."

There you have it. It may not be called DX10 fixed, but the own API control does things you can ony do with DX10. Thus, the 360 could maybe even go further in exploring stuff you find in DX10 or might not even be in DX10

EDIT

"Fisher339 - 36 Minutes ago

Who cares just play the damn game and enjoy it "

Well you obviously not, but that's because you are probably a PS3 owner. Which makes me think, would it use multisampling? Because Epic speaks about 360 and PC using it...

It's just interesting, what ever way you try to downplay it. It's that huge, because those lying Sony droids like DJ/LovehateTRAGEDY always are claiming the 360 can't do more then DX9, now you see it does. It's only not called DX10, but it does the same on many parts, if not more then that

[Fisher339]

Who cares just play the damn game and enjoy it

[Kleptic]

the only thing I would hear people saying was that the 360 doesn't have DX10...and you know, it doesn't...It has features built it its OWN OS that may mimic how DX10 embraces stronger hardware...but that doesn't mean it has DX10...I am sure you are right that most idiots think that means the 360 can't do anything close to DX10 enabled pc's, graphics wise...but the fact of the matter is that the OS in the 360 is not running games anything like DX10 enabled Vista does...thats what intelligent people meant by the statement...

I have been saying it for a while...the 360 and ps3 will be able to do things that DX9 only pc's won't...whether its more advanced physics...or the multisampling mentioned in this interview...or whatever else...where they fall short on the full tilt DX10 machines is unknown still...

all DX10 does is "undoes" the bottle-neck that was occuring with DX9 and more advanced cards...the differences between DX10 and 9 are marginal in code, but allow the use of much more advanced hardware...which is why the jump in visuals is so drastic...even though most of the differences as far as Windows is concerned is not that great...

and off that topic...the last statement in that article claimed that UT3 will run on lowend DX9 cards? I have a laptop with the GMA 950 disaster...but do have a dual core processor...According to him it may run UT3? ha...that would be funny...

EDIT: Mart you added that ending stuff that I just read...so never mind the whole beginning...I own a ps3, and never thought that the 360 couldn't do more than DX9...I was just tired of people saying "it has DX10 'cause MS made it fegz!"...thats all

[flipflop]

I just logged on to one of my other accounts to find that Virtual gamer tried to ban my umbagumba account for exposing him for the idiot he is, and this further proves his retardedness. How FN pathetic do you have to be to try to ban somone because your proven to be retarded? virtual gamer is a b!tch. You will now get it a lot worse.

[THAMMER1]

URT 3 is going to be sooooooooooo kick @ss. I just hope Epic does a good job on the PS3 version so we do not have PS3 fans belly aching about how lazy they are. o_O

I would also like to get a party system for mach making.

[nobizlikesnowbiz]

A party system in GOW would have been dank, especially after I figured Halo 2 would have set the standard. It's ridiculously hard to play games with friends sometimes on Gears. So they better fix it in UT3, because I'm probably buying it.

[SKUD]

This guy just doesn't quit (TheMART). First one to diss on the PS3. I hope one day you find peace my friend.

[CrazzyMan]

hmm, interesting how they will make ut3 run good on PS3. =)

anyway, they already showed UT3 running on PS3 in GDC07, that means, they already done engine, and only some customizations left. :)

[IRISHCALIBER]

or did Sweeney say that this game was built for the 360 and PC? Which again if I didn't misread would imply that the PS3 version will definitely be a port, but then again so many PS3 games of recent are.

Tim Sweeney: "The Gears of War experience on Xbox 360 taught us to optimize for multi-core, and to improve the low-level performance of the key engine systems. This has carried over very well to PC. The division of UE3's rendering and gameplay into separate threads, implemented originally for 360, has brought even more significant gains on PC where there is a more heavyweight hardware abstraction layer in DirectX, hence more CPU time spent in rendering relative to gameplay."

Either way I agree with The Mart concerning DX10 and perhaps this means we will eventually see the cryengine at work on the 360 after all.

[VirtualGamer]

Epic sells its gaming engine for other developers to create their games on. As such they would have 3 different game engines customized to take advantage of each system. So UT3 will be running on those customized engines and none will be ports.

Also as far as DX10 is concerned do you really think the 360 has a GPU that is DX10 compliant when they are just now being released for PC? There may be certain aspects of the DX10 capabilites that the GPU can take advantage of because it is a custom card but don't mistake that ability to mean it can run anything a PC with a DX 10 card can run.

[THAMMER1]

So VG are you saying that EPIC has developed for each PC, PS3, & Xbox360 seperatly with customized versions of Unreal?

That sounds like a port to me... but if you have proof that supports it not being a port please share a link with us BRO. I'm not saying it is a port but you seem to know some thing I do not.

[VirtualGamer]

What I said was Epic makes the Unreal Engine 3 to be licensed by other developers. As such the engines would have to be made to take advantage of each platform its designed for or why would a developer use it? Thus they have a PS3 UE3, a 360 UE3 and a PC UE3 engine. Each engine customized to take advantage of each platform.

Are you surprised by the runaway success of Unreal Engine 3?

Mark Rein: No. I know that doesn't sound very humble (laughs). You know, we're a small company; 80 people with three teams; two game teams and an engine team and we have been working on this engine for four years now at least. The goal is to be able to be competitive with the biggest companies with the biggest resources, and build something like Gears of War with a reasonably-sized team without having to have 80 people working on it.

http://www.computerandvideo...

As to if UT3 is a port.

Honestly, we view Gears of War as our showcase title for the 360, and we really view UT as our showcase title for the PS3. Now that we shipped Gears, people who are interested in licensing our technology can see we have a mature title that works, it plays really well, it sold great. We’ve always felt that UT was our poster child for PS3, you know getting UT done and up and running and running well would give us the same sort of benefits that Gears has given us on 360. So that was always our focus, and now you’ve obviously seen that we have this ability to potentially sell a lot of copies. There’s a large audience, and it just makes sense to do. I don’t think it’s anything we thought we weren’t going to do–we just want to focus on UT3 on PS3 to start.

http://www.gameinformer.com...

Do you think if UT3 is the showcase for the PS3 it would be a port from the 360? Can't see it and UT3 was announced for the PS3 way before the 360.

EDIT: There is also this.

EPIC GAMES TO OFFER UNREAL® ENGINE 3 FOR DEVELOPMENT OF GAME TITLES
ON “PLAYSTATION®3” FROM SCEI

Epic Games’ Intends to become a tools and middleware licensee
for “PLAYSTATION®3” platform

RALEIGH, May 17th, 2005 – Epic Games, one of the world’s leading developers of cutting-edge computer and video game titles and the pioneer of the award-winning Unreal® Engine, announced today that it intends to offer its Unreal Engine 3 technology and tools under Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.’s Tools and Middleware program for “PLAYSTATION®3” as soon as the license program is started.

“We are committed to making Unreal Engine 3 the best game engine for the “PLAYSTATION®3”, said Tim Sweeney, CEO and co-Founder of Epic Games. “We plan to offer it to our licensees as soon as the program is underway and we are very excited about the level of performance and visual quality we will be able to deliver on this platform. In addition Unreal Engine 3 should be an excellent fit for the platform and our licensees will benefit immensely from the experience we have been able to gain thus far working with it.”

http://www.epicgames.com/pr...

So again if they are making their engine available for PS3 developers to use it would make sense its customized to take advantage of the PS3 hardware and this would be what UT3 would be built apon. Just as they have made the UE3 for the 360 take advantage of that platform. I quess what I am saying is that because Epic is more then just a game developement company they have more incentive to make the game engine for each platform be the best it can be and the games they do make showcase the the platform and their engine so other developers will want to use their tech.

[THAMMER1]

Hmmm

[gta_cb]

read comment 1.3 (from flipflop) is that true?

[VirtualGamer]

I mearly reported his behavior to the admins of the site, suggesting he be band for his behavior. It would appear they did ban him and thus he created a new account to continue his spamming and personal attacks.

http://forums.n4g.com/Perso...

Here is the original post that started all this.

http://www.n4g.com/NewsCom-...

[Odion]

its true, UT3 was a PC/PS3 only game for awhile and then for whatever reason they made it multi with the 360

[gta_cb]

if it was originaly on PC/PS3 then it was always multi.

[Takumi86]

Got Onwed!!!

You 360 FanGirl do some f!_!CKING Research B4 you run your Mouth deepsh!t. Especially you THEMART

[THAMMER1]

I did not do any thing other than that. Why try to make some thing out of nothing?

Now your on my $hit list Takumi86. You PHUCK BOY.

Oh yeah Thanks for the info VG.

[Takumi86]

GET OFF ME XBUGS?? LOL PS3 LOSER?? ??WII SUKX

i was just kitting calm down its only a game no need to get serious beechs. i just wanna see how you ppl react

DAmn crazy ppl Its only a game. no need to hate

[TheMART]

Dude... no need to hate when you start the hating yourself???

"You 360 FanGirl do some f!_!CKING Research B4 you run your Mouth deepsh!t. Especially you THEMART "

THe thing I was saying is still standing:

"For all those that said that DX10 isn't on the 360, and those that said it does the same but it isn't called DX10 but an own form of API control of the great 360 GPU:

"In Gears of War on Xbox 360, we implemented multisampling using the platform's extended MSAA features. On PC, the solution is to support multisampling only on DirectX 10."

There you have it. It may not be called DX10 fixed, but the own API control does things you can ony do with DX10. Thus, the 360 could maybe even go further in exploring stuff you find in DX10 or might not even be in DX10"

Its Epic saying that there about multisampling, done by the 360 on a PC only will be done with DX10

And they're not speaking about the PS3. CLEAR??? Got it? Beat it

@ Takumi86 again (below)

Dude, that might be, because I'm around here a lot longer then you, with 5 fresh bubbles starting like you do, you'll end up on a couple very soonish. And you might forget, Sony fandroids don't like what I'm saying so they hit the negative button as soon as they see me.

That's the perfect bubble system, although I don't mind. One or five. But you are talking straight sh!t, so just shut up and come with facts instead of bull

[nobizlikesnowbiz]

im gonna start picketing in front of the building to make them let me have a job creating great videogames

[Takumi86]

YOUR TWO BUBBLES SAY'S IT ALL CHILL DAWG

DON'T HATE

[THAMMER1]

Mart added more to the discussion and stayed on topic more than you. You are the problem in this comments section today. You just came in here looking to start problems. JUST STOP IT before your bubbles say it all.

[gta_cb]

what TheMART and THAMMER1 said is a good idea.

[VirtualGamer]

Your kind of comments add nothing to the site. Thammer1 did not get owned. He also had the decency to discuss and ask for clarification rather then to just spout hate. Not sure what your trying to accomplish with your comments because other then trying to make yourself feel better by putting others down you certainly are not changing Xbox 360 fans minds and your only giving PS3 fans a bad rep.