How Remedy convinced Microsoft to let it make Alan Wake PC

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 17 February, 2012

"We were like a nagging little kid."

Alan Wake on PC exists because developer Remedy kept nagging Microsoft to let it happen.

Alan Wake launched this week on Steam nearly two years after it released as an Xbox 360 exclusive - but it was announced way back in 2005 as a PC and Xbox game.

"From that announcement our children were born and we started nurturing them, if I can use that analogy," Remedy head of franchise development Oskari Hakkinen told Eurogamer.

"Somewhere along the way one of our children got lost. We've now found him and our family is complete.

"What I'm trying to say, to speak from the heart, PC gaming is part of Remedy's heritage, back from the first Death Rally that was made in a basement to Max Payne 1, which was made partly in a basement, and Max Payne 2. Announcing Alan Wake on PC was always an important factor for us."

As Alan Wake was being developed Microsoft secured an Xbox 360 exclusivity deal with Remedy for the title, or, as Hakkinen put it, "the stars became unaligned".

That deal cancelled the PC version and focused Remedy's attention on creating a console game for release in May 2010.

But that was nearly two years ago - plenty of time for Microsoft's Alan Wake console exclusivity deal to run its course.

"[The PC version] was something Remedy as a team has always wanted to do," Hakkinen continued. "We haven't been shy about saying that. So we've done everything in our power to try and get it done.

"Microsoft gave us the blessing about seven months ago to do that. And from the moment we got that blessing we started working on it.

"Alan Wake was developed on the PC, of course. But when the PC version was dropped we were concentrating on the Xbox 360 hardware parameters. So the first thing we did was move those parameters to see how the game would work in a configuration that's much more powerful."

Remedy and an external fellow Finnish developer called Nitro Games worked on the PC version for five months, implementing a raft of improvements and additional features.

But how did Remedy convince Microsoft - famous for striving to keep its exclusive games exclusive - to finally relax its position on Alan Wake?

"We were like a nagging little kid," Hakkinen explained. "Time is a factor, and having a good relationship with Microsoft. And also [inbound XBLA exclusive] American Nightmare coming out obviously extended that relationship with them.

"It was just a number of discussions with the right people, and then them saying, 'Yeah, we see you want to do that. We see it's important to you. We can let that happen there.'"

He added: "Time has definitely been a factor on making it happen. Also it was the relationship and seeing we're doing more stuff with them as well."

Alan Wake's belated appearance on PC might have given PlayStation 3 owners hope that the game will one day launch on their console - Remedy, after all, owns the Alan Wake IP.

This, though, will never happen, Hakkinen confirmed.

"I know you're never going to see Alan Wake or Alan Wake's American Nightmare on PlayStation," Hakkinen said. "Those are Xbox exclusives."

Iniciado por Serpiente_Plyskeen

Dejo un artículo de Eurogamer acerca de cómo Remedy, los desarrolladores del Alan Wake (también de los Max Payne 1 y 2) tuvieron que convencer a Microsoft de que les dejara sacar el juego para PC (2 años más tarde que la versión de XBOX).
How Remedy convinced Microsoft to let it make Alan Wake PC • News • Eurogamer.net

También está siendo bastante comentado lo de que el Mass Effect 3 no incluye soporte para jugar con controladores en la versión PC; que siendo un juego multiplataforma (como los Mass Effect 1 y 2), yo, la verdad, no le veo mucho sentido (?Por qué no? El código debería de ser exactamente el mismo que para las consolas o el de los juegos anteriores... El argumento oficial es que "no tienen tiempo para implementarlo" ):
BioWare explains why PC Mass Effect 3 doesn't support gamepads • News • Eurogamer.net

Witcher dev's two 2014/2015 "AAA+" games are simultaneous PC, next-gen console releases

By Robert Purchese Published 17 February, 2012

One is new IP, one is The Witcher 3.

The next two major titles from Polish developer CD Projekt Red, scheduled for 2014/15, will be simultaneous multi-platform releases for PC and next-generation consoles, detective Eurogamer has discovered.

"We are definitely starting for new consoles," managing director Adam Badowski told us, when asked whether the pair of known-about "AAA+" games will be for this generation or the next.

"The market is ready for something new," heralded head of marketing Michal Platkow-Gilewski, "for something faster, more powerful."

Badowski added: "I can tell you we are and we were focusing on powerful gaming rigs. We're going to do something amazing, so we need extra processors.

"It will be multi-platform game, so the multi-release at the same time. But if you are talking about leading platform, we will use most powerful, just because it can give us the freedom of creation.

"And it's cool to develop something special, new - better than others on the market. It's our goal."

When does CD Projekt Red begin making an engine for the next generation of machines?

"We've already started," Badowski revealed.

"We prepared a backlog for the new features quite a long time ago."
'Witcher dev's two 2014/2015 "AAA+" games are simultaneous PC, next-gen console releases' Screenshot geralt

"You probably know that we've decided to develop our new engine that is called Red Engine, so we've prepared a long-term plan for that engine. So we are yes, yes we are developing some features just for the new..."

Platkow-Gilewski interjected: "We are anticipating what the new generations of consoles may be."

Michal Platkow-Gilewski, head of marketing, CD Projekt Red

"Not only consoles," Badowski butted in.

"What the platforms will be," Platkow-Gilewski answered. "And what will happen in the PC market, because you know we have to create something better than we could achieve today. We have to see a little bit the future, like other developers I guess."

The specs CD Projekt Red are working towards for these next-generation consoles are "quite powerful but nothing extraordinary", shared Badowski. But this is "our - I hope - lucky guess", he added, inferring that CD Projekt Red does not have next-gen dev kits. Platkow-Gilewski confirmed that what will be in next-gen consoles, "we don't know this, today".

CD Projekt Red talked about two major new games in November. These were described at a conference as "AAA+" games, and are scheduled for 2014/2015. A "AAA+" game is "something huge and it's multi-platform", explained Platkow-Gilewski.

One of these is new IP.

CD Projekt is putting together a new team to make this game. The Witcher team won't be involved. "The second team is just a few guys right now," shared Badowski, "because we decided not to split the original Witcher team in two parts, but to hire new staff, and we've just started."

"The second project is during the early pre-production stage, so we don't need the huge team for that."

What will this new IP be? "We are staying in RPG," Badowski said.
'Witcher dev's two 2014/2015 "AAA+" games are simultaneous PC, next-gen console releases' Screenshot witcher3

"The whole scenario is quite simple: we're going to create almost exactly the same kind of team, and our policy is to create RPG games for mature audiences. But of course the second title will be different than the first one. We need to change universe and gameplay mechanics, but the game will be based on a deep scenario as [are] The Witcher games."

"Our approach stays the same," Platkow-Gilewski reinforced, "we just want to refresh a little bit our minds and do something different."

This new IP is "not at all" to do with FPS They, which acquired studio Metropolis Software was working on up until January 2010.

"[The new IP] will be a mature RPG and story-driven game. I cannot say in what universe - maybe high fantasy, maybe not."

Adam Badowski, managing director, CD Projekt Red

Will this new IP be a science-fiction game?

"I cannot say right now," deflected Badowski. "It will be a mature RPG and story-driven game. I cannot say in what universe - maybe high fantasy, maybe not."

What's the other AAA+ game being made by The Witcher team, then?

It has to be The Witcher 3 - please can you put us out of our misery and confirm it, we asked?

"Frankly speaking, not yet," Platkow-Gilewski replied. "Give us some time; I'm sure we will announce it pretty fast in the following months, but we want to do everything in the proper order. And right now we are focused on polishing and bringing the Enhanced Edition to Xbox 360 and PC."

"Especially as on Xbox 360 we don't have the first instalment of The Witcher. So we want to slowly enter the market, educate our gamers/customers - we don't want to [talk] too much about our future projects for now."

"There are rumours that The Witcher is a saga..." Badowski teased, and confirmed that both of the "AAA+" projects "are in pre-production stage". We weren't allowed to know which would be released first, in 2014.

CD Projekt Red revealed three other games at the November conference: two "A" games for 2012, and one "AA" game for 2013.
'Witcher dev's two 2014/2015 "AAA+" games are simultaneous PC, next-gen console releases' Screenshot lastgen

We'll know "pretty soon" about the first "A" game, which will be released Q1 2012. It's definitely not a mobile game - CDPR isn't going there - but we may have prodded a sensitive spot when we asked if it was anything to do with The Witcher 1.

"You are unpacking the gift, you know," Platkow-Gilewski told us. "Really soon we will inform the community about our surprise. It will come pretty soon, in the following two months."

Whether the second "A" game will be similar we will have to wait and see. That's coming later this year.

What exactly is an "A" game?

"Give us some time; I'm sure we will announce [The Witcher 3] pretty fast in the following months, but we want to do everything in the proper order. And right now we are focused on polishing and bringing the Enhanced Edition to Xbox 360 and PC."

Michal Platkow-Gilewski

"The definition of product A is that this is a good quality game for a single platform which doesn't involve enormous effort on our side," Platkow-Gilewski explained. "This is our internal definition. After the first surprise, maybe we'll reveal some information about the second surprise for this year."

The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings - Enhanced Edition on Xbox 360 and PC is classified as "AAA". No plus. This is "something big, or huge, but for a single platform", Platkow-Gilewski clarified.

What, then, is the "AA" game due in 2013? It's unlikely to be a PS3 edition, given the Xbox 360's "AAA" status - not to mention that CDPR hasn't made a decision yet about whether to convert the game to Sony's machine.

"AA" titles are "big games with good scores" of 85 per cent or higher on Metacritic, we were told. "They have some selling potential, but they don't require more than two years of our work," said Platkow-Gilewski.

(Note that while the Xbox 360 version of The Witcher 2 took one year, that period was converting an already made game, not creating one from scratch - which is presumably what Platkow-Gilewski means.)

This "AA" game sounds like an expansion pack for The Witcher 2. Is it?

"Let's release the game first and we will see," answered Platkow-Gilewski gingerly.

"The thing is, we have to measure our capabilities, and we have big plans for the future."

"Believe us," he urged, "we want to do as much as possible."

Xbox Live Exodus: Microsoft Must Heed 'Warning Call,' says Tim Schafer

Posted February 17, 2012 by James Brightman

Xbox Live, once the flourishing home to countless independent developers, seems to be losing out to digital platforms like Apple's iOS, Valve's Steam and social network giant Facebook. The recent Xbox dashboard overhaul didn't help matters. When IndustryGamers sat down with Double Fine's Tim Schafer at DICE, the developer noted that not much has changed since 2D Boy's Ron Carmel penned an eye-opening report on the migration away from Xbox Live.

"I was hoping that would be a really, really eye-opening article for the console manufacturers... and I feel like it's been totally dismissed. I really think it's something they can't dismiss and they should really pay a lot more attention to because he's calling attention to a migration, an exodus of real creative talent away from those platforms to more open platforms, and I think they should do something quick to reverse that," Schafer commented.

He continued, "Can you reverse an exodus? Is there a term for that? A redexus? Seriously, I think that that was kind of a warning call. It's not like 'it would be nice to do this' for developers – [if they don't] they're going to lose out. Things change every generation and just because you're on top and the 900 pound gorilla in one generation, as you've seen, it doesn't really matter. It doesn't mean it'll be that way forever. I think that these threats that are possibly being ignored are going to hurt those guys."

Schafer's Double Fine is embracing self-publishing, but beyond that, the biggest factor in moving away from consoles is the openness of other platforms. "We can put something up on the App Store pretty easily. We can put stuff up on Steam really easily. I like the Xbox and the PS3. I like Sony and Microsoft, but those systems are closed and curated very closely and it costs a lot more money to go through that system, to patch a game. It makes me stressed out that if I put a game up there, I might not be able to patch it because it might cost too much money, whereas these more open platforms will let us manage our own price and our own updates. It's just a lot more appealing right now," explained Schafer.

As for PSN and XBLA, Schafer added that both brought a lot to the industry by enabling new types of games on consoles, but unless Microsoft and Sony can change their ways, indies may just go elsewhere.

"There are good games on both platforms. And that's the thing, is that I really believe in both those platforms, and I want them to succeed. Ever since the first time I played Geometry Wars, I was like, 'Hey, this XBLA – well, both XBLA and PSN - but I mean the thing that branded Xbox Live Arcade, that is opening up a portal for a certain type of game, a size of game.' We were used to thinking of these huge triple-A games and all of a sudden when you got your 360, one of the things that felt really next-gen about it was that you could download Geometry Wars for five dollars, and we hadn't done that before. I hadn't thought of buying that kind of game on a console before and I'm having tons of fun and I think that leads to a new creative outlet and brought us games like Limbo and Castle Crashers and all the great games that we saw on that platform. I want that to succeed. So when you read an article about that, warning about the migration away from the platform, that's a shame and we want that not to be the case," he concluded.

Alan Wakes Up A Rich Man

By Alec Meer on February 20th, 2012 at 2:58 pm.

Alan Wake might not be an unqualified success as far as survival horror games about narcissistic fiction authors go, but it’s a well-intentioned affair that very much did the technical legwork for its recently uncancelled PC version. And it’s paid off for Finnish developers Remedy, who report that Alan Wake PC was profitable within 48 hours of release.

PC! Profit! Do you hear that, publishers?

Offered Remedy’s Aki Järvilehto on their forums, “We are very happy with the sales and hitting #1 on Steam at launch was nothing short of amazing. We recouped our development and marketing expenses during the first 48 hours. And yes, we’re certainly very excited about PC.”

While any reading of this depends somewhat on how much additional expense and manhours was necessary to convert an existent game to PC, it’s clearly still SUPERHAPPYFUNNEWS. And hopefully will change Remedy’s latter-day ‘oh, er, not sure’ stance on PC into a full-on ‘ooooh, baby.’

Alan Wake’s American Nightmare to head this way too, then? This standalone, more action-heavy side-game is garnering respectable reviews from the console folk so far, though is apparently less ambitious than its parent game.

Apple iPad 3 Doesn't Feature A6 chip: 28nm Die-Shrink A5X Inside

2/20/2012 by: Theo Valich

There are a lot of rumors floating on the Internet about the upcoming iPad 3 (3D?) tablet, which is expected to launch in March. One of most common rumors was about the chip that will power the device, i.e. the "logical step" called A6, an alleged quad-core SOC with updated graphics.

In a picture that is spreading around the Internet like wildfire, it seems that Apple's transition from Samsung to TSMC went the conservative way, with Apple selecting to do a die-shrink of the already well-known A5 SOC chip.

While enthusiasts may be disappointed in the decision, 28nm process enables higher clocks and lower power consumption at the same time, which means the 28nm A5X should give you longer battery life from one, and power the high-resolution screen on the other side.

We're also not certain did Apple select to build the dual-controller (dual-channel) memory controller, since the single-channel LPDDR2 or DDR3L memory is too slow for the high definition requirements…

Given the annual semiconductor cycle, this chip is expected to power both the iPad 3(3D) and the iPhone 5.

In any case, all will be known in a few weeks from now.

© 2009 - 2011 Bright Side Of News*, All rights reserved.

A-Men dev: you won't see PS3's texture problems on Vita

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 20 February, 2012

Vita RAM pushes handheld closer to Xbox 360.
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You won't see the texture issues that plague the PlayStation 3 versions of some multi-platform games on Vita, one developer with experience of both platforms has said.

The Vita's impressive amount of RAM means it's better able to produce stable, high resolution textures than the PlayStation 3, the creator of Vita launch title A-Men told Eurogamer.

Vita has more RAM than PS3. Vita has 512MB of RAM and 128MB of V-RAM, compared to the PS3's 256MB of system RAM and 256MB of video RAM. Vita also has the advantage of not having to reproduce HD visuals.

"This is great," Bloober gameplay programmer Jakub Opoń, who worked on Vita launch title A-Men, told Eurogamer.

"This is the main drawback for PS3 versus the Xbox 360, because the Xbox 360 has half a gigabyte of RAM, so the texture quality is better in games on the Xbox 360. You can see when you compare two games.

"Vita won't have this problem. This is a really good solution. It tells developers not to think so much about really hardcore optimisation. They can focus on making the game, and not strip the quality of the assets. This is really important.

"Our artists made some really good effects and we have no problems with game speed."

Bloober's A-Men is a downloadable 2D platform strategy game inspired by Blizzard's Lost Vikings and Lemmings.

It is the Polish developer's Vita debut, but is has worked on a number of platforms, including WiiWare, DSi Ware, PlayStation Portable, iPhone, iPad, and, more recently, PS3.

Opoń said despite Vita's RAM advantage over PS3, it is not as powerful as the PS3, which, through the Cell microprocessor, is a heavyweight when it comes to physics, simulations and AI. "It's not as powerful as PS3, which you can see with Uncharted, which is a great example to compare the hardware power."

But: "Vita has so much power in this small device, every player will be satisfied with the things you can do."

Bloober creative director and vice-president Piotr Bielatowicz added: "There is much more computational power in PS3. Obviously you've seen how Uncharted was supposed to look like, and during the development how it begins to look like."

While Vita's power is attracting programmers to the system, Sony has also tried to make making games for it as easy as possible - certainly easier than it was with the difficult, complex PlayStation 3 when it launched in 2007.

"Vita is very easy to develop for," Opoń said. "It's much easier than Sony's previous platforms. The hardware is much more popular. It's the same type of hardware you can find in iPad 2, but twice as powerful. The core mechanism of working on the platform is the same.

"Sony provides a great SDK [software development kit/devkit]. The documentation is really good. Basically, we came up with a port of our engine in three months. It's fast, rapid development on the platform.

"It's easy even to set up the machine on your computer. You just start the installer. I can't say the names, but on some other consoles it takes a whole day, or two days, even, to even set up or build the game.

"For some devkits you've got three USB cables just to plug into your computer. You've got three cables that connect the same two machines, which is crazy.

"Now we get this beautiful console, which is small, and only has two cables. The only problem is you don't have the battery for that [on the Vita devkit], so you need to use the adapter.

"In all other aspects, it's the best we've worked on until now. The easiest one, the fastest one to start just making the game, not struggling with the hardware, with the software provided."

For Bielatowicz, Vita marks an important change in approach to third-party development at Sony, one that moves away from former Sony Computer Entertainment boss Ken Kutaragi's philosophy when he launched PS3.

"It's great now to cooperate with Sony," Bielatowicz said. "When Kutaragi was in charge it was very technologically oriented. It was, 'we create the best possible hardware and deal with it. Figure out on your own how to program it.' For PS3 it might take two weeks for a programmer to just compile a demo. It was so hard in the beginning.

"Now, I believe Sony is more developer oriented. They reach out to us. They organise seminars to train us, to teach programmers and designers features like Near. The support is very swift. The communication is very good. I would say, at the moment, Sony is by far the nicest format holder to work with."

Vita launches in the US and Europe on Wednesday, 22nd February.

Iniciado por indenaiks

Sale el juego.
Se amortiza.
Si tal y si eso, a ver si vale la pena que, con el juego amortizado, pueda rentabilizarse el adaptarlo al PC.

Iniciado por indenaiks

Las ventas de la semana:
Video Game Charts, Game Sales, Top Sellers, Game Data - VGChartz
Está claro quien vende....

Global Top Sellers 11th February 2012

1 X360 Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning 298,951
2 PS3 Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning 193,551
3 PS3 Final Fantasy XIII-2 155,282
4 3DS Resident Evil: Revelations 131,938
5 X360 The Darkness II 114,615
6 PS3 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 108,180
7 X360 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 87,304
8 3DS Mario Kart 7 84,717
9 Wii Just Dance 3 82,639
10 PC Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning 76,825

Hard Choices: 8 Things You Should Know About Monitors

By Jeremy Laird on February 21st, 2012 at 4:14 pm.


A whopping resolution of 16x16 or something

OK folks, we’ve done CPUs and graphics cards, now for my favourite subject of all, screens. I’ve long said a decent screen is the best investment you can make. Frankly, I’ve long been right. I’ve three 30-inchers of my own, two of which are about five years old. And with the exception of 120Hz support (see below), the game hasn’t moved on dramatically. Any five-year-old CPU or GPU, by contrast, is garbage. That’s the difference.

As it happens, good LCD screens have just become a lot more affordable. You’ll need to check out part two for the whys and wherefores along with a tour of the best currently available options. But things change fast, so a little knowledge can go a long way. Here are the eight most important things you need to know about screens for games.

1. Panel types

This is the biggie, the issue you really need to wrap your head around. A few of the following factoids have been simplified for easier digestibility, so please don’t write in with points of pedantry. The fuller, forensically accurate exposition is far too lengthy, far too dull, doesn’t materially improve comprehension and definitely doesn’t help with choosing a panel.


Above: 30 inches of IPS gorgeousness: My venerable Dell 3007

TN or Twisted Nematic

Right. The crystals in TN panels are fixed at one end. Got that? It means they can’t move much and that explains why TN panels have historically had crappy viewing angles and dodgy colours. It also explains the poor blacks. The default position lets light through and the crystals can’t shift enough to fully block the backlight. The same goes for the shonky colour fidelity. The crystals cannae move enough. Thing is, that limited movement also translates into speed, which is why TN panels have the best pixel response.

TN, the bottom line: Fast response, crap colours, leaky blacks, shitty viewing angles. Next!

VA or Vertical Alignment

VA screens come in two yummy flavours, PVA and MVA. The technicalities are super dull, so I won’t bother. What you need to know is that PVA has richer colours and deeper blacks. In fact, if anything, PVA panels tend to be over saturated. Now, the default position of the crystals in a VA screen blocks light. Thus, you know why VA has such good blacks. VA also has freely moving crystals and offers more accurate colour and better viewing angles than ye olde TN. But not quite as good as IPS, more on that in a sec.

VA’s big weakness is pixel response which has lead to the use of overdrive technology, which in turn brings its own problems. Bank that one, we’ll be coming back to it.

VA, the bottom line: Deep and inky blacks, super saturated colours, dodgy overdrive issues



IPS or In-Plane Switching

In many ways, IPS is the daddy. It offers easily the best viewing angles and the best colours. That’s because the crystals in an IPS panel can fully rotate about their axis. Hurrah. Of course, with a longer leash, those pixels take more time to move about and that means slower response.

IPS panels also have two transistors per subpixel rather than just one. That, along with those free-range crystals, explains the fab colours. But it also means less light getting through. Result: less vibrancy. IPS has also suffered from a peculiar glow effect known as, well, IPS glow, along with sparkly screen coatings.

IPS, the bottom line: Lovely colours, super viewing angles, mediocre response and brightness

PLS or Plane to Line Switching

PLS is a panel tech recently introduced by and exclusive to Samsung. From what I understand, it’s meant to be the best of IPS and PVA in a single panel type. Frankly, I’m clueless as to what marks it out technically at this point and very few PLS monitors are currently available. However, I’ve had a close look at one of the first and you can read about it in part two.

PLS, the bottom line: The best of IPS and PVA in a new panel type. Maybe.

Overall, panel types are converging. TN colours, contrast and viewing angles are improving, IPS response is getting better. The big question is which panel type is best for gaming? TN is clearly the bomb if maximum response is your bag. Personally, I favour IPS. It’s not quite as quick as TN, but it’s better in every other regard.

2. Aspect ratio and resolution

Let’s be absolutely clear about this, 16:9 aspect ratio PC monitors only exist because it fractionally improves yields for fabs banging out the substrates which in turn form the basis of LCD panels. It’s just a convenient marketing pitch that it coincides with so-called full-HD 1080p resolution. In truth, there’s not much advantage for the PC, whether in-game or not, of 16:9. It basically boils down to 1,920 x 1,080 pixels for 16:9 and 1,920 x 1,200 for 16:10.

The same goes for larger 27 and 30-inch panels. Personally, I much prefer 2,560 x 1,600 to 2,560 x 1,440, the latter feeling surprisingly cramped by comparison. Yes, really. Problem is, 16:10 panels are now very rare and usually very expensive. They’re often double the price of their 16:9 brethren. That’s a lot to pay for those extra 120 vertical pixels.

3. Input lag

Fact: All LCD monitors lag, the only question is how much. The worst culprits are panels with fancy image processing gubbins, the least affected are those that just slap up the picture without pratting about. Fortunately, input lag is on the wane. It’s at its absolute worst on PVA panels with overdrive (see below) and such screens have dwindled to near non-existence. For proof of just how bad it can be, check out the video below.

<****** width="640" height="480" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/EU7Xs9HkoCM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>

4. Overdrive

Ramping up the rate of pixel response has been a major challenge for monitor makers. Beyond improving the panel itself, they’ve taken to using a technology called overdrive. In simple terms, the idea is to shove excess voltage through the crystals to accelerate them more rapidly. Which it does. Unfortunately, it can also mean the pixels overshoot the target colour state. The result can be all sorts of horrid and unwanted image artefacts including inverse ghosting (check out the video below). Overdrive implementations vary, so it’s a case of suck it and see.

<****** width="853" height="480" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/VMuvCMlRXmc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>
Inverse ghosting, maybe you've heard of it, but what does it look like? It's hard to capture on video, but what you're looking for is the pale shadow that forms in the wake of the dark post. That's the pixels overshooting the target colour thanks to overdrive. As if Dear Esther wasn't ghostly enough, eh? OK, I'll get my coat.

5. LED backlights

So, until OLED or some similar technology comes along, we’re stuck shining lights through LCD pixel grids. Until recently, it was CCFL or nothing. These days, nearly all screens are LED backlit. In reality, most are cheapo white LEDs rather than expensive and far superior RGB LEDs. Still, even white LEDs last longer, use less power and produce marginally better light than the equivalent CCFL backlights. So, yes, LED is a “good” thing.

6. Colour depth and dithering

The key metric here is bits per channel. Proper pro displays need at least 8 bits per channel, which is why 6-bit-only TN panels are out. For gaming, I’m not so sure 8- and 10-bit panels are critical. Yes, 6-bit displays end up using dithering (that’s bouncing a pixel rapidly between two colour states to mimic a third). I get very upset by bad dithering (visible as fizzing pixels), but done well it’s pretty much invisible to the end user. It’s worth noting that lots of the latest budget-priced IPS screens are in fact 6-bit, where IPS has traditionally been 8 and 10-bit.


Above: If your panel isn’t true 8-bit or beyond, it needs dithering to draw lots of colours. That can lead to speckliness and banding. (image courtesy of Lagom.nl homepage )

7. Image processing

A popular ruse is to bang out cheap TN panels and fudge the awful inherent performance with image processing tech. That includes tweaks like dynamic contrast and fancy colour modes, including modes specifically for gaming. The main upside here is that it gives monitor makers the ability to claim spectacular performance figures. Anything over 3,000:1 for contrast, for instance, will be dynamic and therefore faked.
Anyway, the take-home message here is really simple. Don’t be seduced, such technology is almost always worthless. Much more important is to have a good underlying panel and backlight and sod the extras.

8. 3D technology and refresh rates

What you make of technology like NVIDIA’s 3D Vision is pointedly personal. I confess, the latest second-gen 3D Vision with Lightboost is pretty impressive. But only for about three minutes. Then my eyes start bleeding and my brain begins to melt. Well, that’s what it feels like.

Still, what I can say with certainly is that active shutter tech like 3D Vision is far superior to the alternative, which is alternate-line polarised technology. I can’t be arsed with the specifics, but the problem boils down to the fact that polarised 3D screens effectively operate in half resolution in 3D mode. And it looks pony.


Above: How NVIDIA imagines 3D Vision. The reality will give you a headache.

One further upside to active shutter screens is the need for double refresh rates. Now, science will tell you that 60Hz saturates the human eye and brain. But I’m here to tell you that 120Hz looks absolutely fucking fabulous to the extent that I couldn’t quite believe it at first. Everything from gaming to simple window jostling on the desktop is just so much smoother at 120Hz. This presents a bit of a quandary, since 120Hz monitors are currently all TN. You can’t have 120Hz IPS. Bummer. Anyway, let’s recap.

1. You want an IPS panel unless you absolutely must have the fastest possible response.
2. 16:10 trumps 16:9 but good luck finding many 16:10 panels at a competitive price.
3. Input lag is scary and horrible for games, but doesn’t affect many screens.
4. Watch out for bad implementations of overdrive technology.
5. LED backlights are a welcome development, but usually not that exciting.
6. 6-bit colour isn’t necessarily a terrible thing for games.
7. Dynamic contrast and fancy colour or “gaming”modes are usually bunkum.
8. You might not like stereoscopic 3D, but you will love 120Hz refresh.

With all that in mind, we’re just left with the minor matter of which screens you should actually be buying. Guess what? That’s what part two is all about. Be back here for that tomorrow.

Iniciado por koni

Plyskeen que grafica le meterias a este equipo:
procesador: Intel Core2Duo 2,4GHz (266x9)
ram: 1GB+1GB DDR2-533
Placa:Asrock 4CoreDual-VSTA ( ASRock > Products > 4CoreDual-VSTA )
Pci-e: 1.1 (@modo x4)

La 6570,6670,7750 o 7770.

Saludos

Hard Choices: The Only 4 Monitors You Should Buy

By Jeremy Laird on February 22nd, 2012 at 2:23 pm.


What type of lizard is that?

Hi gang. So, if you’ve read part one of our modern gaming monitor opus, you’ll know at least two things. Firstly, there’s no substitute for a good underlying LCD panel. And secondly, things are looking up for penniless gamers on the hunt for a solid screen on a tight budget. In this second and final part on monitors, I’ll boil the current crop down to the only four screens, ranging from cheapo to aaargh-my-bank-account, that you should consider if you’re in the market for a new display.

At the end of the graphics guide I hinted that we’ve actually Apple to thank for monitor prices improving. It sounds implausible, but I’m afraid it’s true. The reasoning involves Apple’s near-blanket use of IPS panel technology. Whether it’s iPhone, iPad or iMac, Apple proudly touts its use of “superior” IPS screen tech.

Now, I agree IPS is the best screen technology, on balance. I also happen to know that just a few years ago, PC monitor makers couldn’t be arsed with putting IPS into mainstream monitors. I know this because I begged them to do it and the response was always the same, “punters are clueless, they won’t pay even a small premium for IPS.”


Apple’s evil iPad and its suspiciously wide viewing angles might just be a good thing after all.

Well, Apple’s use of IPS has ensured that the great, mouth-breathing masses now want IPS. They don’t know why, they just know IPS is a good thing. If I’m honest, it’s not a hugely healthy state of affairs – little is when it comes to Apple’s brand of rampant consumerism. But it has given rise to a new generation of cheap IPS panels. And that means TN is no longer the only affordable option.

However, just to complicate things, I’ve recently seen what I would class as the very first truly lovely looking TN displays. The technology gap is closing. On a related note, and as I mooted in part one, 120Hz refresh is a fabulous thing, too. But it’s only available with TN tech. Well, it is right now. The very first 120Hz IPS screen, the LG DM92, is due out very soon. I don’t think anyone has reviewed it yet, but I’m working hard to get my mitts on one. Keep your scanners peeled.

Anywho, giving advice re buying screens is pretty tricky. If it was up to me, you’d all be running 30-inch, 2,560 x 1,600 IPS screens because they’re bloody lovely and they’ll still be bloody lovely five years from now. In reality, we don’t all have a grand to unload on a screen. More to the point, you need one hell of a GPU to drive 2,560 x 1,600 pixels smoothly in-game. Pragmatism must therefore play its part, and its part goes something like this.

1. Arse-end screens

Until just a month or two ago, this category was a case of any panel you like, so long as it’s TN. Joy of joys, you can now buy a 23-inch, full-HD IPS panel for under £140. And it is the AOC i2352vh. It isn’t quite the monitor equivalent of the killer, you’ll-never-need-anything-better solution the Intel Core i5 2500K provides in the CPU space. But for the money, it’s pretty spectacular.


OK, the chassis build quality is redolent of a catflap in a force nine gale. Then there’s the shoddy tilt-only stand, which oscillates alarmingly at the slightest prod. Ideally, I’d prefer 1,920 x 1,200 to the 1,920 x 1,080 pixel grid you get. That IPS panel is almost definitely 6-bit, too. Oh, and there’s a tiny bit of backlight bleed at the edges. But the image quality is demonstrably nicer-than-TN, the viewing angles are super and it’s plenty quick enough for games. At this price, you won’t be disappointed. Or if you are, you’re being unrealistic.

2. Mid-range monitors

This is the meat of the market, where most of the action is and where you’ll be able to pick up a screen with relatively few compromises. Things are changing fast right now, but my current fave is the newish Viewsonic VP2365-LED, yours for about £200.

Ostensibly, it’s a pretty plane-Jane looking panel. But it ticks almost all the important boxes. It’s 23 inches of IPS, albeit very probably only 6-bit. The image quality is properly nice. The colours are to die for. Actually, they’re so vibrant I wasn’t 100 per cent sure the thing wasn’t PVA powered at first glance. And I can usually pick a panel type from 100 yards.


The viewing angle’s impeccable, too. It even has very little by way of the traditional IPS glow or surface sparkle. Hallelujah. OK, the LED backlight could be a little brighter. And it’s not quite as quick as the best TN screens. But I’m confident you won’t be disappointed with the in-game response.

Critically, it also has a proper stand with rotate, swivel, tilt and height adjustment and VESA wall-mount compatibility. What you don’t get is a sack full of bullshit image-enhancement nonsense, gaming modes or any other pointless frippery. It’s just a great panel in a decent chassis. The end.

An intriguing alternative is the BenQ XL2420T, a £280-ish 24-incher. On the downside, it’s TN and 1080p. But mein Gott, what a TN screen it is. I reckon the raw image quality is the best I’ve seen for this panel type. Yup, I might just be able to live with it and I’m pathologically anal about panel quality.


It also has a jolly nice fully adjustable stand. Tilt-only stands make my teeth itch, that’s how much I hate them. But the real killer feature is 3D Vision support. Not because I’m a stereoscopic 3D fan. I ain’t. But it means the XL2420T has 120Hz refresh support and that’s a very, very lovely thing. Oh, and because it’s TN, it’s super quick, too. In many ways, you could argue it’s the best pure gaming panel around. If it was 1,920 x 1,200 rather than 1,920 x 1,080, it would be very practically perfect.

The final candidate in the mid-range is the £450 Hazro HZ27WC. The idea here is to shove the same 27-inch IPS panel you’ll find in the 27-inch iMac into a cheap enclosure and flog it for as little as possible. Suits me.

The chassis is cheap and the stand is tilt-only, which is bad. But the IPS panel is lovely, which is good. More to the point, the massive 2,560 x 1,440 resolution makes for absolutely bonkers in-game detail. If you’re a strategy or RTC addict, believe me, you’ll weep with joy at the sheer field of view on offer. 1080p is paltry by comparison. Of course, you’ll need some serious graphics hardware to drive it, which adds to the real-world cost of going with this kind of panel.


Another downside is the stupid plastic screen cover on the model I tried. It’s meant to mimic the glass covers of iMacs, but all it does is add unwanted reflections. Mercifully, you can have it without the cover. For goodness sake make sure it’s not fitted. And be warned. Like all the other 27-inch IPS screens out there, the panel’s anti-glare coating is a bit sparkly.

As an addendum, there are a few interesting screens that currently don’t make the cut for one or other reason. One screen that ought to spank all comers in my mid-range shortlist is the Dell UltraSharp U2412M. It’s IPS, it’s a proper 1,920 x 1,200 16:10 panel and it’s baggable for about £250. So it sounds perfect. In practice, the image quality is a little bit dull, the anti-glare coating is rather sparkly. Sorry, but I don’t rate it.

Then there are the Asus PA246Q ProArt and the HP ZR2440W. Both are 24 inchers that nail all the critical metrics for around £350 – IPS, 16:10, 1,920 x 1,200. The Asus is newish and I’m still waiting to get hold of one. The HP is an HP, and that means a review sampling process unfathomable to human comprehension. Six might turn up tomorrow. Or I might not get one until just before they go out of production. With HP, and Dell for that matter, it’s usually the latter.


One further caveat is that neither screen is intended for gaming. That’s not to say they lack gaming chops. But it is worth bearing in mind. If either of them do indeed turn out to be the Jesus panel we’ve all benn waiting for, I’ll let you know. There are of course several much more expensive 24-inch IPS screens aimed at the pro market. Nice as they are, they’re not designed for and I don’t view them as value for gaming.

3. Tip-top eye candy

This is the toughest category of all. Of the brave new generation of premium 27 inchers with 2,560 x 1,440 panels (lower compromise alternatives to the Hazro mentioned above), my favourite right now is the Samsung Series 8 S27A850D.

At £550 to £600, it’s getting a bit pricey. But it does offer novel PLS panel tech. I’ve only spent a couple of days in its company, so I’d want more quality time to be sure it’s genuinely a suitable gaming panel. But it does seem to combine the best of IPS and PVA tech in a single panel – you get great viewing angles, a nice smooth anti-glare coating, good blacks and decent response. If you’re wondering, no I don’t like the Dell U2711 much. I’ve had one knocking around for about a year. It’s OK, but the panel surface is a very sparkly and it has IPS glow-itus. It tends to sit gathering dust. I’d pay extra for the Sammy.


Thing is, if you’re going to spend that much money and drive that many pixels, it’s tempting to just give it the full 30- inch, 2,560 x 1,600 treatment. This is going to sound ridiculous, but having spent years using 30 inchers, a week with a 27-inch panel and the reduced vertical resolution felt really restrictive.

In reality, there’s not much choice in the 30-inch market since Samsung stopped making 30-inch PVA panels. Everyone is using LG-manufactured IPS panels now, as far as I am aware. Despite my own 30-inch fetish, I’m actually pretty reluctant to recommend any of the current 30-inch brigade. It’s been a little while since I set eyes on the Dell U3011, for instance, and I’ve never seen the Hazro HZ30Wie in action. Then there are the LG, HP, Eizo and NEC models to choose from. In truth, none are really intended for gaming. I love ‘em enough to have three of ‘em (two Dell 3007s and a Samsung XL30), but they’re not for everyone. My feeling is that the £750-plus price tags makes them of limited interest. Still, if enough of you shout out, I’m happy to go into further detail and book in a few of the models I’ve yet to sample. Let me know.

On the subject of high-res displays, along with the performance-related issue of pumping all those pixels, it’s worth remembering you’ll need a video card with at least dual-link DVI. Some screens also support HDMI 1.3+ and / or DisplayPort. Personally, I’m fine with dual-link DVI. But the other inputs are obviously handy if you’re tag-teaming your PC with a console. Given consoles are filthy, unforgivable things that proud RPSers wouldn’t dream of owning, I realise that’s a rather academic notion. I mention it purely in the spirit of full disclosure.

Ultimately, then, for most of us it comes down to a choice of the following four screens:

1. AOC i2352vh
Bottom line: £140, 23-inch, 1080p res, lovely IPS panel, cheap-shit chassis.
2. Viewsonic VP2365-LED
Bottom line: £200, 23-inch, 1080p res, fab IPS panel, great stand.
3. BenQ XL2420T
Bottom line: £280, 24-inch, 1080p res, best TN ever, stupid quick, 120Hz loveliness.
4. Hazro HZ27WC
Bottom line: £450, 27-inch, 2,560 x 1,440 res, IPS panel, cheapest option for true high-res gaming.

As above, I’ll update if and when either of the Asus PA246Q ProArt and the HP ZR2440W hit Laird towers and prove to be monitors of messianic mettle. As they say in the exam room, then, discuss.