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How Far Have The Playstation 3's Graphics Progressed?

The Playstation 3 has been on store shelves for almost 2 years here in Europe and subsequently longer in the US and Japan. Sony often bill their systems as having 10 year life cycles. We only need look at the difference between a Playstation 2 launch title and one of the later releases (God Of War II for example) to see how Playstation platforms are capable of standing the test of time. With 2 years of the Playstation 3’s life come and gone, how have things improved visually?

Our comparison finds out:

Resistance: Fall Of Man vs. Killzone 2:

Resistance Fall Of Man (on the left), Killzone 2 (on the right).

When coming up with the idea for this article, the first comparison we had in mind was Resistance Fall Of Man and Killzone 2. Resistance was fairly well received when it launched with the Playstation and has gone on to spawn a sequel and a PSP release. When comparing with Killzone 2 the immediate biggest immediate difference are the effects. Killzone 2’s screen is littered with motion blur, extravagant lighting reflections and excellent particle effects. These effects make Resistance look bland even if it has well built character models.

Ridge Racer 7 vs. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue

Ridge Racer 5 (on the left), Gran Turismo 5 Prologue (on the right).

Whilst still looking excellent on the whole, the comparison between Gran Turismo 5 Prologue and Ridge Racer 7 displays much greater draw distance and clarity on the former’s part. Gran Turismo 5 also has some of the most accurately recreated car models ever, at times verging on photorealism. The textures are also much more detailed in Gran Turismo 5 Prologue.

Virtua Fighter 5 vs. Soul Calibur IV

Soul Calibur IV (on the left), Virtua Fighter 5 (on the right).

Mechanically Soul Calibur IV and Virtua Fighter 5 couldn’t be more different. Fighting fanatics would probably suggest Virtua Fighter 5 is the superior game but thankfully we’re just talking about graphics so we won’t go into schematics. The big graphical difference between Virtua Fighter and Soul Calibur are in the environments and clothing. The detail in the textures of the backdrops are far, far superior in Soul Calibur and the clothing far more emphasised.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance vs. God Of War III

God Of War III (on the left), Marvel Ultimate Alliance (on the right).

A quick comparison between the character models of Marvel Ultimate Alliance and God of War III shows the speed at which character models are improving. The textures and environments in Marvel Ultimate Alliance are particularly bland too, particularly when compared with the lavish God Of War environments.

Sonic The Hedgehog vs. Ratchet & Clank Quest For Booty

Sonic The Hedgehog (on the left), Ratchet & Clank: QFB (on the right).

It may be a tale of Sonic The Hedgehog’s poor performance as a game but we think its comparison against PSN download Quest For Booty is pretty conclusive. The Ratchet character model is far more detailed than Sonic with textures and draw distance being far, far superior in the PSN download.

Motorstorm vs. Motorstorm Pacific Rift

Motorstorm Pacific Rift (on the left), Motorstorm (on the right).

Graphically Pacific Rift is a slight upgrade on an already impressive looking game. The textures are still not as sharp as they could be, but the courses are far more dense and the models somewhat improved. The key difference between Motorstorm and it’s sequel are the loading times which were unbearable at times on the former.

Conclusion

It’s undeniable that developers are really starting to untap the potential of the Playstation 3 hardware. The original Uncharted, once a benchmark for what the PS3 can do, is about to get entirely upstaged by it’s sequel and Killzone 2. And in turn those games are poised to be stomped by God Of War III and Heavy Rain. Developers are really starting to get a grasp of what the console can do7

The future is an exciting place.