Does anyone else think that Digital Foundry are going to ruin the gaming industry?

Gamer Bhoy 89 · 05-02-2015 05:23PM #1

They bring out in-depth analysis on versions of different games and they are all over the place, now. Why are there so many of them and why are people so bothered about these tiny little details? I was talked out of buying the Xbox One version of Resident Evil because of the most ridiculous reason I've ever heard; "The Xbox One version's shadows are set to low according to PC standards, and the backgrounds are more washed out".... really? I could've easily got it for PC if I wanted, or PS4 for that matter. But I had the Xbox One already turned on before I decided to purchase it but that's a whine for another day.

I'm an old man by the sounds of me, I know :P I just don't see how comparing versions of games over the silliest little details is somewhat important.

05-02-2015 05:27PM

I don think they will ruin gaming, they are giving an in depth analysis of the performances of games across different platforms. If you decide not to buy a game because of that then isnt that the same as listening to a reviewer? You base your buying or not buying on what they write/say. I wouldn't read into it too much

05-02-2015 05:28PM

Gamer Bhoy 89 wrote: »

I was talked out of buying the Xbox One version of Resident Evil because of the most ridiculous reason I've ever heard; "The Xbox One version's shadows are set to low according to PC standards, and the backgrounds are more washed out".... really?

You think it's the most ridiculous reason you're ever heard but you still let yourself be talked out of it? How's that not your fault?

I'm an old man by the sounds of me, I know :P I just don't see how comparing versions of games over the silliest little details is somewhat important.

They compare a lot of things including framerate and texturing and all that stuff. If someone is flipping a coin between buying 2 different versions then they may as well go for the slightly better one if there's no other reason to make a decision.

But no, they're not ruining the industry, they're read mostly by people who want a lot of information, a small part of the buying public.

johnny_ultimate · 05-02-2015 05:35PM

I find technical analyses mildly interesting, and certainly I think some level of geeky obsessing over detail will always have its place. Nothing wrong with someone giving a definitive answer to 'buy this one' when faced with we're multiple versions of a game, either (rare cases there can be a nearly game-changing discrepancy - you wouldn't want to end up with PS3 Bayonetta instead of 360 Bayonetta now!).

The problem is more with the way people respond to it. Sadly I think Digital Foundry style articles feed into two things: the illogical flame and format wars that are constantly being waged, and also certain sections of the gaming community's lust for 'objective' criticism. It offers ammo like 'well this version of the game is technically, factually superior' (however minor that may be) and that encourages all manner of idiotic responses without having to do anything complicated like, y'know, actually having to respond to the game itself.

But I think that's more an issue with the consumer than the producer, and to be fair to Digital Foundry they're genuinely passionate about what they do. And, as dry and nitpicky as they often are, the analyses do tend to be insightful looks at how games tick in 2015. As part of a wider gaming discourse, they have their place.

K.O.Kiki · 05-02-2015 08:01PM

What's next, developers releasing fully-functional games pre-patch!?!

:pac:

SpaceSasqwatch · 05-02-2015 08:07PM

K.O.Kiki wrote: »

What's next, developers releasing fully-functional games pre-patch!?!

:pac:

we can live in hope

Stone Deaf 4evr · 06-02-2015 09:37AM

I dont think they'll ruin anything, but I do feel that their articles are only used by eurogamer as clickbait for the flamewar between consoles. The comments section is always a total car crash.

Generic Dreadhead · 06-02-2015 09:46AM

"XYX to ruin the gaming industry" is going to end up being a new meme at this stage

Varik · 06-02-2015 09:55AM

Stone Deaf 4evr wrote: »

I dont think they'll ruin anything, but I do feel that their articles are only used by eurogamer as clickbait for the flamewar between consoles. The comments section is always a total car crash.

The way they discuss the results aways seems to have an agenda behind it.

They either ignore a difference in one game but an even more minor one is a big deal in another, always downplaying pc and on console trying to either downplay or exaggerate differences to get the biggest argument in the comments possible.

wes · 06-02-2015 10:05AM

Digital foundry are rather helpful imho, and they offer interesting information on the technical detail of games.

People getting into flame wars etc is hardly there fault imho.

Also, there very useful, the odd time, when one version of a game is a dud, and helps people avoid that version if they have multiple platforms.

Gamer Bhoy 89 · 06-02-2015 01:14PM

Deleted User wrote: »

You think it's the most ridiculous reason you're ever heard but you still let yourself be talked out of it? How's that not your fault?

I used the wrong wording for that statement, I meant to say I was being talked out of buying the Xbox One version. I got the Xbox One version :P Sorry

I suppose I may have made this thread for my own selfish reasons because I just don't quite fit into that trend of picking one version of a game over another due to little details like this. If a game is far more buggy on one version over another then it would be a different conversation altogether. When I look at split screen comparisons by DF, they crop out distant details; like if a pylon is more pixelated on Xbox One vs. say the PS4 version. I don't quite understand it. Subjective, maybe?

Retr0gamer · 06-02-2015 01:28PM

Whatever about the silly fanboy wars, I just find it really interesting reading about the different quirks of each machine. Digital foundry really is the only one that goes into the amount of depth they do and it's the only place really to trust. For instance it's interesting to note that while the PS4 is the better machine on paper there's a handful of games were the XBox One is the better machine. When you have hardware bottlenecked by awful CPUs then having the better CPU can be an advantage, where traditionally the better GPU made up the difference.

Is it nerdy nitpicking, yes. But if you have an interest in what is going on under the plastic exterior of each machine, it's fascinating.

I hardly think it's going to ruin the industry and it's nice to know if a PC conversion or something like Bayonetta is a complete disaster on one machine.

Stone Deaf 4evr · 06-02-2015 02:30PM

Retr0gamer wrote: »

Whatever about the silly fanboy wars, I just find it really interesting reading about the different quirks of each machine. Digital foundry really is the only one that goes into the amount of depth they do and it's the only place really to trust. For instance it's interesting to note that while the PS4 is the better machine on paper there's a handful of games were the XBox One is the better machine. When you have hardware bottlenecked by awful CPUs then having the better CPU can be an advantage, where traditionally the better GPU made up the difference.

Is it nerdy nitpicking, yes. But if you have an interest in what is going on under the plastic exterior of each machine, it's fascinating.

I hardly think it's going to ruin the industry and it's nice to know if a PC conversion of something like Bayonetta is a complete disaster on one machine.

I like how they compare different rendering methods - I think it was trials fusion, where they figured that the PS4 was performing better, but the technique the xbox one was using didnt look as washed out.

K.O.Kiki · 06-02-2015 04:38PM

Their recent findings of midrange GPUs was interesting
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2015-nvidia-geforce-gtx-960-review & http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2015-graphics-card-upgrade-guide?page=3

Of particular interest was how the Geforce GTX 960 dropped fewer frames than either of its AMD rivals.

stevenmu · 07-02-2015 12:32PM

I think it's actually really refreshing to see detailed technical information from people who actually know what they're talking about.

IMHO a far bigger threat to gaming (and to my sanity) is the amount of people who post completely incorrect information as technical fact. The current controversy around the GTX 970 is just the latest of many examples. There clearly is issues with the card, but there are a huge number of people who don't understand the issues making all kinds of invalid claims and stating them as fact.

And of course, pretty much every console fanboy argument includes lots of claims about people's favorite and most hated consoles which have little or no basis in reality.

My hope is that, by providing good detailed technical information, Digital Foundry and others can help to educate the gaming community, so that their arguments can at least be technically more accurate (even if they are still mostly petty and pointless).

Does anyone else think that Digital Foundry are going to ruin the gaming industry?

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