Even for its time however, Dishonored wasn’t pushing the boundaries of what the Xbox 360 and PS3 could accomplish. Developed on Unreal Engine 3, Dishonored brought out numerous little details like rats crawling through alleyways and steadily increasing number as the bodies piled up in the story or bodies burning, limbs being chopped off or corpses being consumed (sometimes all at once). Playing it on PC was a delight and even when teleporting across rooftops, admiring the scenery and analyzing character movements, the game was silky smooth and responsive.

Performance on older platforms was anything but perfect but for the most part, Dishonored managed to look good and play good. It ran at 30 frames per second on Xbox 360 and PS3 with adaptive V-sync causing screen tearing whenever the frame rate began to chug. Post process anti-aliasing was in effect, which obviously couldn’t compare to the PC version’s full blown AA solutions, and both versions rant at a 1280×720 resolution. Elements like screen space ambient occlusion and depth of field were also present though their implementation varied across both versions (for example, the PS3 version boasted better DoF).

Note: PC followed by the Xbox One version.

What can one reasonably expect from a PS4 and Xbox One port like Dishonored: Definitive Edition? A full overhaul of textures, character designs and cut-scenes a la Gears of War: Ultimate Edition was never really the case (nor was it expected) but there was at least some hope that Arkane Studios would take advantage of the current gen consoles to significantly improve the game’s performance, increase the resolution and further add on to the present effects and options.

Unfortunately, that isn’t completely the case here.

Textures look sharper with better image quality overall and Dishonored: Definitive Edition can thus be considered as the PC version running at high settings. Native resolution is set at 1080p for both Xbox One and PS4 as revealed through pixel counting. So far, so good. However, the frame rate hasn’t been increased to 60 FPS. Consider this for a second – my three year old laptop with an AMD A8 APU with a mobile GPU was capable of running Dishonored at 60 frames per second with some drops here and there on reasonable medium settings.

The PS4 and Xbox One are obviously far superior hardware in comparison and yet Dishonored: Definitive Edition isn’t running at 60 FPS on either of them. Why couldn’t Arkane Studios hit a higher frame rate? This makes the Definitive Edition feel like a cheap port in some ways and the screen tearing that harmed previous gen releases is still present. The other assumption is that enough has been improved in other areas to justify 30 FPS.

That’s not the case either. Both console versions use a heavy amount of fast approximate anti-aliasing or FXAA for removing jaggies with no performance penalty. The problem is that it also tends to blur out a lot of the details on textures and even with FXAA, Dishonored: Definitive Edition doesn’t run at 60 frames per second. Couldn’t Arkane have at least used a better anti-aliasing solution if it intended to stick to 30 FPS?

Anisotropic filtering is absent on the PS4 version of the game, which would’ve been understandable a year ago on newer titles but doesn’t fly here. Parallax occlusion mapping is included in both versions but the lack of anisotropic filtering makes it insignificant. Texture streaming issues have also been spotted in some places as noticed with textures that would load incompletely. This is similar to what plagued id Software’s RAGE and whether this is related to Unreal Engine 3 not being properly optimized for current gen consoles (not that it’s meant for the PS4 and Xbox One anyway – that’s Unreal Engine 4) or due to some other reason isn’t known. Either way, it really hurts the experience for those who appreciate the finer details. Loading times are almost non-existent on the current gen consoles but texture streaming still feels snappier on the PC.

Note: PC followed by the PS4 version.

If that weren’t enough, the PC version features a number of visual enhancements that is present on neither version of the Definitive Edition. While the PS4 and Xbox One versions undoubtedly look better than the previous generation, we at least expected the Definitive Edition to stand side by side with the PC version.

Dishonored: Definitive Edition is a very, very odd port. The original visual style stood out for its amazing art direction and this was ably assisted by the gameplay, world design and characters. The 2012 release wasn’t a benchmark by any means and could be maxed out easily even on older gaming PCs. That’s what makes the new generation release so baffling, especially when it’s supposed to provide the transition to Dishonored 2 which has been developed from the ground up for PS4 and Xbox One. The fact that both current gen platforms can’t hit 60 frames per second and still suffer from screen tearing is disappointing.

For those interested in Dishonored, especially since the Definitive Edition includes all previously released DLC, it’s worth your while to seek out the original PC release. Not only will it offer a better visual experience overall for those with powerful hardware but it scales remarkably well on older GPUs. If you’re a console player who never experienced the original game and are wondering what the fuss is all about, then give a shot at Dishonored: Definitive Edition. For everybody else, looks some where else.

There are honestly much better ways to get into the universe and prepare for Dishonored 2 without having to spend money on a below average port. Hopefully Arkane Studios’ true current gen outing will offer a much better visual experience even if it sticks to 30 FPS on consoles.

Note: Analysis was carried out by Bill Smith.

In this respect, along Gears of War serving to herald the first few arrivals in the 720p era, it pushed the boundaries of real-time rendering. The cinematic presentation, alpha effects, detailed crumbling environments and sheer amount of action all made for an unforgettable experience. Heck, its action would serve as the template for nearly an entire decade’s worth of third person shooters while Unreal Engine 3 would become one of the more popular engines during the Xbox 360 and PS3 era.

Xbox 360 version followed by the Xbox One version [left to right]. There are not only visual upgrades but animations and camera angles have been modified as well.

It’s easy to see why The Coalition chose to focus on revamping a single Gears of War title as compared to remastering the entire trilogy plus Judgment. Along with focusing more on a single core experience that helped define the series, it allowed the developer to pour a larger sum of resources into improving every single graphical aspect. The result in Gears of War: Ultimate Edition is excellent. If nothing else, it perfectly encapsulates that “feeling” of war that the original embodied all those years ago. While hardcore fans will be instantly familiar with the mechanics and character animations during gameplay, the sheer number of improvements made to the visuals is a joy to behold.

Gears of War: Ultimate Edition runs at native 1920×1080 resolution and given its relative age, it wouldn’t have been remiss for The Coalition and Splash Damage to simply up-res the game. It would certainly be lazy but not out of the ordinary. That’s not the case here though. The lighting engine has been reworked significantly, taking the Ultimate Edition out of the dark and gritty aesthetic of the first Gears of War and resembling Gears of War 3 more in effects.

Ultimate Edition features updated shaders and a color palette for a more smoother and colorful approach, closer to what we saw in Gears of War 3 compared to the darker setting of the original. Also check out the improved draw distance.

Image quality is smooth but there’s a very subtle effect with limited PBR and global illumination in a few places which serve as the biggest change in the lighting. The overall effect gives a more nuanced feel to the visuals even if shadow dithering can still be an issue.

It’s important to clarify the game’s frame rate which runs at 30 frames per second during the campaign mode and 60 frames per second in multiplayer. The campaign’s frame rate is very solid with a few frame drops occurring in cut-scenes. This is somewhat disappointing, even if you take into account the fact that Unreal Engine 3 isn’t completely optimized for the Xbox One. However, given the number of updates it’s received since the first Gears of War in 2006, we did expect a stable frame rate.

While it will be interesting to see how Gears of War 4 will fare in this regard, we are happy to report that multiplayer runs at 60 frames per second most of time. Frame drops are extremely few and far between even with heaps of chaotic action and explosions happening on-screen.

Fenix’s armor is not the only to have a visual upgrade. NPCs feature fully upgraded models. Also observe the better alpha effects such as the burning car.

Gears of War: Ultimate Edition’s visuals have been touted for a number of reasons, not the least of which includes the completely reworked cut-scenes. In some places, a few new scenes have been added and if you’re a fan of the original, it’s amazing to note the sheer difference in presentation and quality across both generations. Camera angles have been changed and animations have been improved significantly.

Character models also look much sharper than before thanks to the overhauled texture quality and advanced shader libraries on the Xbox One. You can now make out the finer details of Marcus Fenix’s armour and your entire squad looks more detailed than before. Despite playing Gears of War 3 for hours on end, I was still taken aback by Anya’s appearance and how different she looked. Comparing her appearance to the 2006 release really outlines how much has changed and improved for the better. Sadly, it seems that texture filtering isn’t very good. A blurring effect is noticed whenever the player zooms in.

Despite next to no major change in the artwork – which helps maintain that distinct Gears of War theme – the Ultimate Edition does update the remaining visuals. Draw distance has been increased; volumetric effects like dust, smoke, wind and water just look much better overall; foliage density sees a lot of improvements; and despite its limited implementation, motion blur is also present.

Texture filtering is a tad disappointing at some places. See the wall as an example.

Majority of the art style is intact but has been upgraded with better texture quality. This is how you remaster a decade old game.

When one takes the time to consider that this is effectively The Coalition’s first ever game, let alone its first Gears of War title, the Ultimate Edition is all the more impressive as a whole. As stated before, the overall presentation isn’t perfect – the slight frame rate drops in the campaign mode being the most significant factor – but it’s amazing how the developer has upped the ante on the original’s visuals to this extent. Those looking for a solid multiplayer experience won’t be disappointed by the solid 60 FPS frame rate. Even with some of the other issues, including the below average texture filtering, the campaign is worth exploring more than once just to take in all the rich amount of details.

Overall, Gears of War: Ultimate Edition is an excellent remaster and serves as one of the best examples of the trend. While the nostalgic in us will miss Epic Games’ development on the franchise going forward, Gears of War: Ultimate Edition does give us hope for what The Coalition can achieve in Gears of War 4 with Unreal Engine 4 when it releases in Holiday 2016.

Given the fact that Unreal Engine 3 was built primarily for the Xbox 360 and PS3, Unreal Engine 4 is targeted primarily for the Xbox One and PS4. A jump in visual quality is expected but just how revolutionary is the leap here? We took a closer look at the PS4 and the PC Unreal Engine 3 build of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter to find out.

Let us get one caveat out of the way. The base assets of the game haven’t be modified in any manner. For all intents and purposes, these are the same assets present in the PC version. In terms of resolution, Ethan Carter runs at 1920×1080 with fast approximate anti-aliasing (FXAA) applied. Visuals are crisper and object edges are sharper but there may some inconsistencies while the player moves with the world being streamed in the foreground.

The developers have used a unique solution titled photogrammetry which allows them to extract finer details via high quality photographs of objects from different angles. This gives the artist every possible points in a 3d space resulting into an accurate representation of the object in the virtual world.

Head to head comparison: PC followed by PS4. [left to right]

While the frame rate tends to remain above 30 frames per second and this may result into an inconsistent experience. A noticeable judder can be noticed at times but overall, the PC and PS4 version look fairly similar on the surface. However, the difference in engines results in various subtle visual changes. Unreal Engine 4 is meant to be an update over Unreal Engine 3 after all.

One of the biggest updates in Unreal Engine 4 is how it handles lighting and the difference is immediately visible in the latest build. Rays of Sun glowing over surfaces gives a more a realistic look and feel. Another big addition ia Motion Blur, a pleasant surprise whose effect is clearly visible when the player moves through the lush and green environments. There are also changes in the way in which the sky is rendered, it’s nothing ground breaking but it manages to produce a more visually appealing level of surrealism than before.

Unlike many another PS4 games, first party and third party, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter features a strong level of anisotropic filtering. This gives texture a crisper look when viewed from long distances or random angles.

Enhanced ambient glow produced thanks to higher intensity lights is clearly noticeable in the Unreal Engine 4 build and it’s a sight to behold when sun rays penetrate through small holes or windows. All of this comes along to deliver a soothing and a calm visual experience, unlike anything we have seen before.

Despite the positive, there are some unfortunate negatives as well. Texture filtering is obviously higher on the PC compared to the PS4 build but we also observed some level of shadow dithering and the way light reflects from surface to surface. It really is a minor issue and most players won’t even notice it.

Head to head comparison: PC followed by PS4. [left to right]

Further differences between the two versions are further extended by contrast in image quality. There is a slight difference in the way the PS4 version is rendered, going for a slightly darker tone compared to the PC version which has a more muted variation.

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter looked gorgeous when it first released on the PC and it’s amazing to see just what The Astronauts could be capable of on PS4. While many of the visual improvements are the result of shifting to Unreal Engine 4, the hardware is no slouch when it comes to the various effects and details. It’s almost like looking at an entire different game but one with more intrinsic visual changes that help enhance the creepy atmosphere in the process.

If you haven’t experienced The Vanishing of Ethan Carter on PC, it’s worth taking a look at it on the PS4. Though PC owners can probably wait until the re-build arrives later, there’s really nothing to stop PS4 players from experiencing this adventure. Hopefully The Astronauts can provide an option to cap the  frame rate at 30 FPS and eliminate the visual judder that can pop up from time to time. In the end, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter on PS4 is a great example of how re-builds should be done.

Looks like  Arc System Works and Red  have been quite the busy bee this past year, because as it turns out, Guilty Gear Xrd SIGN is coming to North America, and will be available at stores this year for both PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. Now while Guilty Gear 2: Overture didn’t do so great, Arc System Works, decided to return to it’s roots and design Guilty Gear Xrd SIGN  to be a 2D fighting game.

With that, said, we are quite interested to see how the game will look, given that the game is using Unreal Engine 3 and will have Cel Shaded Graphics.

The game will come with 15 playable characters, and you can expect some major improvements to the fighting system as well the music that goes along with it. But, we’ll just have to wait and see for E3, whether Guilty Gear Xrd SIGN is all that is cracked up to be.

“We’re not implementing them. To begin with, there were very few instances of QTEs in the game; in fact there was only one in that whole hour-long E3 demo. However, given the strong reactions it evoked in the press and the community, it was an easy decision to do away with them entirely. So we’re not doing it. No quick time.”

Thief has been in development since 2009 and seen a long cycle before being officially revealed this year in its current form. It will be releasing on Xbox 360, Xbox One, PC, PS3 and PS4 on February 25th in North America and February 28th in Europe. What other changes will occur before then? Stay tuned.

Crimes and Punishments: Sherlock Holmes, the sequel to the incredible Testament of Sherlock Holmes,has been announced for PlayStation 4. The title was previously announced for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC.

Crimes and Punishment: Sherlock Holmes is the first game to be made available for a next generation console. It is also a game of other firsts, as it is the first time that the developer Frogware has moved away from its in house engine in favor of Unreal Engine 3, which, it claims, enables a much richer, more immersive and detailed rendering of both the environments and characters. In addition to the visual changes, however, there are also new investigation techniques at the player’s disposal, a total of fourteen.

The Testament of Sherlock Holmes was pretty darn good at what it did. One might argue that it was the pinnacle of the series in its old format. It remains to be seen whether the quality can survive the transition to so much new stuff happening all at once, but given just how great the last game was, I have high hopes.

SCEE Senior Business Development Manager Shahid Ahmad stated that “We’re thrilled to be working with Vivid Games to bring an excellent boxing game to the PS Vita. “Real Boxing is a visceral delight that really shows off the power of the PS Vita.”

Built using Unreal Engine 3, Real Boxing looks to bring realistic boxing to the handheld in the best way possible. There will also be in-depth multiplayer modes to hold tournaments through online and ad-hoc play, along with the usual Career and Training modes.

It will also utilize much of the Vita’s mechanics, including a mini-game to escape from clinches by tilting the device. Real-time deformation technology for those bone crunching moments, broadcast-style commentary and dynamic crowds only add to the atmosphere.

We recently spoke to Sam Abbott over at developer Compulsion Games to get his take on a variety of things, including the influences for Contrast, what inspired the game, Sony’s indie approach – along with why the game won’t be coming to the Xbox One – and much more.

Ravi Sinha: The idea for Contrast is certainly amazing. What served as the inspiration and how did you further develop on the idea?

Sam Abbott: Thanks! While Contrast has been inspired by a number of different games, the initial spark came from Portal. Guillaume (our studio head) was really interested in how Portal changed how you could move through space. While sitting in a café one morning, he began to wonder what it would be like if the shadows of objects in games were all physicalized. One prototype later, and Contrast was born.

Once he had the initial idea, one of the main factors that changed how Contrast developed was competition. In particular, Lost in Shadow and Shadow Physics were both announced, two games that also used shadows as part of the gameplay (Shadow Physics in particular had a very similar mechanic to Contrast). Contrast needed to become more than just a shadow game – we needed something unique, and more than just a mechanic. While Shadow Physics was eventually cancelled, the world of Contrast grew into what you see today.

Ravi Sinha: What is the technology driving Contrast? How much effort did it take to accurately model light sources and shadows for the “2D” platforming segment?

Sam Abbott: Contrast is made using a heavily modified version of Unreal Engine 3. We created new rendering and shadow physics engines (to allow the 2D/3D shifting) to replace some of the stock components of UE3 (surprisingly, it didn’t have shadow shifting tech built in).

The tech was not too difficult to create, but creating levels was not easy. The shadows in 2D are all created by the combination of the light sources and objects in the 3D space – so if you move an object in 3D, it will change the shadow in 2D, and change your platforming environment. It took time to figure out a design process that worked, because at the beginning, our paper designs made little to no sense in the game world.

"The tech was not too difficult to create, but creating levels was not easy. The shadows in 2D are all created by the combination of the light sources and objects in the 3D space."

Ravi Sinha: Contrast’s puzzle mechanics seem to be inspired by Portal, in terms of setting up rooms to jump through. One of the more dynamic moments we’ve heard about is jumping across the shadows of two individuals arguing. Could you outline some other such moments?

Sam Abbott: We could, but we were hoping that players would find them out for themselves. Having said that, creating a variety of experiences inside Contrast was a goal of ours – we didn’t want the player to be doing the same thing over and over again.

Ravi Sinha: What influenced the decision to go with a Vaudeville setting for Contrast? How much more effective was the narrative in this setting?

Sam Abbott: Contrast has vaudevillian influences because we find performance arts really interesting. We loved the idea of including aspects of vaudeville, like a circus, travelling performers, burlesque, and illusions. Vaudeville allows us a huge range of potential characters and locations, which is one of the benefits of a rich setting.

The narrative was largely designed around these themes, so it probably wouldn’t have worked so well in another universe. Unless, of course, you guys want to play a game about a little girl set in 34^th century New New York, with a cabaret singing robot mother, and shifty alien Dad (in which case, we’ll get right on that).

Ravi Sinha: How long will Contrast be? Will it have puzzle rooms or additional content like Portal?

Sam Abbott: Roughly 4-5 hours. Contrast allows a bit more exploration than Portal, and while we’d like to enable additional content (perhaps through Steam Workshop), it’s not something we’re actively pursuing. We may look at DLC too, if our fans are particularly interested in new content from us.

"Contrast has vaudevillian influences because we find performance arts really interesting. We loved the idea of including aspects of vaudeville, like a circus, travelling performers, burlesque, and illusions."

Ravi Sinha: There is the market for big-budget, action-heavy titles like Call of Duty and Battlefield, but also a strong market for titles like Minecraft, Limbo and even Portal. What are your thoughts on this “contrast” between the gaming industry today, where middle-tier titles seem all but extinct?

Sam Abbott: I think we’re rebuilding the “middle tier” right now!  Minecraft, Limbo and Portal are all examples of this, in my opinion – games that hone their vision, and create wonderful experiences that aren’t huge in scope, but are still ambitious. It’s a bit hard to generalize (or answer this quickly!), but I see roughly three tiers – small indie shops creating games like FTL, small to medium sized studios that create games like Limbo or Minecraft, and then the big guys.

I think there’s an important place for that middle tier – a place where you can take creative risks (it’s very hard to take major risks at AAA level), but think bigger than a retro platformer, while somehow keeping the game you create personal. It’s a very exciting time, in my opinion.

Ravi Sinha: So far Contrast is confirmed to release on the PS4, PS3, Xbox 360 and PC, but not on Xbox One. Is there a particular reason for the same and can we expect an Xbox One version down the line? 

Sam Abbott: Microsoft currently isn’t letting indies self-publish, so we’re holding out for the moment in the hopes that they reverse their positions. Development kits are also more difficult to gain access to this early in the game.We’re hoping that will change at some point soon!

Ravi Sinha: Can you please talk a bit about the PS4 version of Contrast? How does the PS4’s unified architecture and 8GB of RAM help bring Contrast to life?

Sam Abbott: Haha, well, it makes it really easy to get onto their platform! There is so much memory and so many cores on that machine we’re still scratching our head as to what to do with all of them.

Ravi Sinha: There is a lot of talk about how game development will be easier on the PS4. So as someone who is working on both i.e. a PC and PS4, do you think it is as easy as picking up the PC code and paste it to the PS4?

Sam Abbott: It’s definitely a lot easier than on the previous generation of consoles where the architecture was much more divergent from PCs, but it’s also not as simple as cut & paste.Once the industry has had a few months to iron out its kinks, it should be much easier to develop for the PS4 than for the PS3.

"I think we’re rebuilding the “middle tier” right now! Minecraft, Limbo and Portal are all examples of this, in my opinion – games that hone their vision, and create wonderful experiences that aren’t huge in scope, but are still ambitious."

Ravi Sinha: Based on the short teaser we’ve seen, if Contrast were to run on, say, the PlayStation 4, what would be the difference compared to it running on PC in terms of gameplay features and graphics?

Sam Abbott: Naturally, the PS4 is very powerful, so we can turn on a bunch of graphical features to make it look very nice. However, there should be very little difference between the PS4 and a high end PC. Contrast looks fantastic on both platforms right now, and we’re excited to share how it’s looking with people soon.

Ravi Sinha: What are your thoughts on the current state of the indie games industry, especially concerning the lack of self-publishing on the Xbox One for indies and the strong push by Sony for the same on the PS4? 

Sam Abbott: Well, it’s certainly the topic of the moment in the indie community right now. The community is still growing, and the culture is wonderfully supportive, collaborative and encouraging. While there are elements of competition, there is a huge explosion of ideas and feedback, and I think gaming is better off because of it. The diversity of the games being produced is just astounding, and we’re seeing more and more devs applying for things like the Indie Megabooth at PAX. And, in terms of general gamer culture, appreciation for indies is growing, which is super great.

So the Xbox One situation is a big disappointment for indies given how well other parts of the community are going, and to be honest, it’s a bit of a surprise. I’m sure Microsoft is still figuring out what it wants to do, but it’s a real shame that they don’t want to join the party just yet.

Ravi Sinha: When can we expect to see Contrast release?

Sam Abbott: Q4 2013! We’ve kept things pretty close to our chest in the dev process, so we’re really excited to be approaching release. Who knows, maybe we’ve even got a new trailer just over the horizon.

In Remember Me you play as Nilin who’s memory is entirely wiped out by her own employees. Nilin also has the ability to change and alternate memories and her main objective is to take down MEMORIZE.

The game strives for something new and innovative, just imagine what you can if you can change people’s memories to change their reactions and manipulate people for your own purpose. The game packs in melee combat, stealth, shooting and platforming as you traverse the futuristic Neo-Paris.

Let us know if you’re excited to play Remember Me next week when it releases for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC.

Check back on GamingBolt for our review of the game soon.

Published by Meteor Entertainment, Hawken is a free to play first person shooter at its core, but one that has you piloting giant mechs. It features more action than your typical MechWarrior, and entered into open beta on December 12th 2012. Developed using Unreal Engine 3, Hawken features three mech types – namely the light type, heavy type, and all-around type – along with four multiplayer modes when it releases.