Original CE graphics?

[zapfinger]

How can I access the original CE graphics? The game settings are saying "matches the original graphics" but this looks nothing like the original game, not even on the lowest possible settings..

[ReBootXD]

Press tab

[Fearagen]

When your in-game/in a mission press the TAB key to switch between classic or anniversary graphics.

[An Irate Walrus]

If you've already pulled the TAB-based graphics switch and still don't feel like you're looking at the original, it's because the MCC version of CE is based on the godawful Gearbox PC version (2003) rather than the XBox version (2001).

[zapfinger]

Thanks for the quick answers!

[zapfinger]

Originally posted by An Irate Walrus:

If you've already pulled the TAB-based graphics switch and still don't feel like you're looking at the original, it's because the MCC version of CE is based on the godawful Gearbox PC version (2003) rather than the XBox version (2001).

Yeah, it looks a bit off, but the last time I played CE was on the original Xbox, as a kid.. So I would say I probably wouldn't remember the original graphics THAT well anyway, to notice the difference you mentioned I mean.

[pooldavis]

press tab

[Sen]

The tab key. Beside the q button.

[TROGDOR]

If you're comparing it to your experience on the original Xbox - besides the whole gearbox port issue another big reason it'll look different is the screen you're playing it on, and the resolution you're playing at.

To recapture that experience, what I can recommend is to install ReShade, and get really into CRT shaders. https://imgur.com/a/pKYP0ry - Example images from my ReShade Preset (view images in their actual full size - scaling does weird things to CRT masks

In my case, I played on a dotmask PAL CRT at 4:3 with the contrast set pretty high, making the colours pop, shadows deep, and highlights over-exposed - it also emphasised needing to use the flashlight. The shader preset I use attempts to emulate that - with a dotmask of a CRT, and a simulated signal resolution of 480p - but maintaining a higher internal render resolution - effectively giving myself the visual benefits of both CRT & super-sampling.

Console games from that era have graphics which were never designed to hold up under the scrutiny of high resolutions (other examples would be Prince of Persia, GTA VC/SA .etc) - so (in my view at least) - the graphics hold up better if you can make lower resolutions look good on modern fixed-resolution LCD displays. CRT Shaders are one way to do that.

Is it effectively applying the vaseline-smearing method to graphics & making them look better by getting your mind to fill in the gaps? Basically yeah. But that's what TVs did back in the day, and game visuals were designed accordingly.

There are plenty of guides out there for installing ReShade but for CRT shaders specifically, the repository to start with is here.
https://github.com/Matsilagi/RSRetroArch

A Retroarch thread full of examples of this being applied to other older games is here if you're curious https://forums.libretro.com/t/please-show-off-what-crt-shaders-can-do/19193/3138

As for the GearBox port - good news is in a recent update, Halo Custom Edition (the old CE port) mods now have compatability with the MCC version of Halo CE. There's a mod called Halo CE: Refined which looks to restore a lot of the visuals & effects lost between the original Xbox version of Halo & the Gearbox port. The people behind it are now looking at how to make it functional with the MCC version of Halo CE - this is probably something to watch.

[Vaker]

Originally posted by zapfinger:

How can I access the original CE graphics? The game settings are saying "matches the original graphics" but this looks nothing like the original game, not even on the lowest possible settings..

Be careful, it may reduce your fps playing with original CE graphics (I'm around 30FPS for anniversary and like 11-12 fps with original, it's quite weird)

[Finn]

Originally posted by Vaker:

Originally posted by zapfinger:

How can I access the original CE graphics? The game settings are saying "matches the original graphics" but this looks nothing like the original game, not even on the lowest possible settings..

Be careful, it may reduce your fps playing with original CE graphics (I'm around 30FPS for anniversary and like 11-12 fps with original, it's quite weird)

I didnt have this issue until i had moved to linux, anyone here using windows or linux with the same issue? if so anyone pinpoint the cause? before i got the same FPS on both

[AscendedViking7]

TAB.