*NOTE* Please read the Edit at the bottom.
There are too many fanboys of all the camps whining about games that aren't 60FPS. The automatic conclusion is that the consoles can't handle it and thus the new generation isn't much to talk about just because of that lack of 60FPS for some launch games. It's my opinion that you're wrong to complain about the lack of 60FPS in games and I'll explain why.
First of all, these are launch games. Do you think these launch games just started development? You'd be wrong if you do. These games have been in development for at least a year before developers even knew what to expect from the new gen consoles, possibly even more.
Developers create their own ridiculously over powered gaming PCs to develop the games on before they have even a hint of the final specs of the new consoles. This means that when they DO know the specs, they have to downgrade and compromise from the original development version they have on their OP PCs. Things will be cut, things will be scaled down, and sacrifices will be made to keep an overall vision of the final game product a quality vision.
This is just the way the gaming industry works due to the need of surprises and competition and has nothing to do with the tech in the consoles or the skill of the developers.
Consoles will never equal the technical power of gaming PCs because there has to be a sacrifice made for value otherwise consoles wouldn't be able to sell in the mass numbers needed and that's why the original development version made on suped up PCs will always be more technically impressive than what can be done on consoles.
Secondly, game engines are probably the bigger culprit than the consoles. Consoles have fixed, unchanging hardware. This new generation is the closest consoles have ever been to being PCs and the tech that is in each of them should be more than enough to handle games at 1080p and 60FPS. Any PC elitist will be more than happy to drone on endlessly about how their 2006 midrange PC can do it, and with inferior tech, so how can any of you honestly believe that the consoles are the reason for a lack of 60FPS?
Did it never occur to you that the engine might be the cause? That the software is poorly optimized or conflicts with something? That the engine was developed on those suped up PCs and is having to make concessions? Of course not. It's obviously the fault of the fixed, unchanging hardware of the consoles right?
Thirdly, the human eye sees at variable frame rates depending on certain conditions such as the condition of your eyes, the lighting of the room, the angle of view, etc... This means that we can possibly see framerates of up to 200FPS or as low as 24FPS depending on those conditions. This also means that most people will never notice a difference between 30 and 60 FPS unless they've been experiencing 60FPS on a consistent and normal basis.
I hate to break it to you but most of our day to day lives don't involve moments where anything we see is moving at 60FPS, and the majority of console gamers are not exposed to it with the same frequency as PC gamers who make their games run at 60FPS through sheer processing power. For those of you who are used to 60FPS because you game on PCs a lot, stick to PCs and stop complaining about console games when you're so eager to laud the power of your rig over everyone else like some kind of contest between neighbours to see who has better stuff.
For those who aren't used to 60FPS, you're not going to notice much of a difference if you aren't already exposed to 60FPS all the time so stop jumping on hate bandwagons just to be part of something or to troll.
Finally, a reason everyone chooses to ignore regarding the absence of 60FPS is necessity. 60FPS is mostly useful for reaction time in games that require quick thinking and quick action. For games where you're taking your time, you don't need 60FPS. 60FPS in games such as Watch Dogs would be a waste of resources because the fastest action would come from driving instances and those aren't what the game is chiefly about.
Developers who target 30FPS instead of 60 may be doing so so that another area of their game is better. By using the resources that would have went into the FPS for something else, they can make any number of areas better to contribute to the overall quality of the final product. Would you rather have a 60FPS game with pop-in and screen tearing, or a 30FPS game that looks beautiful and has no such afflictions? Granted, that's a poor example but it is a legitimate one.
This is the problem with introducing more and more PC aspects into console gaming. Ridiculous discussions like how many polygons are in a character, or how many frames are shown in a second in a game are taking precedence over things like gameplay, world, story, character development. I'm so sure that 60FPS will tell you all you need to know about the antagonist's motivations. I'm positive that the amount of triangles in a character design will help you master the deep gameplay. These discussions have become beyond ridiculous at this point, and the amount of FUD or Damage Control or other nonsense has reached beyond critical mass.
Like the title says, get over 60FPS. It really doesn't matter and none of you are even acknowledging legitimate reasons for its exclusion from games and simply jumping on the "the console is underpowered" bandwagon of hate. It's like you're not in gaming for the games, you're in it for the technology.
Quick, someone create News4TechGeeks so at least the conversations will have some relevance.
**EDIT** I realize that I came off far too harshly in saying people were idiots, to that end I issue a formal apology for that and have edited the blog to be less of an attack on opinions. However I maintain the stance that 60FPS is not necessary for games to be good, or enjoyable, and that too many are losing their sh*t over framerates instead of asking questions like "is the game good." There are also too many not bothering to look into why a game may or may not have 60FPS and what was sacrificed or improved with the inclusion or exclusion, respectively, of said framerate. I also maintain that until you are shown the difference between 30FPS and 60FPS, you won't know the difference no matter how many people (who've already seen the difference after being shown) want to call me an idiot for stating an obvious fact which can be ascertained by researching the capabilities of the human eye.
Joe 'Three Sheets' Neate (Executive Producer): "As I’m sure you can imagine, when it comes to Sea of Thieves my days are full of numbers. Development costs, active servers, days until the next update… Sometimes, though, a truly extraordinary number stands out – a number like 40 million, which I’m incredibly pleased to say is the number of pirates who’ve now set sail in Sea of Thieves!"
Garrr... more people to walk the plank and send to Davey Jones locker.
would have been funny to release this on talk like a pirate day.
Devstream 178 was filled with so many cool announcements for the game's community, and were able to ask a lot of questions about Warframe: 1999 and more!
From The Growing Stones and Valkyrie Interactive comes The Mildew Children on Xbox and PC. Ready for the fairy tales and horror it brings?
The only time a game running lower than 60FPS ever bothered me was with Ninja Theory's DmC: Devil May cry, it felt very choppy and slow at times compared to the original titles and there was a definite delayed reaction to my button presses. Although, I have been told that this could have been due to poor optimisation rather than a lower FPS anyway I just figured I'd put it out there.
But yeah, 60FPS isn't a requirement because there are very few games you'll really notice a difference with or without it. And as you've pretty much already stated already, it's early days people! give the developers a chance to work on creating games specifically tailored for next gen consoles.
It doesn't matter, huh? Oh boy...
framerate fundamentally alters gameplay. Its why games like COD are so universally praised and played, because of its fluidity of controls due to 60 FPS. I'm not even arguing that COD is good, but its edge over the competition is its got a solid framerate at 60 FPS. Response time is greatly increased, actions feel direct and impacting, and overall the pace of the game is increased. You cannot play a fast paced game with a low framerate and hope to survive the competition who are playing with a high framerate and of equal skill to you.
Framerate also immerses the player if the world is more fluid. A clunky, 30 fps render of a game world may look nice in still screenshots but compared to 60 fps render its a night and day difference, the 60 fps render feels far more alive
"For those who aren't used to 60FPS, shut up."
While we're at it. For those who aren't used to 1080p gaming, shut up.
How dare you expect these new consoles to do anything better than the old ones?
Besides, you won't even be able to tell the difference, and its not even the hardwares fault, those developers just don't know how to code properly.
You should demand better story and character development instead. Don't you know that is what new hardware is useful for?
Man, this is some hilarious stuff right here.