A graphics comparison between PC and PS3

[Velarune]

Sooo...I'm not sure what some people are smoking when they try and claim that the console versions look better then the PC. I've got three versions of Anniversary; the PS2, 360, and the trilogy PS3 version. It's generally claimed that the PS3 version is the best looking one. I haven't played my 360 version in a long time and I don't currently have the system hooked up so I can't check at the moment, so we'll just go along with the PS3 for now.

I absolutely love this game, and all of the older Tomb Raider games. So I've been looking into grabbing this on the PC with the current sale. I've been looking into the details of it and the differences in visuals. Instead of relying on other people's blurry pictures and crappy videos on youtube, I simply downloaded the PC demo and did a direct comparison. There is a massive difference in how they look.

Of course there's the obvious stuff of the PC running at 1080p and a stable 60fps, which already makes a drastic difference compared to the PS3's 720p and a not even stable 30fps. But then we get into the details.

There is so much blurriness in everything on the PS3. All of the environmental textures are lower resolution, there is a ridiculous amount of aliasing on everything, and just in general the entire screen seems to have a blurred appearance. On the PC however, everything is crystal clear. Higher resolution environmental textures which are sharp and clear, there's absolutely zero blur with anything on the screen, and as long as you have the AA turned on, there's no aliasing on a single thing. Perfectly crystal clear image.

Now for the lighting, which I was very shocked to see the difference with this, especially since everyone's claims of the PS3 looking better is always about the lighting. The PC demo takes place in the water wheel area and there's not much for lighting to be found in that specific room. So I grabbed the first gear and headed to the next room with a bear that jumps out around the corner. This particular room has a hole in the ceiling where the sun shines through, creating two separate light shafts and is the source of light in that area. I set up both the PC and PS3 in this same area with Lara standing in the exact same spot.

The PC version was beautiful. The sun shining through the hole created a nice amount of light at the entry point and the light shafts were a nice glowing transparent thing that filled the room and made the insects sparkle that were flying around in it. The light entering the room was a dynamic light and it lit up the wooden ledges along the top and also casting light across the ground, while leaving everything else in a darker state. Lara herself, standing at the top of the ledges, received an appropriate amount of light where it should be, having some nice specular where the light touched her.

The PS3 version was not the greatest. The sun shining through the hole was just a blurred orb. The light shafts were barely there and the insects flying around weren't even noticeable unless you really paid attention and looked for them. It appears that dynamic lights only effect Lara and not the environment, and so because of that, the environment received no lighting which just created an even light throughout the entire room. As for Lara, they implemented this weird bloom and specular thing on her character model and so the light that was hitting her was overly bright and of course just looked weird compared to the plain environment with no lighting.

Just to touch further on Lara's model and the lighting, since it's typically what people talk about. Because of the increased specular and stuff on her, she tends to always be lit up in some way. Comparing that to the normal light of the PC, Lara seems to be darker and so it gives the illusion of better lighting on the consoles. The PC uses dynamic lights, whereas, the PS3 version uses fake lights. They changed the way her model receives light and so it will always make her appear brighter, but when an actual light hits her, she glows because of it.

There's other details that the PC version has such as depth of field, motion blur, different water effects, etc. The only thing the PS3 does better is it has a nicer "dirty" texture map. When Lara gets full of dirt and stuff, it's kinda blocky and pixelated a bit on the PC but it's smoothed out on the PS3. It's not really something that is too noticeable unless you're stopping to look at it.

So yeah, that's a direct comparison of the two. There's something wrong with you if you actually think the consoles look better, or you're just not playing with your settings maxed out.

[4K_240hz_MLED]

Yeah I have to agree that people are contradictory claiming which port is superior - also why did you buy multiple copies of this game?

[Velarune]

I bought it for PS2 because that version came out first. Then the Xbox 360 version released a few months later, but I didn't know that. I saw it sitting on the shelf and figured I would get the superior version. Eventually they released the trilogy on the PS3. Since I like to collect trophies and achievements, and the Legend trilogy is some of my favorite games, I bought the trilogy version on PS3. Then last year when I wrote this initial topic, I was interested in playing the games again and so I looked into them on the PC. Since they're better on the PC in every possible way, I bought them all again.

[4K_240hz_MLED]

Well you should sell the PS2 and 360 ports at least and keep the PS3 trilogy for nostalgia. And yes I know I necro'd an old thread but I was bored and wanted to help people.

[Velarune]

I keep everything. I like to collect games and systems. I've got almost every system going all the way back to the Atari 2600. Probably 90% of my stuff is in a like new condition. So to me, selling games is not really an option, especially when you only get like $5 for it. Plus, I wouldn't be able to do comparisons like this topic if I got rid of older things lol

[4K_240hz_MLED]

So I take it that you're Gen X? Or are you a millennial with parents that were into gaming as teenagers or young adults?

[Velarune]

Well I was born in the early 80's so whatever that qualifies me as.

[4K_240hz_MLED]

then youre a millennial then...or gen x depending on some scholars. me personally im gen x by western standards but in the east im considered a millennial. i was born in the late 90s

[Lucifer17761945]

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDR3vslsybVDf-TR0DcjbRA/videos

Uploading both to be bufferable @ 4k soon enough.

Honestly with a texture mod, and my raytracing mod, even raytracing both versions, the PC version is curbstomping the PS3 version though historically the lighting system was inferior.

[Lucifer17761945]

Originally posted by Fenixx:

I keep everything. I like to collect games and systems. I've got almost every system going all the way back to the Atari 2600. Probably 90% of my stuff is in a like new condition. So to me, selling games is not really an option, especially when you only get like $5 for it. Plus, I wouldn't be able to do comparisons like this topic if I got rid of older things lol

Join me and We can Rule the Galaxy. A new PC Master Race is coming.

[Lucifer17761945]

"Just to touch further on Lara's model and the lighting, since it's typically what people talk about. Because of the increased specular and stuff on her, she tends to always be lit up in some way. Comparing that to the normal light of the PC, Lara seems to be darker and so it gives the illusion of better lighting on the consoles. The PC uses dynamic lights, whereas, the PS3 version uses fake lights. They changed the way her model receives light and so it will always make her appear brighter, but when an actual light hits her, she glows because of it."

You can use fake HDR to conjure out more depth. The artists did a less generic job of it on the PS3 version (Its obviously not perfect), and it looks like there is some degree of AO thrown in as well to really point the darkening threshold in the right direction like symbolic anchors. I independently through experience and logical application over and over, figured out how to do this.

I didnt bother rendering godrays because im at the seat of my pants in terms of compute frame output. Its going to take me a bit more time to buy what essentially now has the MSRP that is slightly above even a photonis L2 lower binned tube.

[Voland]

such a shame that trilogy never were re-released on modern platforms

or didnt get 60fps and 4K upgrades of xbox 360 version

or moders didnt fixed Pc versions

my biggest gripe with PC version is broken dirt that looks awful on Lara model. i even thought its shadows bug or something.

[hammerofthegods]

As dated as this game is visually, I personally love the aesthetic. I've mixed feelings about the remastered trilogy (visually speaking). I'm not a huge fan of QTES but they're fine in this game, broadly speaking I prefer this to the OG game and I grew when that first came along and blew us all away (I had it on the Saturn way back in 96!).

[mdesaleah]

Originally posted by Voland:

such a shame that trilogy never were re-released on modern platforms
my biggest gripe with PC version is broken dirt that looks awful on Lara model. i even thought its shadows bug or something.

I think there is a mod to fix this actually.

[Voland]

Originally posted by mdesaleah:

Originally posted by Voland:

such a shame that trilogy never were re-released on modern platforms
my biggest gripe with PC version is broken dirt that looks awful on Lara model. i even thought its shadows bug or something.

I think there is a mod to fix this actually.

I didnt find anything sadly

Can you name it?

[mdesaleah]

Originally posted by Voland:

Originally posted by mdesaleah:

I think there is a mod to fix this actually.

I didnt find anything sadly

Can you name it?

https://www.tombraiderforums.com/showthread.php?t=225849