Video Comparisons and Game Consoles:

Last week we published an article comparing screenshots of King Kong on the Xbox and Xbox 360. The article was very popular, but ultimately left us with a bit of a bitter taste in our mouth.

The beauty of the Xbox 360 at this point is in its motions; lighting effects, rain fall, and physical interaction. Static images don\'t do squat for showing off the differences between the Xbox and the Xbox 360.

So we decided to re-do the article, this time using videos from each version of King Kong on both systems instead of static images. We try to reproduce each of our screenshots, but this time the side-by-sides move.

The differences between Xbox and Xbox 360 become much more evident this way.


Notes on High-Definition:

When we first ran last week\'s article, we pointed out that the screenshots were not high definition. A number of people wrote to say that this is hardly fair to the Xbox 360, something we agree with. However, showing low definition images is very REPRESENTATIVE of what the average consumer will see when they purchase an Xbox 360 compared to the Xbox. At the start of 2005, only 10% of TV owners had TVs capable of displaying high definition images. According to Kagan Research, that number is expected to reach 50% by 2010, about the point that the Xbox 360 will probably be ending its life.

The point is this: assuming that gamers have a higher adoption rate than the average population, I\'d guess that a gamer is probably 3 times more likely to own a high definition TV; I think that\'s a generous assumption. Therefore, 70% of the people that are likely to buy an Xbox 360 will not be playing the system on high definition screens. Seven out of ten people will see an image on their TV that looks like the screenshots from the article.

So does showing these images in standard definition short-change the Xbox 360? Yes. But is it a poor representation of what people can expect when they purchase the system? Absolutely not. In fact, to suggest that what we should be showing are screenshots that only apply to 10-to-30% of our readership and calling it average would be our failure as a game magazine.

If you have a high definition TV, you\'ll probably complain that these images are in standard definition; if you don\'t own a high definition TV, then these images are a more accurate representation for you than nearly any screenshot released on the Internet.


The side-by-side videos:
*All audio is taken from the Xbox 360 version of the video.
*Videos are roughly 3MB each. They make take a moment to load.

• Fire:
  
  View File: Fire video capture
  
  We start with the fire because it is consistently one of the easiest places to see the difference between the Xbox and the Xbox 360. In this first generation of games, the primary difference between the Xbox and the Xbox 360 is in the graphics texturing and the lighting; the physics will be the same across platforms in King Kong. Notice how the air above the fire blurs and distorts? In comparison, the fire on the Xbox looks both plain, much more like a graphic shoved onto a spot on the ground compared to an actual fire. This screen capture, and the ones that follow it, do a good job of demonstrating how much detail has gone into upgrading Kong for the 360.
  
  
  
  
• Rocks and Walls:
  
  View File: Wall 1 video capture
  View File: Wall 2 video capture
  View File: Wall 3 video capture
  
  In our original comparison between the Xbox and the Xbox 360, we were not able to show the motion of the shadows. Simply put, the biggest difference between the two systems is in the lighting system. Because of the dynamic lighting, shadows move on objects (seen well in Wall 1 screen capture). Also, the Xbox 360 version is much, much darker than the Xbox version. The shadows have a higher level of contrast when dynamic lighting is possible. While the effect is cool, there are times when it is simply too dark and you spend your time walking into walls, desperately hoping to find that little opening that lets you escape into the light. It\'s also interesting to note that all the captures were taken with the same equipment; any differences in quality is seen in the compression rate of the video codec and the console itself.
  
  
  
  
  
• The water:
  
  View File: Water video Capture
  
  The water was an interesting element to try to capture. On one hand, there was a visible difference. On the other hand, the depth of shadow made it difficult to encode the video in a manner that was useful. The primary difference between the two systems in terms of water has to do with movement. The water on the Xbox is much more static, like glass, than the water on the Xbox 360. On the 360, the water level fluctuates as you climb in and out. This is as close to physics updates as the two versions see.
  
  
  
  
  
• The ground:
  
  View File: Ground video capture
  
  The grounds in King Kong are another really excellent place to see the differences between the two versions of the game. You\'ll notice the shiny gloss on the rocks on the Xbox 360, while the Xbox simply has flat ground with no texture.
  
  
  
  
  
• People:
  
  View File: People video capture
  
  This is the point that the advances of the Xbox 360 begin to show their limitations, at least in the way that they are implemented in King Kong. The physics models, meaning the underlying skeletons of the characters and creatures, didn\'t receive an upgrade between versions. So, while everything might look nicer in the environment, character animations will be identical, or very near it. Notice how similar the character motions look between these two captures as Jack Black sets up his camera at the end of the clip. One is darker, but in terms of characters, they\'re very similar.
  
  
  
  
  
• Gunfire:
  
  View File: Gunfire video capture
  
  Again, what you\'re watching here is the smoke effects from the gun barrel, the way that the muzzle flash lights things up. Besides the dark atmosphere, there\'s very little difference between the two.

The Beasts of Kong:

• V-Rex:
  
  View File: V-Rex 1 video capture
  View File: V-Rex 2 video capture
  
  Because of the dim light, the second clip is not very useful in terms of visual quality. What it\'s there for is to show the physics of the crumbling rocks. Notice that both the rocks crumble in the exact same way, and that the number of elements is relatively low. As next generation games are designed for the Xbox 360 from the ground up, you\'ll see similar effects, but with hundreds of objects crumbling at once. Physics is the true defining feature of next generation, and we haven\'t seen almost any of it yet. As for the first clip, see how similar they appear? The Xbox 360 looks slightly better, but the lighting around the V-Rex is mostly just the skillful implementation of design by the King Kong development team. But the Xbox and Xbox 360 look stunningly good. No matter how much you think the Xbox 360 is better, there\'s no doubt that at least this screen capture takes a second to tell the difference.
  
  
  
  
  
• Jack Black and Bird:
  
  View File: Jack Black video capture
  
  There\'s nothing like watching a great comedic actor get hauled away by a giant... thing. This scene is really a tribute to both systems. Watch how the light passes around the wings as the beast flies. Difference between the two? Your call, but certainly both look really, really good. With this level of performance, suggestions that we\'re killing off the Xbox too early seem very justified.

Note on 1st generation vs. 2nd generation games:

Here\'s the thing: King Kong is a late generation Xbox title, and a first generation Xbox 360 title. In our previous comparison, we pointed out how unfair this was, and mentioned that really these comparisons are only valid at launch. They\'re helpful in deciding if you should pick up an Xbox 360 right now, or wait for the price to drop. There\'s a strong argument that says, judging from this, most of the experiences on the Xbox 360 can be had nearly as well on the Xbox, at least in terms of pure gameplay (not counting Live, and media player, etc.).

After the next few waves of games come out, this won\'t be the case anymore. Next generation games will quickly surpass what the current generation is capable of. This process will take a number of months, but will happen.

But people don\'t realize how much things can change between 1st and 2nd generation, so to help people see the difference we\'re throwing in one last set of screenshots (static, this time). Below, you\'ll find three side-by-side screenshots of first and second generation games from the Xbox. This includes games like Azurik, one of the first games to make use of dynamic lighting on characters, and Far Cry. We didn\'t include King Kong, because we\'re pretty sure you\'ve seen enough of that by now.

Compare the two. Now imagine that same level of improvement from Kameo, King Kong, Perfect Dark Zero, and go from there.

Screens:

• Azurik and Far Cry:
  Azurik was one of the very first games to make use of the Xbox\'s power, and had shadows that were cast on their characters.
  
  
  
• Max Payne and Doom 3:
  Different engines, of course, but that\'s the point. Engines improve. Same hardware for both.
  
  
• Halo and Halo 2:
  At first glance, not much different, but take a closer look at the ground and rocks detail.