No hard drive support starting to show?

quad_red

Just read the IGN review of Devil May Cry 4 there and the reviewer said that the PS3 and 360 versions were virtually identical but for load times:

"No, the edge comes in the fact that the PS3 installs a large amount of game files to the hard drive, dramatically reducing load times between stages and cinematics. I've timed the game on both systems numerous times, and each time has been consistently in the PS3's favor. Transitions to gameplay from starting menus are relatively close, frequently within half a second or so of each other, but when you're loading up a cutscene or having another pause in the action, the 360's times are easily three times that of the PS3."

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/849/849246p4.html

samsamson

I think issues like this where the PS3's hardware tips things in its favour will become more common over the next few years. I'd say Microsoft are already regretting their decision to not make hard drives essential.

For example, Uncharted's developers claim that it couldn't be made for the 360, because even the demo wouldn't fit on a DVD. So they claim anyway.

Microsoft are going to need some kind of new console because the current 360 won't match the PS3's life cycle.

the corpo

hmmm, devil may cry has a 21 minute install time on the ps3 though. no thanks!

CiDeRmAn

The idea that the Demo of Uncharted wouldn't have been fit onto a DVD suitable for a 360 sounds like really really lazy programming, when games like Oblivion, Lost Planet and PGR4 happily sit on the 360 platform, I reckon the blu ray capacity and the hardrive are leading to some unefficient coding.
Especially now I've played and finished Uncharted on my PS3, while it's a great game and looks nice, it doesn't exactly dazzle the player with vistas of unparalleled beauty, you know what I mean?

mcgovern

Yes, the PS3 version takes 20 mins + to install (and you cant' not do it) and the load times are max 2-3 seconds faster.

chrislad

Penny Arcade did a comparison on this and they found no massive difference, bar the 21 minute mandatory install on the PS3.

eoin2nc

samsamson wrote: »

I think issues like this where the PS3's hardware tips things in its favour will become more common over the next few years. I'd say Microsoft are already regretting their decision to not make hard drives essential.

For example, Uncharted's developers claim that it couldn't be made for the 360, because even the demo wouldn't fit on a DVD. So they claim anyway.

Microsoft are going to need some kind of new console because the current 360 won't match the PS3's life cycle.

Awful smell of fanboy-ism in that post

Helix

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

The idea that the Demo of Uncharted wouldn't have been fit onto a DVD suitable for a 360 sounds like really really lazy programming, when games like Oblivion, Lost Planet and PGR4 happily sit on the 360 platform, I reckon the blu ray capacity and the hardrive are leading to some unefficient coding.
Especially now I've played and finished Uncharted on my PS3, while it's a great game and looks nice, it doesn't exactly dazzle the player with vistas of unparalleled beauty, you know what I mean?

its not really lazy programming, its down to a poor data transfer rate on bluray which leaves the devs with 3 options

a) install textures

b) use a different instance each time a texture is required, meaning the game takes up massive amounts of space on the bd

c) huge load times

Retr0gamer

Load times are virtually non existent in the 360 version as far as I'm concerned, wouldn't think there'd be much of a difference in the PS3 version.

samsamson

eoin2nc wrote: »

Awful smell of fanboy-ism in that post

I own a 360, not a PS3 Eoin.

Don't try and drag me into your fanboy hunts.

brav

I think as evident from other games it 6 of one. Other games the 360 is faster at loading because it has faster read times for dvd than the ps3 has for bluray, so the 360 can load faster from the disk.

Uncharted's developers claim that it couldn't be made for the 360, because even the demo wouldn't fit on a DVD. So they claim anyway.

TBH their developers are prob just making up excuses, very few games cant be redused to 8GBs after compression even if they have high quality video on the disk.

quarryman

eoin2nc wrote: »

Awful smell of fanboy-ism in that post

as is there from yours....

Stephen

Burnout Paradise's multiplayer mode won't work without the 360 hard drive installed. But who the hell bought a 360 without a hard drive? I don't know anyone that did.

mcgovern

Stephen wrote: »

Burnout Paradise's multiplayer mode won't work without the 360 hard drive installed. But who the hell bought a 360 without a hard drive? I don't know anyone that did.

A lot of people like myself at launch when there were no premiums to be had.

Fony Tenton

Thats allowed!

Does anyone actually know anyone who plays their xbox day to day without a hdd though?

eoin2nc

quarryman wrote: »

as is there from yours....

Ah I was a bit pissed off with life in general when I posted that! Apoligies are needed from myself. Just Ive heard the split second quicker load times of the PS3 so many times now, but they seem to forget the 20 minute install time....

Anyway Im no fan boy ,had all 3 last gen consoles and have all 3 this time again

koneko

brav wrote: »

Uncharted's developers claim that it couldn't be made for the 360, because even the demo wouldn't fit on a DVD. So they claim anyway.

TBH their developers are prob just making up excuses, very few games cant be redused to 8GBs after compression even if they have high quality video on the disk.

Indeed. Naughty Dog are owned by Sony, I'd take anything they claim in relation to console wars (ie which is better) with a very large bag of salt.

unklerosco

quad_red wrote: »

, frequently within half a second or so of each other................ the 360's times are easily three times that of the PS3."

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/849/849246p4.html

So 1.5secs... Damn, I wish I bought a PS3 :rolleyes:

quad_red

Selective quotes there unklerosco

quad_red wrote: »

...but when you're loading up a cutscene or having another pause in the action, the 360's times are easily three times that of the PS3."

xanthor

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

...when games like Oblivion, Lost Planet and PGR4 happily sit on the 360 platform, ?

Didn't Bizzare say that size constraints were a problem with PGR4?

unklerosco

quad_red wrote: »

Selective quotes there unklerosco

U got me... didn't read that bit...