Last week a Tweet from Adrian Chmielarz, the former Creative Director of developer People Can Fly, suggested that the PS4 is 50% faster than the Xbox One and now Edge is reporting similar claims from “multiple high-level game development sources.”
The memory reads are said to be 40%-50% faster on the PS4, understandable when the PlayStation 4 is using the faster GDDR5 (Graphics Double Data Rate, version 5) memory, and the ALU (Arithmetic Logic Unit) is around 50% faster.
Edge give an example of an optimised, platform-agnostic build which would run at around 30FPS in 1920×1080 on the PlayStation 4, but the same code would only manage “20-something” FPS in 1600×900 on Xbox One.
One of the reasons given for the differences is that both parties are still working on the drivers for the consoles, the Xbox One drivers are said be “horrible” and Microsoft is “lagging behind”.
However the anonymous developers are also claiming “procedural generation or raytracing via parametric surfaces… Xbox One will be likely be faster”
Alarmingly, one source has suggested that PlayStation 4 version of cross platform titles could be “castrated” so both versions of the game look identical. This would be done to “avoid ruffling any feathers” and “damage perceptions of a cross platform title, not to mention Xbox One.”
However, another studio has dismissed the suggestion, “It would be totally fine for us to make one version prettier without any political difficulties but it usually doesn’t make financial sense.”
If gamers ever uncover proof of a PlayStation 4 game being deliberately restricted just to make it on par with Xbox One then it might not just be the console that gets castrated.
Source: Edge
TSBonyman
There will be parity across the multiplatform titles, but it sounds like it will be easier to just drop code into the PS4 while they will have to put a bit more effort into adapting their code for the Xbox One’s unique hardware nuances to achieve similar results.
Of course, the PS4 has it’s own unique hardware nuances, and Sony can push developers (with their assistance*) to utilise those nuances to increase the base-level performance of the PS4, and potentially widen the gap in performance between the two console once again.
*Sony have already expressed regret at keeping the best software tech for their own ‘first party club’ with the PS3 and i expect they will be much more sharing with their tech this time around.
As i’ve said previously though, PS3 gamers will be happy with their upgrade to PS4 and 360 gamers will be happy with their upgrade to XO. That’s all that really matters.
PARKER94!
MS deliberately made their console inferior because Devs have to cater for the weakest console, Sony now use higher priced components, sell PS4 at a lower price, bankrupting Sony. Sly dogs.
Heard it here first.
The Von Braun
All i can hope for is that the developers who are making these claims, back it up on their PS4 versions of the cross-platform games they make and PS4 games are optimised for the hardware.
As a PS3 and 360 owner this gen, i ended up buying various games on 360 purely because they ran better on the hardware (Fallout 3 GOTY edition, Skyrim etc).
I don’t care which console has better on paper stats, i just want games worthy of the potential of the hardware, at R.R.P they are asking for next-gen games, i don’t think that’s too much to ask for…
HunterGatherer
PS4 is also easier to code for, no messy management of the esram.
joshb108
This makes no sense, its devs being stupid with Xbox One. Microsoft get it to run at 60fps on one of its best exclusives, Forza Motorsport 5, as displayed at E3 and GamesCom. When you see how good it looks then you can tell why it runs at 60fps (apart from car reflections) and that’s why Microsoft exclusives are so good
Cort
I’m amazed at how few gaming news outlets are carrying this story. More than twice as many crowed about the tiny increase in processor power MS managed to squeeze out of the One. Looks like old habits die hard.
YOURMUMANDME
Regardless of the power difference, as a newly adopted PC gamer I can see how next gen console development will lift the cap off the already graphically castrated PC games.
Which leaves me with one conclusion.
If a developer decides to castrate a PS4 multi-platform game then they really are living out of MS pockets. If a PC title allows you to adjust the video settings from bad to beautiful then why would they not simply optimise the game settings to fit the PS4 grunt?
To keep someone else happy?
DJ Judas
The limitations of the lowest common denominator have restricted game development this gen, it’s not anything new, some multi-plat PC games this gen were limited to low res textures and other small caveats as a result of console limitations.
With this in mind it wouldn’t surprise me at all to see PS4 games limited by what the XO is capable of. Especially as frame locks will be 30/60 and nothing in between, PS4 will likely be locked to 30 when it can achieve more. Should keep the Sony box nice and cool though.
NotSmartEnough
I don’t agree with the argument that studios will release sub-optimal PS4 versions to maintain parity with XB1: multi-platform releases need to compete with exclusives optimised to make best use of the hardware, if studios willingly release games which aren’t the best they can make they’ll be sacrificing market share and reputation for what?
Microsoft throwing cash at devs for exclusivity is one thing, paying them to create a version which deliberately downplays the capability of the competition is something no major studio is going to get involved in.
Kreisash
Correction: paying them to create a version which deliberately downplays the capability of the competition is something no major studio is going to admit to being involved in.
CarBoyCam
If they castrate the PS4 versions of games I won’t be happy. The current generation was always a story of 360 version looks/performs better than PS3 version. Why should they play fair next gen just because it’s the other way round? :/