Joystiq

Wii U graphics chip outed as last-gen Radeon (which is still pretty good, apparently)

Ben Gilbert — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 16:15:00 EST

Let's be upfront here: we don't know thing one about chipsets and motherboards. We play video games, we don't build the hardware they come on. But our friends at Engadget, well, they're all about that kinda stuff. So when they tell us that Nintendo's Wii U console will come packing a custom Radeon GPU with a chip similar to the R770, and that the chip is competitively stronger than the GPUs of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, we believe them.

Additionally, the chip is said to run DirectX 10, and is capable of handling four SD video streams -- presumably only one of those streams will be necessary, however, given Shigeru Miyamoto's statements about the WiiPad. As GAME Watch points out, the Xbox 360 was limited to a variation of DirectX 9, while the PS3 employs OpenGL APIs. But now we've gone right off the deep end -- what we're trying to say is this: the Wii U has a pretty decent graphical processor. Or, more simply, Wii U games will look good, and likely even better than Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 games. There, that wasn't so bad!

Wii U graphics chip outed as last-gen Radeon (which is still pretty good, apparently) originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 14 Jun 2011 16:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Skyrim 'mostly a DirectX 9 game,' PC mods could make it to consoles

Griffin McElroy — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 14:30:00 EST

In a recent interview with Eurogamer, Bethesda's Todd Howard discussed the differences between the PC and console versions of the studio's upcoming RPG, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim -- or, rather, the lack thereof. "The game looks the same," Howard said, though he later added, "With the PC, the texture sizes are going to be as big as you want to make them, and you can pump the resolution up, obviously." As far as the visual nitty-gritty (yes, that's a technical term), Howard explained that Skyrim is "mostly a DirectX 9 game in terms of how the shaders work."

Sure, that may mean that the game could lack some of the technical punch of DX11, but there's an advantage to Skyrim's platform neutrality. Speaking to Edge, Howard said that the user-generated content authored by the game's PC players could be made available to console gamers, as well. "We'd like to see it happen, because it works, it's how we made the game," Howard said. We'd like to see it happen, too -- but only if it results in us getting those pretty environmental updates, and not the creepy ones that make everyone so very naked.

Skyrim 'mostly a DirectX 9 game,' PC mods could make it to consoles originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 20 Apr 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dubious marketing: Microsoft makes DirectX 9 look REALLY bad

Xav de Matos — Fri, 22 May 2009 01:00:00 EST

Microsoft has been caught using misleading images to promote the power of DirectX 10. Digg user, LtGenPanda, has spotted a Games for Windows Live DirectX 10 product page featuring the dubious marketing images. In order to easily characterize the power of DirectX 10 versus previous versions, Microsoft compared pre-release rendered screens of 2007's Crysis (using DX10) against the 2003 PC release of Halo: Combat Evolved (running DX9). Considering Crysis can also be played using DirectX 9 (albeit at lower quality), we call shenanigans!

If the misleading images weren't enough, Microsoft adds some choice words to spin its web of deceit. In regards to the OMGness of DX10, the page reads: "The facial expressions, details of the face, the handle-bar moustache and the glazed looking eyes all add to the realism." Kids, the harsh truth is that handle-bar mustaches will only lead to a loss of friends and respect.

Dubious marketing: Microsoft makes DirectX 9 look REALLY bad originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 22 May 2009 01:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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