The upgraded PS3 port of Ninja Gaiden 2, Ninja Gaiden 2 Sigma, was hailed as a huge graphical upgrade over its Xbox 360 original, but close observation reveals some very substantial compromises had to be made to accomodate the PS3’s differing capabilities, which some would say have resulted in a certain amount of downgrading…
Detailed analysis reveals that the the game was very heavily optimised for the Xbox 360 and had to be cut back in certain areas for the PS3 port, even as it was enhanced in other areas:
Team Ninja’s original code is based on exploiting all of the inherent strengths of the Xbox 360 platform, the intention being to push out as many polygons as possible based on the Microsoft console’s unique architectural advantages. A like-for-like copy at the same performance level would’ve been an almost impossible job to produce on PS3.
Team Ninja’s original performance quest was so completely single-minded that it actually resulted in a game that ran at a sub-HD resolution on Xbox 360. Native 720p was dumped in favour of an 1120×585 resolution combined with 2x multi-sampling anti-aliasing.
Using a 32-bit pixel format and a 32-bit z-buffer, the frame could be entirely rendered within the Xbox 360’s ultra-fast eDRAM before being copied out to main RAM. Indeed, if our maths is right, Team Ninja’s selected framebuffer format uses 99.975 per cent of the available eDRAM.
The performance benefits are obvious: Ninja Gaiden 2 copes admirably with a vast amount of on-screen enemies and relatively complex environments.
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The Sigma team’s solution to these problems is quite ingenious. It simply rebuilt the whole game completely from scratch with its own engine, “remixing” Ninja Gaiden 2 to play more to the strengths of the PS3 hardware. It’s a situation only seen before a handful of times in previous cross-platform projects (Oblivion and Enemy Territory: Quake Wars spring to mind).
Right from the outset, Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 impresses. There’s a palpable resolution boost, for starters. The original sub-HD 1120×585 res on Xbox 360 is substituted for 1280×718 on PS3: essentially full 720p aside from pixel-thin black lines.
There’s even proper bona fide 2x MSAA included too, to reduce jagginess – though when the engine is stressed, edge-smoothing is dispensed with to maintain frame-rate.
It seems making multiplatform releases for the PS3 and Xbox 360 is a far more fraught process than developers tend to admit, with developers often taking shortcuts resulting in ports which are less than optimised.
This is sure to come to the fore with the upcoming release of Final Fantasy XIII, a graphically spectacular game many have suggested is being graphically downgraded on the PS3 to ensure an identical Xbox 360 release…
Honestly… I’d take a few less background baddies on screen vs the game looking that much sharper.
They have their codes shattered when they make the xbox 360 version, and mostly on the lighting. And browsing the development backup takes too long time so they decided to “disable” lighting……………………..
What? Just kidding!
it does uses real time lightening asshole.
When ever you enter a narrowed path or cave, you see the lightening reflect all around the wall. This is highly noticeable even in Sigma 1’s first stage. As soon as you enter the cave, the lightening dimes down because there’s no light inside the cave.
Since an xbot like you is so retarded enough not to understand lighting since Xbawks 3shIttY multiplatform games are always dark.
ps3 is better, because it uses real time lightening, high character details modeling and textures. So all that needed some sacrifices by reducing enemies on screen.
Anyway, Ayane PS3 and Xbox 360 comparison…enough said LOL!
real time lightening? haha, but where is the thunder?
its lightning and lighting.
They both look bad, for a PC user. The kind of graphics from 3 years ago. No pixel shading? And 2x AA is basic. I have no idea how old the actual generations of Xbox and PS3 are.
i agree, if u are a PC ‘gamer’ u spend way too much money on your ‘hobby’…
pc game fag
Yea for consoles that was release 3 years ago. Obviously the graphics looks 3 years old compared to your buffed up pc which you spent a fortune on just to play crappy pc games which mostly consists of FPS. Seriously, this argument is only for ps3/360 owners. NOT FUCKING PC FANTARDS.