190°

Nvidia Hairworks - New Video Shows Off Fur & Hair, Includes Animals From The Witcher 3

Nvidia has released a new video for its Hairworks middleware that enables developers to simulate and render fur/hair to provide a truly interactive game experience. This video features some animals from CD Projekt RED's highly anticipated RPG, The Witcher 3, so be sure to check it out if you are fans of it.

Read Full Story >>
dsogaming.com
psman0123595d ago

Extremely impressive. It looks fantastic, hopefully it runs on consoles as well as it is showcased.

tee_bag2423595d ago

I won't if Nvidia decide to make it a Nvidia Phyx extension

OsirisBlack3595d ago (Edited 3595d ago )

It won't be on consoles, there is a dirty secret that PC gamers don't like to talk about. I will share it with the masses. Game studios are moneyhatted into putting Card specific fx into their games. That is right if you own anything with an AMD gpu then Nvidia says you cannot have this brand of fur in your games.

While it would be simple for Devs to just make fur that would work on all platforms they would rather put in flat textures on the other companies product to keep their moneyhatters happy.

This has been going on for a while and it is a horrid practice. XBO and PS4 have AMD gpus so according to nvidia we get flat textures and not fur.

Edited to add: I really want this game but I do not support any game that comes out purposely gimped due to Nvidia money hatting.

aliengmr3595d ago

AMD cards can use this feature.

Whether the consoles can/do use it, I don't know.

CoD Ghosts uses it.

FalloutWanderer20773589d ago

It is using Direct Compute. I read it on the Witcher forums many times for the very reason many still question if it will run on consoles or AMD cards.

CD Projekt RED are doing everything in their power to get this hair tech to consoles. Last I had heard,consoles were going to use a special LOD setting. Whether this has changed I do not know for sure.

My understanding is that it will work on AMD cards,though still not 100% about consoles.
As I said above,it may be there on consoles just not maxed out anywhere near the quality of that nvidia hairworks video.

I will presume that it will more than likely work best on high-end nivida cards but hey, time will tell.

Unless you are running SLI/Crossfire,a single really powerful GPU (780/ti and up or high-end Maxwell I'd bet) or you have a very good dedicated physX card - A lot of PC gamers will not even be able to get the peak experience out of this tech.

Unless by some optimization wizardry this hairworks tech doesn't completely kill fps most will not be able to run it or not adequately without it affecting gameplay.

Sincerely Hoping that I'm wrong, Witcher 3 is probably the one game that I am really looking forward to. I say that for everyone out there who really wants to experience this game optimally.including myself of course.

I know a majority on N4G are console only players,so for what it's worth - I hope you get some form of this tech on whatever system you play the game on.

My screen name will tell you the other game I look forward to the most as well. :)

Magicite3595d ago

8th gen brings us closer to photorealism than we would ever expect.

iistuii3595d ago

Well I don't know if they've patched the COD Ghosts lately, but the Fur kills my GTX780 & it's only on the bloody dog. Work needs to be done IMO.

Audiggity3595d ago

Hmmm... hair rendering? Really? I feel like this is the kind of thing the industry should be focused on AFTER we start seeing a bit more dynamic destruction/physics/animations /etc...

Seems about as useful as horse armor in comparison. Just my $0.02.

DoctorJones3595d ago

'I feel like this is the kind of thing the industry should be focused on AFTER we start seeing a bit more dynamic destruction/physics/animations /etc... '

So you think they aren't investing in that technology as well? This is just one aspect of tech being improved, I guarantee they are working on lots more than this.

And this is something that adds immersion, it's progress.

Audiggity3595d ago

I see 10 tech demos a year promoting real-time environmental destruction that never makes it into games due to bandwidth limitations/multiplayer issues.

This is why I'm excited to learn more about Crackdown 3.

It's cool, don't get me wrong, just feels like a little bonus feature coming before other in-game features that would impact immersion more significantly.

kingduqc3595d ago

video games characters has always has poor hair or been hairless because we can't render them. Don't you think real time destruction that respect physics is much harder then rendering hair?

I've played bf:bc2 and bf3 and destruction is overrated. it takes away map design and trow it into the garbage.

Audiggity3594d ago

Mathematically, I'm not sure which would be more complex. From a gameplay perspective, not every game should have fully destructible environments or even dynamic character animations.

However, I'm a firm believer that an open-world game should be exactly that. If something like GTA V had destructible environments (at this point we're talking about buildings, walls, bridges, craters, etc), the depth would be exponentially increased.

Even an "open world fighting game" - something that hasn't really been done, but likely will be soon, with dynamic environmental destruction you'd never have a fight similar to another.

There are countless tech demos showing environmental destruction in real time - this has been around for years. I think the potential here is much more significant than rendered hair.

FalloutWanderer20773589d ago (Edited 3589d ago )

I think this along with TressFX is a very promising and a great move for the industry.

Do I want "dynamic destruction/physics/animations "? Of course I do, though I'd argue we've seen much more of that than we have of properly rendered hair and fur.

Hair is one of the hardest things to render in gaming. How many games out there have truly implemented realistic looking & moving hair? there are not many, I think of only a few that can be counted on one hand and even those are far from perfection.

We are getting there though,one small step at a time.

If there is one thing that I believe gaming needs to put more focus and work into it would be A.I.(not saying it's easy or that simple)

We have some of the best character animation with euphoria seen in rockstar games and back breaker and that is pretty much it. Someone correct me if I am wrong on that one. I'd love to see euphoria used in more games.

Dynamic A.I. is what we need.

It has improved over the years but if you compare it to every other form of Tech.advancement in gaming,I'd say it has been coming along a bit slower. Which to a degree can be expected because of it's complexity.

I do see what you are saying and respect that. For me, I think that hair has gone far too long being under appreciated and lacking realism.

For me,this is a really good advancement for gaming equal to any other form of Tech and feature out there.

Aren't you sick of static,plastic looking hair? lol

system223595d ago (Edited 3595d ago )

Wow that's really cool. Wonder how it works. Couldn't be poly deformation as the overhead would be too high. It's gotta be some sort of nurb/spline deformation or variant particle system of some sort? Cool though. We won't see this on ps4 or xb1 tho as they have amd GPU 's. I'm sure some 3rd party will introduce competitive middleware though at some point in the near future that will work on amd chips. I'd be surprised if that didn't happen.

Show all comments (24)
110°

The 7 Best Western RPGs: Immersive Adventures

RPGs are often huge, sprawling endeavours. With limited playtime, we have to choose wisely, so here's the best western RPGs available today.

SimpleSlave21d ago

"I started playing games yesterday" the List... Meh!

How about a few RPGs that deserve some love instead?
1 - Alpha Protocol - Now on GOG
2 - else Heart.Break()
3 - Shadowrun Trilogy
4 - Wasteland 2
5 - UnderRail
6 - Tyranny
7 - Torment: Tides of Numenera

And for a bonus game that flew under the radar:
8 - Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden

DustMan21d ago

Loved Alpha Protocol in all it's glorious jank. Great game.

SimpleSlave21d ago (Edited 21d ago )

Not only glorious jank, but the idea that the story can completely change depending on what you do, or say, or side with, makes it one of the most forward thinking games ever. The amount of story permutation is the equivalent of a Hitman level but in Story Form. And it wasn't just that the story changed, no, it was that you met completely new characters, or missed them, depending on your choices. Made Mass Effect feel static in comparison.

Alpha Protocol was absolutely glorious, indeed. And it was, and still is, more Next Gen than most anything out there these days. In this regard at least.

Pity.

230°

All the Essential Video Games Everyone Needs To Play At Least Once

Given the medium's wild diversity, this primer of the essential video games everyone should try is a good place to start.

Read Full Story >>
wealthofgeeks.com
thorstein45d ago

.... from the 2000s (mostly).

shinoff218345d ago

I can't fk with this list. They missed on alot of games probably before the writers times. Also I know people loved some portal but I was never a fan.

Cacabunga45d ago

Tomb Raider 1
Driver 1
Abe’s Odyssey
FF6
King of Fighters 94
Mortal Kombat OG
LINK 2 the past
Street Fighter 2
Resident Evil 1

Inverno45d ago

Infinite but not the first two games? Witcher 3 but not the first two games?? GTA V but not literally any of the games before it??? Portal 2 but not the first? Also if you're going to play Shadow of The Colossus play the remaster and not the remake. Can't say I disagree with the list but my man it's all over the place.

Name Last Name45d ago

I mean some sequels are objectively better and you don’t need to play the whole series.

Inverno45d ago

But most of these games have a story to follow, sure you can catch up with a YouTube vid but where's the fun in that?

LucasRuinedChildhood45d ago (Edited 45d ago )

A list like this isn't telling you not to play the previous games if you want to. It's just giving you legendary games to play.

But tbh, you don't always have to force yourself to play every entry in a franchise to get to the better ones.

- The vast majority of Witcher 3 players never played the first 2 and had a great time. The first 2 games aren't in the same league.
- The GTA games are self-contained with the odd fun reference. You can easily jump into any of them.
- The Shadow Of The Colossus remake looks and controls better than the original (plus it has a 60fps option while the remaster is just 30fps). New players will enjoy it more.
- Portal 2 is a lot better than Portal 1 and takes the concept much further gameplay-wise. Storywise, Portal 1 is fairly light too. Not that you shouldn't play it but realistically ... you'd love Portal 2 whether you play it or not (at lot of Portal 2 players have never played 1).

Bioshock 1 is the only one I agree with you on simply because it's one the best games of all time and arguably better than Infinite. No other setting like Rapture.

Looking at the list, I'd recommend playing Uncharted 1 before 2 but no doubt, 2 is the legendary one you have to play.

Inverno45d ago

I get it, but that's just my opinion on his opinion. I just think that before you play a sequel you should still play what came before it. Maybe it's just me but i find it fascinating playing through the first game in a series and seeing how it has evolved through its sequels. Like I said I don't disagree with the list, other than SoTC which I strongly believe the remaster of the original should be played above the remake.

AuraAbjure44d ago

Awesome list! Hot take on Fear (and it's hard af expansion Persaus Mandate!) Bioshock Infinite is stellar, so is the Witcher 3 and you nailed it by having Ocarina of Time. So many fantastic games! Gotta play 'em all! Next one on my list is Prey after I beat Dead Space 2 and Splinter Cell Conviction.

Show all comments (11)
80°

The Best Video Game Romances of All Time

Wealth of Geeks explores some of the best gaming romances that have stolen our hearts over the years.

Read Full Story >>
wealthofgeeks.com