The Witcher 3 Dev on Improving PS4/Xbox One Graphics Post Launch;Over 900p Might Need More than DX12

The Witcher 3 Developers talk about improving the game's graphics after launch in an interview on DualShockers and on Twitter.

[yarbie1000]

Microsoft has stated multiple times the games need to be built with DX12 in mind.

The Witcher 3 isn't built with it - and they said they weren't.

Why is this so confusing

[porkChop]

You need to understand that DX12 isn't some magical piece of software that will fix all of the Xbox One's issues. It will make creating games easier and faster. It will not suddenly make all games 1080p.

It's not like on PC where you're usually bogged down by API. DX12 is lower level than previous APIs, that's why there is such a big difference in performance on PC. With consoles you're already coding pretty much to the metal. DX12 will make things a bit faster, but it will not be a night and day difference.

[yarbie1000]

You need to understand that neither you nor I know exactly what DX12 will do for XBO. So please don't act like you do

[kraenk12]

Finally someone who knows what he is talking about.

[jmc8888]

Personally I'm interested in seeing whether DX12 finally solves the Ubisoft CPU hitching.

If anything, DX12 (or similar follow on OpenGL revision) might actually allow Ubisoft games to not have that constant annoyance that effects both PC and consoles.

[TheCommentator]

You realize that Full DX12 offers a synergy between the API and hardware specifically built for DX12 to run on? AMD and MS built the XB1 with Full DX12 support that is essentially a blueprint for all future PC cards to be built upon. There are hardware accelerated features in XB1 that are either not used yet, or used inefficiently until DX12 arrives.

Don't expect to see the real benefits overnight though. It'll be a a year or two until Full DX12 GFX engines are in effect. Hardware based tiled resources and processor parallelization alone will have a big impact on overall system performance.

[kurruptor]

yarbie, you're right we don't know, but guess who does?

Answer: Phil Spencer

- "It’s not going to be a massive change but will unlock more capability for devs."

- “On the DX12 question, I was asked early on by people if DX12 is gonna dramatically change the graphics capabilities of Xbox One and I said it wouldn’t. I’m not trying to rain on anybody’s parade, but the CPU, GPU and memory that are on Xbox One don’t change when you go to DX12. DX12 makes it easier to do some of the things that Xbox One’s good at, which will be nice and you’ll see improvement in games that use DX12, but people ask me if it’s gonna be dramatic and I think I answered no at the time and I’ll say the same thing.”

[UltraNova]

Since its evident (so far) that no 3rd party will put in the time and spent the resources needed to use that 50% gpu advantage of the ps4 they sure as hell wont code their game in dx12 and then redo the whole thing in PS4's API...so lets 'enjoy' our parity on multiplatform games and wait for some XB1 exclusives to see what Dx12 can really do on a console. As for Ps4's 50% extra gpu grunt I think we saw some examples already..The order, Driveclub, Infamous.

And that^^^... is a cold as truth gets.

[christocolus]

I don't think the res is a big deal and cdprojekt are DX gurus,they've worked with the api for years and according to this dev they will try using DX12.hopefully from here on out dx12 will become the standard on xbox one.

[AngelicIceDiamond]

That's interesting I thought DX12 had to be specifically coded for a game.

[christocolus]

@Angelice

Yeah i think you have to code specifically for it to take advantage of all its unique features.

[uth11]

@AngelicIceDiamond- most likely they would modify their engine to have a DX12 back-end, since they would want it for future development anyway. Then they could select at compile time which DirectX the build uses.

So yes it has to be coded for DX12, it's not just a drop in replacement for 11 that makes everything magically perform better, but that doesn't mean that a game can't be coded to support both.

[blackout]

Thank You. And once again brain usage on this is obsolete. Let alone to max out this game on the pc you need a F**King TIITIAN graphic's card I think.

[TheCommentator]

@kurruptor

Why does everyone pull the same quotes, which are months old, out every time they want to start a pissing contest? Phil was saying other things then too, like how he completely understated the gains PC would see. Brad Wardell even called out the fact that companies involved were doing this.

What is XB1 good at though? Full, hardware accelerated DX12. So the specs remain the same, but processing gets an efficiency boost. And it won't be dramatic, compared to a high end PC, but storing 6gb+ of tiled resources on the eDSRM along with draw calls on 4 additional CPU cores can't be called small either. I didn't even mention unknowns like the direct link between CPU/GPU or the split GPU architecture, but schematics clearly show elements never seen in any hardware before that baffle even the industry professionals from anandtech and extremetech.

[proudxgamer]

I dont like when devs comes out and say more confusing shiiit....late last year a dev. From this studio said Xbox new devkit etc would make it better easier...now this. Shut up...just give me 60fps

[Maxor]

The fact that this generation can't do 1080p 60 FPS is a huge disappointment. Bloodborne would have been so much better at 60 FPS.

[etownone]

Thank u ...

I've been saying that all along.

[JJShredder]

Agreed, I am enjoying BB but after playing Dark Souls 2 on PC at a buttery-smooth frame-rate, the terrible FPS is driving me nuts!

The sad thing is that I don't think the graphics from BB are a generation's leap better than DS2 either.

And that friggin chromatic aberration crap, argh!!

Sorry, end off-topic rant.... The Witcher 3 should run just fine on XB1, remember, these guys did a solid job on the X360 version of The Witcher 2.

[NeverHeavyMan]

This generation has already seen some titles running in 1080p @ 60fps. EVERY game won't do it, but then, if that's what you really need, I'm afraid you'll need to go build a PC (something I have done and have no regrets).

I can't speak for the X1, as I don't own it yet, but the PS4 has satisfied my console needs in regards to visuals and performance. Can't really go wrong with my current combo, so the X1 will be icing!

[Sm00thop]

The game hasn't been designed from the ground up with Direct X12, you can't just patch it in and get the best results. If Gears is made from ground up with Direct X12 it will no doubt deliver something spectacular that will be hard to compete with.

[hello12]

Witcher 3 is a dx11 game why are people shocked is this even news worthy? We have seen the results of coding games to dx11 for a year now xb1 games struggle with resolution. DX12 is a brand new api with newer next gen features and i don't think this dev can know for sure what impact it will have until they start using it.

Agreed though Microsoft would need something more than dx12 to get a dx11 game up to 1080p that's what he is really saying!

The Playstation fans though like to pretend the PS4 runs games flawless at 1080p but we have seen thats not the case the console sacrifices frame rate to get there even first party games can barely hold 30fps

[GenuineGamer]

Ps fans also seem to forget how dx11 has certain limitations where dx12 and ps4 api does not. Xb1 is being held back by dx11 and the current dx11 esRAM api is pretty bad too according to brad wardell.

Nobody is saying xb1 is gonna be this unbeatable monster wen dx12 hits but man its not hard to see dx12 an this new eSRAM api will bring xbo up a level to where its supposed to be.

[uth11]

The Xbox One still has a less powerful GPU than PS4, so it won't match or exceed PS4 performance, unless PS4 is also being held back by its API.

[kurruptor]

Brad Wardell doesn't know anything about consoles, he said so himself.

DX11 limitations on PC are not the same as on X1. For example, DX11 on PC could only utilize like 2 CPU cores, now it can go up to 6 with DX12. X1 is already capable of using 7 cores. So, that limitation never existed on the X1.

[GenuineGamer]

@uth11

Yes but xbox one has eSRAM to counter gddr5 which can saturate all the CU on its gpu constantly if done correctly. This is where dx11 and the current eSRAM api is holding it back.

PS4 has the one memory pool to share with everything so only a certain amount of bandwidth can be allocated to the GPU. Only reason its easy to hit 1080p is the pure speed of GDDR5.

Once devs get to grip with eSRAM and have the new tools that are coming xbo should finally be able to have the bandwidth it needs to hit 1080p in all its games.

eSRAM with dx12 tiled resources = 6gb texture data at a constant 204gbs or 102gbps depending on which way you look at it and this is along side the 8gb of ddr3 ram. esram doesn't go through ddr3 so ddr3 isn't a bottleneck.

Im pretty sure xbo cant use this intended feature set yet along with multi cpu commands which is why so many of us see dx12 as having such a big improvement on xbo.

Edit @kurruptor

I agree Brad Wardell is a PC dev he doesn't have hands on experience with consoles, However he does know the benefits dx12 brings to game development so he can be trusted on that part. Plus he knows about the new eSRAM API and how the current eSRAM api is limiting.

XBO can use all its cores but has to use them in a certain order and it cant send multiple commands, It still has to wait in line. DX12 changes this and allows all the cpu cores to process individually at the same time and spread the workload better. Big difference. I think ps4 can already do this though.

[GenuineGamer]

New eSRAM api will make a difference. Dx12 or no dx12. I dont think this guy knows if dx12 will make a difference they probly haven't even tried to use it yet due to deadlines so hes just assuming i think

[ThePresentIsAgift]

The graphics hounds never rest. I just bought a wii on ebay, mint with loads of accessories and three games for 60 bucks. I look at metroid prime, corruption, wave race, no more heroes 2, Mario Galaxy etc and think, damn they look great and know that I can't play them elsewhere.

Graphics to me have been good now, really good since Dreamcast.

[Psychotica]

Nothing I would want but I am glad somebody out there can be satisfied with that stuff. Enjoy..

[ThePresentIsAgift]

Playing Resi 4 with the wiimote is golden, I'm interested in the whole experience as opposed to just the coat of paint. I'm sure the witcher will be more than adequate on Xbox.

[MonkeyOne]

Has there been any example of a multi-platform game looking THAT much better on the PS4 than on the One?

I can't think of one.

I mean SIGNIFICANTLY better. Not just marginally.

[kingbain90]

Lol just look at these comments, who would have thought 900p vs 1080p would spark such debates and war. 2/3 people can't even see the difference 900p hell even 720p is not "resolution issues" 60fps is overrated too. Forza H2 was butter smooth at 30fps that alone made me think 60fos is overrated.

When games become sub HD (below 720p) or unstable do to poor frames. then we should complain. People acting like there is a graphical difference. PC elite are annoying but they can talk **** cause there's usually big differences between it in console counterparts.

[DJStotty]

I agree it's a pointless debate.

A 900p 30fps game can look and perform better than a 1080p 60fps game.

Me personally I prefer a compelling story and great gameplay, replayability over which version looks better.

Roll on mass effect 4, doom 4, (fingers crossed but will never happen) half life 3

[mugcostanza]

The only time graphics matter is when they are multiplatform.
If you have gaming PC go with PC.
if you own both xbox one and ps4 you will buy it for ps4.
if they are going to sell it for same price on both consoles they should be the same.
If Xbox one can't reach what ps4 can do,lower the price for that game on Xbox

[MinnesotaFatts]

Look. 1080p or 900p, I don't give a shit. A shiny turd's a shiny turd regardless of the light I'm looking at it under. I care about performance. Lock your game in at 60 frames or above and keep it uninterrupted, I'll be happy. This "resolutiongate" is bullshit. I'm not dropping upwards of nine bills for a single-purpose PC I'll be swapping in and out parts to keep it up to date.

[angelusbrz]

MisterXmedia and all the fanboys, are you ok ?

[mochachino]

"i think any resolution changes would require a much bigger change from Microsoft than dx12 upgrade to be honest."

This is a given, resolution is far more gpu limited than cpu....unless you're making Assassin's Creed apparently.

[DJStotty]

What a nonsense article. Self explanatory that DirectX 12 upgrade post launch won't change the resolution as the game is not built for dx12. Microsoft Phil Spencer and whoever else have already stated that changes will not be seen until games are built from the ground up using the new api.

I thought this would be common knowledge by now even for dualshockers

[L0wlifeGamer]

"Over 900p Might Need More than DX12"

Surprise, Surprise... Not really!

[RealityModeler]

The comment about DX12 could only be about how that games not (re)coded specifically for DX12 are reportedly not going to improve much (maybe 20%) or at all, for obvious reasons.

[VoiceMale]

I love coming to this site it is filled with super smart programmers game developers and engineers...the best part is they are not getting paid for their expertise ...so all the knowledge they have about everything they share with us..... for free 🎂
DX12 was made for PC by Microsoft not their PC console Called DirectXbox...no not at all........ all windows 10 and Dx12 will do for the DirectXbox one is make the UI Look prettier
This explains why Microsoft doesn't release an actual number increase because they know no way in hell these experts here wont break it down in their super expensive labs and find the real gains....am sure everybody that is telling us what DirectX will and wont do have and XBOX one and DirectX12 already
Microsoft should fire everybody at Redmond making DirectX and hire these amazing ppl on here....
But am sure most wont want to stop working for other console company so i guess that job offer would be redundant

Lets wait and see what directX12 will do for consoles and stop back and frothing because of your own Biases