Epic Revealing Unreal Engine 4 Later This Year

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hannibal

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[citation][nom]superawesomewow[/nom]I don't understand how the next Xbox with it's 6670 based GPU could possibly run UE4.... I thought we saw a video awhile back showing that it takes THREE GTX580's to do it.[/citation]

Well It shows what the engine can do. Not what they are going to make with it. Expect games that are best with 6670 and similar guality GPUs.
So if you have anything as fast than 6670 you can run any game that are released in the future until PS5 or Xbox 1240 or what ever the next xbos after Xbor 720 is called. So no need GPU upgrade for 10-12 years...
Well maybe there will become some paches that allow a little bit better graphic in PC, so a little bit better than 6670 will be enough even for that. So don't put your money to expensive GPU if you are not going to use multiple screens.
I am expecting some really good 4k screens in 2-3 years from now. Then it may be time to make some serious GPU upgrades! Until then no big hurry!
 

alextheblue

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[citation][nom]IndignantSkeptic[/nom]Also I think the number of PCs with superior hardware to consoles is much higher which just makes this situation look much worse if true.[/citation]

Source? There are a LOT of PS3/Wii/360 units out there. Also, the vast majority of PCs sold use integrated graphics or very lowend discrete. Remember too that more and more "PCs" being sold are laptops, netbooks, and soon x86 tablets running Win8. These mobile devices often suffer from even lower clocked hardware and less memory bandwidth. It was only in recent times that I've used a laptop with tolerable integrated graphics (Llano) but most of those are OEM machines that are hampered with cheap memory (Llano needs all the bandwidth it can get) and very limited tweaking options.

Even if it is true, remember that just about every console sold is guaranteed to get a bunch of games purchased for it. On the PC? The average PC user bought it for non-gaming everyday tasks. Email, shopping, streaming/downloading media, occasional word processing, Fakebook, etc. Only my fellow nerd gamers use PCs for gaming, and even then most of them are not PC-exclusive elitists. They just enjoy the gameplay - graphics are secondary, just like special effects don't make a movie by themselves.

You can't really blame the devs. If you're going to sell 500k units on PC, vs 5 million on consoles, you know what to target first. As a mostly-PC-gamer, I'm just happy to see the game land on PC at all! No need to be so ungrateful, they could just stop making games for PC entirely. Would that make people happier? Then there's piracy. I know some people that pirate nearly every PC game they can get away with pirating (meaning games they're not playing online, especially MMOs), not only because they're tightwads, but because its so easy and convenient to do on PCs.

I don't know what the final answer is, but I am hoping that Win8's app store helps address dev concerns over rampant piracy, as well as make it easier to cross-develop and distribute games. I think this type of system has helped Android, iOS, and Steam move a lot of software. I don't think it will replace Steam either, I know I'd like a Steam live tile to quickly access my Steam library. I know that so far Win8's performance improvements look good, and the new WinFS will probably be deployed on Win9 down the road.
 

alextheblue

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[citation][nom]IndignantSkeptic[/nom]I doubt very much the Ipad3 can run UE4. I doubt it could even run UE3. Also I seriously doubt its screen will have higher resolution than Blu-Ray. I doubt the Wii U could run UE4 but I believe it could run UE3 better than PS3 and Xbox360.[/citation]
As Segio526 pointed out, the engine is extremely scalable. Just because it runs on a modern PC and an iPad, doesn't mean it is going to look and run the same on both. The same engine yes, but with different final results. It is efficient enough to make good use of the iPad's limited resources, but it can also make good use of much more powerful hardware.
[citation][nom]superawesomewow[/nom]I don't understand how the next Xbox with it's 6670 based GPU could possibly run UE4.... I thought we saw a video awhile back showing that it takes THREE GTX580's to do it.[/citation]Again, scaling. Also, we don't know what the final 720 hardware will be like. You get one rumor that it is going to have a "6670" and now its parroted all over the internet like it's fact. Don't get me wrong, I don't think it is going to be some kind of 7990 monster, consoles have to be budget-friendly (and fit in certain power/heat envelopes, I don't think they're eager to repeat the results of the first-gen 90nm 360 setups). But I suspect it will have a bit more horsepower than a single 6670. We'll have to wait and see.
 

IndignantSkeptic

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It wouldn't surprise me if the next Xbox hardware was kind of weak. For about the last 3 generations the winner of the console wars has been the weakest cheapest hardware. I think all the console makers have realized this now and they will try to beat each other in having the weakest cheapest hardware, but not so much weaker than their rivals that the games will have to be largely specially made for their console. I think the console makers have noticed by now that usually game developers don't bother to take advantage of each console's strengths when the difference in capability is not much. For example, I suspect that a lot of PS3 Blu-Ray games will use up only as much data storage space as a DVD would hold.
 

tomfreak

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[citation][nom]Camikazi[/nom]DO your computers normally die in less then 5 years? I have computers with parts that I bought cause they were the cheapest that have been running for about 7 years. This is while one of them was running in a little closet that has the heater for the house in it.[/citation]no most of it last over 5 yrs, and die like @ yr no7. But base on the console port we are looking right now, if a 5yrs old rig can max out the games, thats means it still can be playable @ medium detail for 2yrs, low detail for another 2 yrs further. Thats almost 10yrs for a rig! So tell me does buying high quality PC component makes sense now?
 

demonhorde665

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[citation][nom]frozonic[/nom]i hope this engine REALLY improves graphics and make use of moderm GPU´s architecture[/citation]

i could care less about it requiring a supe gpu that cost super buck , more concerend with rather or not it wil stil runn deccently on older hardware as well as make use of newer hardware. a game engine is NO good if it alienates 2/3 rds of the market (see crysis history) , my computer still cant run that game full spec.

inshort most the consumer market loesses interest ina product when it requires specific expensicve updates, another great examle is hal92 for pc requiring vista only .


sure games that use GPu power are neat and fun , but in teh end they leave most of us desireing 2000 bucks fora new pc .. that's 2000 bucks that must us normal folks DONT have.
 

neon871

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[citation][nom]kcorp2003[/nom]I remember Epic boss Tim Sweeney said:"There is a long life ahead for Unreal Engine 3. Version 4 will exclusively target the next console generation, Microsoft's successor for the Xbox 360, Sony's successor for the Playstation 3 - and if Nintendo ships a machine with similar hardware specs, then that also. PCs will follow after that" I hated him for this.[/citation]

PC's are harder to program for because the hardware is so different from PC to PC. and it has to be compatible with it all. The hardware is the same on every XBox made. The PC's always get the best Graphx though.
 

happyballz

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I'm happy that their engine will be improved; hopefully other developers that care about PC can actually use their engine to create something useful like they have been lately (batman, mass effect etc.). IMO just about everything Epic made in the last 6 years was an epic failure as far as gameplay, re-playability and story goes.
 

Netherscourge

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[citation][nom]IndignantSkeptic[/nom]I doubt very much the Ipad3 can run UE4. I doubt it could even run UE3. Also I seriously doubt its screen will have higher resolution than Blu-Ray. I doubt the Wii U could run UE4 but I believe it could run UE3 better than PS3 and Xbox360.[/citation]

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/infinity-blade-ii/id447689011?mt=8

"Requirements: Compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation) and iPad.Requires iOS 4.0 or later."

BUILT USING THE UNREAL 3 ENGINE

 

cptnjarhead

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Hey, guys, don't you get it! For years developers are pushing the visuals and completely neglecting the gameplay! Modern games are pure garbage! Since the invention of 3D accelerators and the 1st person shooter before that - the game quality deteriorates each year. Current games are all boring, lame copies of the same *** - trolls, goblins, orcs, troll, goblins, orcs, undead, undead, orcs... over and over again! Just look the current "top" RPG - and endless world of pure repetitiveness, emptiness - simply -> pure *** - Skyrim. That's supposed to be an RPG? I don't play Japanese RPGs, so I don't have any opinion on the but the last good Western RPGs were made on the 2D Infinity engine. All we usually get is recycled old ***. Well, with Assasin's Creed they tried to make something original.
Even stupid Angry Birds have more gameplay and fun than that shiny, shader filled 3D garbage, they are calling games. Most of them are simply bad interactive 3D movies. Better just go to the movies and watch a movie. Sometimes movies are not too bad because they are at least directed by professional directors, while most games are directed by... ex-programmers :D who think they can "direct".

I do agree with most of your post. PC gaming died with the introduction of the 3D accelerator.
I remember when PC games were about depth of game play. Now its all about eye candy and gimmicks.
That is what the market wants. Skyrim is a perfect example. I did really enjoy Skyrim, but the mods are what really keeps me playing. but if Darklands (best RPG ever imo) had updated graphics, modding and multiplayer, but kept the same depth of game play, i would throw skyrim in the trash.
 

IndignantSkeptic

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Ok enough with people telling me this. I get it, Epic made their engine very scaleable so that it can work on weak hardware. However it is clear that although these devices can run Epic's latest Unreal engine, they are not using the engine for all the fancy new effects that are featured that push the hardware harder, and are probably just using the latest version of the engine to benefit from the increased efficiency of doing certain things which, by the way, just means the hardware is even less impressive then. What I was basically meaning to say is that I do not believe that the Ipad3 will be as powerful or more than PS3 or Xbox 360.
 


THAT is what the OpenGL and DirectX API's were designed for... to minimize the differences, to hide them. That is where you look at the demographics out there and choose your MINIMUM specifications and build from there. Also, IF you program correctly, most configurations WON'T be a problem.... BUT when you have publishers breathing down your neck, to hurry and get it out on the market (at almost any cost) or face shutdowns/unemployment, You have no choice but to NOT always program correctly. Secondly, a GOOD game engine will be seamless, if not completely invisible, in porting to any other device it runs on. A badly designed engine will have problems even on a single platform. Get away from DX9 (where the current Gen of consoles have tied us) and into DX 10.x or DX 11 AND things lock into place better, other than adapting to things dropped from DX9 when going to DX10.
 
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