Game Total Size Reduction Using Engines

[jordanecmusic]

Just Cause 2 has city areas, fortresses, military bases, more cars and vehicles than gta4, snow, rainforests, more guns, little towns, poverty shacks and stuff, guard rails in the street, rocks, grass, and so much more going on in the game.

Gta4 only has concrete, water, and inferior image quality compared to just cause 2.

It doesn't make any sense that Gta4 is 16gb but Just Cause 2 is only 5.

I guess we could leave it as Just Cause 2 had a more quality production time because the developers weren't lazy, as for Grand Theft Auto 4, it was done awefully wrong. Anyone remember how bad it played without the slight optimization patch?

 

[jordanecmusic]

Just Cause 2

 

[jordanecmusic]

Grand Theft Auto 4

 

[jordanecmusic]

Just Cause 2

 

[jordanecmusic]

Grand Theft Auto 4

 

[jordanecmusic]

Just Cause 2

 

[jordanecmusic]

Grand Theft Auto 4

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

I'm just waiting for the day game worlds match planet earth size, actually planet earth rendered in real time with all the major cities. I picture NPCs in stores you can buy loot from. wait i think i'm describing real life. yah i want that, but for a game engine so i can kill that guy at gas station who questions if i really need that snack.

Minecraft is already 8x the size of earth (so I hear?)

 

[jordanecmusic]

Just Cause 2

 

[jordanecmusic]

Grand Theft Auto 4

 

[jordanecmusic]

Not to mention, GTA4 has no option for antialiasing. Just some annoying post processing blur (not fxaa) that doesn't get rid of the jaggies in the first place!

 

[ussfletcher]

Consider that for most open world games there are only a few kinds of textures that repeat wherever needed (when in visible range) such as grass, snow, rock, wood. For city-centric games there is a need to make most buildings look pretty unique, you also have many more objects laying around that need to be designed and placed on the map. The same can be said for games that take place in any kind of densely packed space. Having specifically crafted unique scenery will always take more space than a plane of repeating textures.

 

[jordanecmusic]

Because of the nature of Moore's law, anything that an extremely clever graphics programmer can do at one point can be replicated by a merely competent programmer some number of years later.
John Carmack

Its all about the money these days so you'll have some games that are extremely well optimized to run on wimpy systems (Just Cause 2) and others that are slapped together quick and dirty (Homefront). The original Crysis was a PC killer, but now they're coming out with a version that can play on consoles as old as the game itself. Likewise newer games like Rage can be 22gb on the PC, yet play on something as wimpy as an iPhone making 22gb a meaningless number without a context.

Crysis 1 on 360 and Ps3= Medium settings on PC.
Rage on iphone is not 22Gb.

 

[jordanecmusic]

Consider that for most open world games there are only a few kinds of textures that repeat wherever needed (when in visible range) such as grass, snow, rock, wood. For city-centric games there is a need to make most buildings look pretty unique, you also have many more objects laying around that need to be designed and placed on the map. The same can be said for games that take place in any kind of densely packed space. Having specifically crafted unique scenery will always take more space than a plane of repeating textures.

Your getting textures confused with models. Models would make gta4 into a larger file size though...

So your saying gta4 has as many textures and models as crysis 1 and 2(hi rez) combined?

To be honest, I think they didn't do a smart downsize on polycount on alot of the models like how modern games do. If they would have done that, then that would have lightened the load, even for consoles.

 

[PrayForDeath]

Anyone remember that 64kb game (I think it was called the Produkkt) that used some kind of genius compression, and actually looked pretty good when loaded up? I think it used like 1GB when fully loaded.

I wonder why nobody picked up on that technology.

 

[jlee]

Anyone remember that 64kb game (I think it was called the Produkkt) that used some kind of genius compression, and actually looked pretty good when loaded up? I think it used like 1GB when fully loaded.

I wonder why nobody picked up on that technology.

I remember a video demo without playability, but it was incredibly impressive for the size.

 

[jordanecmusic]

I remember a video demo without playability, but it was incredibly impressive for the size.

http://youtu.be/8lctkgyVtao

that?

 

[PrayForDeath]

I still have the game on my drive somewhere. I can post it if you guys can't find it. It's only 64kb after all

 

[Arkadrel]

I still have the game on my drive somewhere. I can post it if you guys can't find it. It's only 64kb after all

my gawd.... just watched the youtube video and jaw drops.

How does all that only take up 100kb or less? that is seriously impressive.

Is it free to play?
because their site has a download link to the game, but it seems like its brokem (the link).

Found from the youtube link:
http://www.theprodukkt.com/kkrieger

googled 64kb demoscene.... downloaded some demo,... unzipped... and virus... no thanks.

 

[PhatoseAlpha]

Anyone remember that 64kb game (I think it was called the Produkkt) that used some kind of genius compression, and actually looked pretty good when loaded up? I think it used like 1GB when fully loaded.

I wonder why nobody picked up on that technology.

There are plenty of reasons. The most basic is instantly visible the second you start the game - it has to go through and expand every last texture before you can begin to actually play the game. It's efficient for transmission, but far less so for actual use, and compared to the cost of a DVD, using it makes no sense outside of the 'because it can be done' in the demo scene.





Jordanecmusic.....your screenshots are demonstrating quite clearly why GTA4 takes up more space. JC2 has massive texture repetition. Every one of those billboards in the GTA screenshot is a single, one time use texture, while all the buildings in JC2 have essentially the same texture.

Additionally, several of your shots are taken from such distance that the textures in use are minimal LOD. 64x64 textures would work from that distance - it's useless for size comparison.

 

[JamesV]

While Just Cause 2 is big, it is a prime example of reusing assets. Every single communication antenna area is exactly the same - same geometry, same textures. Then there are the areas made up of the same assets - how every base has the same concrete tower, same fuel containers, same turrets, same boxes and ground clutter. Same with cities; same reused buildings and assets mixed up to make them look different.

Once you have that tower or turret in memory, you can instance it forever with no hit whatsoever to the game size on disc.

GTA doesn't reuse much in comparison. One downtown building is not instanced 50 times across the map, like JC2's com antennas.

 

[Cheesetogo]

Good point, but would you say that just cause 2 has more textures in it than gta4? I would say so.

Absolutely not. GTA IV has an absurd amount of art assets.

 

[zinfamous]

Im guessing it comes down to smart use of textures....?
Maybe those open "vast" terrains take up less, than crammed city like enviroments do?

Skyrim doesnt take up much space, but look how huge the world in that is.
Im guessing its a matter of texture quality ect. and smart use of textures.

yeah, I was just thinking that Skyrim is ~5.1 GB download. I downloaded Rage just before Skyrim, and was quite surprised to see Rage at 20gb+ (Still broken for me; will not launch) with it's universally panned broken textures and Skyrim at 5gb and pretty freaking gorgeous vanilla.