[22/08] Sleeping Dogs proves that an unlikely champion of modern PC games is… Square Enix?

[Abstract Debauchery]

Article at Penny Arcade: http://penny-arcade.com/report/edit...unlikely-champion-of-modern-pc-games-is...-sq

Honestly, even before reading this article, I'd have to say that Sleeping Dogs is damned good. The gameplay is solid, the graphics great, and the story, although cliche, is sold by great voice acting. This is all rare in a game these days. Even more so for console games ported over to a PC. Even more shocking was the fact that it was ported over by Square-Enix. Console to PC ports are usually shotty ports that are simply done by a handfull of people for some extra sales.

However, this port was done very well. We have high resolution graphics, support for 3D monitors, and all of the high end graphics options are all there. Hell, our frame rate is even improved. As far as I'm concerned the PC is the definitive version. The fact that it's a console port amazes me, because in all honesty, most people can't tell.

Keep in mind that Square-Enix were also responsible for Just Cause 2, and the PC port for that was damned amazing as well. It plays like a PC game should, and the modding community of the game made it multiplayer. If this is that path that Square-Enix wants to go down, I'm all for it. It's not often I say it, but... GG Square-Enix. Now, while you're doing some good shit, fix your FF series... please?

 

[The Witch]

does porting it even matter, though? it's not like they made the game from scratch, right?

 

[Abstract Debauchery]

Porting realllllllllly matters. When you port a console game over to PC, there are two kinds of ports. Good ports and bad ports. Good ports give PC gamers all they want. Advanced graphics options, FOV slider, everything that we come to expect from PC games. On the other hand, you have bad ports. These are just, "hey, here the game on your PC... that's what you wanted, right?"

Yes... but we also wanted it to work right. Porting is not an easy process, but when treated as one, we can tell. No custom graphics options much less advanced, the controls are awful and don't transfer over well, mouse acceleration is shotty and makes it hard to shoot, and things like that. I know to console players, this doesn't mean much. You guys aren't used to having to deal with this, and that's understandable.

However, when you port a console game to a system it wasn't meant to run on by a team that's not used to making games for it, you end up with a product that runs great on consoles, but is a bug ridden mess on PCs. (Halo 2, The Darkness 2, Darksiders 2, Rage, Unreal Tournament 3, etc.) Yet on the other side of this, it's very easy to make a game for the PC, and port it over to a console. (Half-Life 2, Left 4 Dead, Skyrim, Oblivion, Morrowind, etc.)

However, Sleeping Dogs did not have this problem. Not only was it ported over perfectly, it gave us the meat and potatoes of everything a PC gamer is looking for in a PC game. It made us happy as a pig in shit.

 

[The Witch]

Well...

I was completely clueless that it could be so tricky to do. Thank you for the information. Now that I know that it makes me wonder if SE is able to put that type of perfection into one of their own games like the FF series.

 

[Ohri-Jin]

Square Enix London Studios and one other studio in a conjunction developed the game. The west branch of SE. Like Eidos made great games. Without these western successes japan SE would probably been bankrupt lmao. Dont give SE too much credit they probably never got involved with the actual project. They just publish it and sponsor it in a way and approve or disapprove when the branches report and evaluates.

For the port process well I dont think SE jp picked that up either lol.