Alan Wake Xbox One Backward Compatibility Analysis

Remedy's first Xbox 360 game comes to Xbox One via backwards compatibility but how does it hold up in terms of performance - and why can't we see anything?

[StifflerK]

Might be their configuration, it doesn't look that dark on my screen, has anyone else tested the B/C yet?

[christocolus]

According to Reddit users, you can actually reduce the black crush by adjusting your tv brightness settings. One of the users even made a clip showing the same part of the game Digital Foundry said was too dark and unplayable. I have been quite busy but hopefully, I'll get to try it out during the week.

https://www.reddit.com/r/xb...

https://onedrive.live.com/?...

I'm just glad i can continue my playthrough on Xbox One and not have to set up my Xbox 360 and hopefully MS will add Read Dead Redemption to the list soon and maybe i'll finally get to finish that too.

[StifflerK]

I'm playing off a monitor - but I did configure it with the Xbox1 set up tool.
The same section looks bright enough to see, for me at least.

Me too, it's a great feature, Red Dead and Bioshock are my most wanted.

[gamer1138]

Stop the hyperbole DF. The game is not unplayable. First thing I did was adjust the brightness. It's been perfectly fine.

[JasonKCK]

DF has to cater to its loyal fanbase. DF is like FOX news. They claim "fairness" when it's clear they're not.

[Sciurus_vulgaris]

@JasonKCk I have noticed they are sometime much more critical of certain releases than others. They were absolutely praising the graphics in Nathan Drake collection, when in reality it looks largely the same as its' PS3 counterparts .

[BattleAxe]

@jasonkck

I agree with your comment on DF, but actually, you have it wrong when it comes to FOX. The liberal media, which is virtually every network other than FOX, is what is totally biased in the U.S..

The only place where you can get the other perspective is on FOX. Many of the other networks are agents of and for the Democrats, which is why Hillary gets softball questions from all of the so-called reporters, because they are protecting her.

[XMarkstheSpot]

Off topic but I agree with BattleAxe. I read news on both sides of the fence

[Necr0philiac]

@BattleAxe
Fox news has always favored the Republican party. It don't seem that way recently because the Republican party don't like Trump.

[DLConspiracy]

@Necro

Exactly. Spot On. That will change though as everyone in the Republican party is jumping on the trump train now, They all are a little biased but Fox is one of the worst for doing it.

[Bzone24]

@DLConspiracy

MSNBC is the absolute worst.

[Sciurus_vulgaris]

They could just of stated "black crush can be corrected by adjusting the games' or tvs' brightness".

[Fin_The_Human]

They do have a point though...you shouldn't have to adjust your TV brightness to play a game out of the box.

But at the same time DF is at most times reaching to find something wrong with BC XB1 games.

Also the same with XBox PC exclusives.

I wonder why they do this.

[gamer1138]

So the next time any game before you start the campaign, where it asks you adjust the brightness so you can barely see the logo, in your mind we should not have to do it?

[Tobsesan]

Aint theire a option at the beginning of the game to make the game brighter?

[Free_Fro]

I've never heard of black crush rendering a game near unplayable..

weird..

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[hiawa23]

I continued my Xbox 360 AW on the X1 and if you simply adjust the in game brightness that solves the darkness issue. Like most have stated, the game runs fine looks better, adjust the brightness, and the game is fine.

[hiawa23]

How can anyone disagree? True is true, there is no disputing that...

[JasonKCK]

You are right. For some reason, when you first start a game the brightness default settings are set to low. How did DF manage to miss that?

[stiggs]

I just tried playing Alan Wake via the Xbox One backwards compatibility program on a professionally calibrated Samsung JU6500 TV.

The image was a bit dark (in a room lit by sunlight) but I saw no evidence of black crush.

The report that the game is unplayable seems inaccurate from my perspective.

[rainslacker]

Might be because you have a professionally calibrated TV. Most people don't, although I would assume DF would...or at least be capable enough to calibrate their own as it's not that hard.

That's why brightness adjustments are becoming so common, because LED/LCD/etc type TV's have a much bigger range in possible light intensities than old CRT's did, which were more prone to varied color variations.

Crushed black may not even be the proper term here, as crushed black means that all blacks under a certain intensity get put into the "black(off) pixel color" setting on the display. This is not usually caused by the renderer, as the renderer will simply output the pixel intensity well below the typical TV's thresh hold. There are ways to improve frame rates by increasing the thresh hold, and the appearance of crushed blacks is more common from the thresh hold being increased well above even the most basic of TV's. It's not usually done anymore, because most TV's have a pretty low thresh hold, and there is nothing the TV can do about it, so it just comes out as one big black on the screen. If the game had problems with crushed blacks in the original I could see why it would be a problem here as the rendering process would be the same. However, if not, it sounds like a improperly calibrated display, or they didn't bother with the adjustment within the game itself.

[hiawa23]

error response

[MCTJim]

I am enjoying alan wake. Crushed blacks..laughable. It looks just fine.

[dreadz74]

Think it's pretty clear that DF has an ax to grind with anything MS. All games have brightness adjustments to fit tv if by default it is low just turn it up problem solved. DF saying the game is unplayable is a blatant lie and can cost MS sales. They also did this crap on QB saying it's 720p then saying it appears to be 900p yet they don't know for sure sheesh. Tired of these guys Bias approach NXgamers is much better and unbiased.

[DivineAssault]

Better than nothing i suppose but that sucks if you cant see details in areas.. When using BC on XB1, the game has to fully install right? Its using emulation so i would think it does..