GR:AW impressions.

AcemanPR · Post by **AcemanPR** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 11:38 am

jondiehl wrote:
Spooky wrote:It is too bad that the online game is not the same graphically as the offline one. It is not too far off, but definitely a noticeable drop.
I've heard multiple people report this, but I'm just not seeing it (and I play on a 50" DLP HDTV @ 720p). I play in first person view, so maybe that has something to do with it since I'm not seeing my own player model and most of my teammates are behind me or in other parts of the map.

The lighting and textures aren't quite as good in MP, but it is still certainly a beautiful looking game in MP.

Danimal · Post by **Danimal** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 12:14 pm

AcemanPR wrote:
jondiehl wrote:
Spooky wrote:It is too bad that the online game is not the same graphically as the offline one. It is not too far off, but definitely a noticeable drop.
I've heard multiple people report this, but I'm just not seeing it (and I play on a 50" DLP HDTV @ 720p). I play in first person view, so maybe that has something to do with it since I'm not seeing my own player model and most of my teammates are behind me or in other parts of the map.
The lighting and textures aren't quite as good in MP, but it is still certainly a beautiful looking game in MP.

I don't know why people think the MP looks bad, that one night map in the rain, the effin rain hitting the ground look incredible, I couldn't get over what i was seeing.

Sound is also so well done, I had my 5.1 cranked up last night and when some explosins went off I though something just blew up in my backyard.

reeche · Post by **reeche** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 12:19 pm

webdanzer wrote:Defintely a good game.

Reeche, why did you never play GR before? This game plays very similarly to previous versions. Sounds like you missed out!

I probably did.

Like I said I come from the school of arcade fps's which I generally like. The old quakes. Unreal Tournament, Halo, etc.

The closest I've ever come to liking one of these is Battlefield on the PC, which I've heard isn't very sim like but I enjoyed. Didn't like COD multiplayer so much.

I always figured these games would be too slow. Too much camping and just generally unfun. I was very wrong. Especially concerning GRAW. Glad I took a chance on this.

Spooky · Post by **Spooky** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 12:33 pm

jondiehl wrote:
Spooky wrote:It is too bad that the online game is not the same graphically as the offline one. It is not too far off, but definitely a noticeable drop.
I've heard multiple people report this, but I'm just not seeing it (and I play on a 50" DLP HDTV @ 720p). I play in first person view, so maybe that has something to do with it since I'm not seeing my own player model and most of my teammates are behind me or in other parts of the map.

Hmmmm... Take a good look at the lighting, overall HUD interface, amount of detial in the environment and the player models. It is really most evident in the lighting and atmosphere effects.

reeche · Post by **reeche** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 12:44 pm

Spooky wrote:
jondiehl wrote:
Spooky wrote:It is too bad that the online game is not the same graphically as the offline one. It is not too far off, but definitely a noticeable drop.
I've heard multiple people report this, but I'm just not seeing it (and I play on a 50" DLP HDTV @ 720p). I play in first person view, so maybe that has something to do with it since I'm not seeing my own player model and most of my teammates are behind me or in other parts of the map.
Hmmmm... Take a good look at the lighting, overall HUD interface, amount of detial in the environment and the player models. It is really most evident in the lighting and atmosphere effects.

There is definitely a small graphical drop in the multi-player but to be honest I don't really care. The game is just so much fun. I think the fact that two different groups handled the single player versus the multi-player may account for that. Or frame rate issues.

Diablo25 · Post by **Diablo25** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 1:51 pm

Sport73 wrote:For those of you not yet on the 360 bandwagon, it's time to pull out the credit card and climb aboard; between GR:AW and Fight Night, the NEXT generation has truly arrived.

GR:AW is an incredible looking game, with all the complexity and strategy found in past GR games. In addition, the environments and maps are beautifully and intelligently constructed and the damage modeling is incredible. Shoot at a concrete wall and watch it slowly chip away; come back minutes later and it's still damaged. Shoot at vehicles and watch them explode. Watch 'light' objects fall, tumble and slide when shot.

The over-the-shoulder view gives you a better look at the entire environment, and the aiming differentiated from 'look' via pulling the Left Trigger is odd at first, but rewarding after only a few minutes.

Online play was smooth as silk. There are going to be many long nights with this one and the DSP clan.

All that said, there is enough complexity in the single player campaign to scare away a lot of players, even those fairly comfortable with traditional FPS. The controls are daunting, as are the options between weapons, fire modes, perspective, goggles, aiming, team control, drone control, map and more...

I'll play through the single player campaign, but it's clear that multiplayer is what this one's all about!

The dynamic lighting is awesome. Just to see the sun go in and out of the clouds is something special. We were on the Old Town map last night and it was a cloudy day...sun kept going in and out of the clouds and the lighting changes were incredible.

...oh, and sprinting across an open street with known enemies in the area - then diving into an open doorway is a huge rush

TheTruth · Post by **TheTruth** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 1:54 pm

ScoopBrady wrote:
Leebo33 wrote:
TheTruth wrote:The one year old was not cooperating though so I had to take it down.

Now THAT'S dedication to gaming. They do say TheTruth hurts, right?

I had to work early this morning so I couldn't get online last night. I'm hoping to be on sometime tonight and definitely will be on Friday night. Glad to hear it's a blast online, though I didn't think it wouldn't be.

OMG...I re-read my post. Now that's funny, I don't care who you are. I guess that's what happens when you try to post fast before a meeting.

Diablo25 · Post by **Diablo25** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 2:01 pm

BK, I got your friends invite last night but I was too pumped and in too much of a hurry to get a look at the game. I'll accept later on tonight

GameSeven · Post by **GameSeven** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 2:24 pm

Leebo33 wrote:
TheTruth wrote:The one year old was not cooperating though so I had to take it down.

Succinct and hysterical. Nicely done, Leeb

-G7

Gurantsu · Post by **Gurantsu** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 2:26 pm

Any of you guys can add me to your friends list, if I'm going online I'll try to hop in.

PadresFan104 · Post by **PadresFan104** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 2:48 pm

DSP effect got me this time with all the good reviews... Just picked it up. Would love to get in on some of the co-op or other MP games.

Gamertag is "Leadfoot5"

Al

sportdan30 · Post by **sportdan30** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 4:08 pm

Interesting little blurb in this article:

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/152568 ... lines=true

Lacey pointed out that game designers typically get more clever at squeezing a better performance out of a game console in year three or five than they do in year one. Still, he said, internal calculations show that the "GRAW" team tapped the 360 well. "At the moment I think we are pushing 85 percent of the box's power," he said.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 6:17 pm

Picked up GRAW now too...damn I'm a sucker for a good shooter. Just hope I can get over my mouse/keyboard love.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 6:55 pm

Holy freakin' crap.

Spooky · Post by **Spooky** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:02 pm

Been playing a bit more online and I am just not digging it. The online game has a really different feel than previous versions and even the single player game. The control is extremely floaty and I just cannot get a good overall feel.

When zoomed in, it is a nightmare trying to hone in on an enemy. There is no leaning against walls or leaning to the side. There is no rolling when laying down. The left trigger does a king of aiming zoom, but you cannot go from that viewpoint to a regular zoom and it is quite annoying when trying to switch views quickly.

The maps are nothing to write home about either. Most of them too small without very good terrain diversity.

Single player (offline) on the other hand...

TheTruth · Post by **TheTruth** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:02 pm

dbdynsty25 wrote:Picked up GRAW now too...damn I'm a sucker for a good shooter. Just hope I can get over my mouse/keyboard love.

Db, I hated it at first last night. Just despised it. But after 30 minutes or so, the "clunkiness" of it all didn't seem as bad. I played in Sully's games last night and noticed I had some lag in the time I moved the stick to when I actually started moving or fired a round. Still going to take awhile to get fully acclimated. Thing is, by that time, the PC version will be out.

Oh and the multiplayer graphics didn't impress me at all. Literally reminded me of the original GR series on PC, but maybe a little better. I am mainly talking about the buildings, trees, etc.

TheTruth · Post by **TheTruth** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:05 pm

Spooky wrote:Been playing a bit more online and I am just not digging it. The online game has a really different feel than previous versions and even the single player game. The control is extremely floaty and I just cannot get a good overall feel.

When zoomed in, it is a nightmare trying to hone in on an enemy. There is no leaning against walls or leaning to the side. There is no rolling when laying down. The left trigger does a king of aiming zoom, but you cannot go from that viewpoint to a regular zoom and it is quite annoying when trying to switch views quickly.

The maps are nothing to write home about either. Most of them too small without very good terrain diversity.

Single player (offline) on the other hand...

Spooky, I had that floaty feel as well. I believe you can lean in multiplayer by using the left bumper button and then use the stick which ever direction u want to lean.

Leebo33 · Post by **Leebo33** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:39 pm

dbdynsty25 wrote:Picked up GRAW now too

Wow, another Gamestop b/w work and home actually had it so I picked it up. I only had to listen to about 30 seconds of sales pitches!

mixdj1 · Post by **mixdj1** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 8:16 pm

Spooky wrote:When zoomed in, it is a nightmare trying to hone in on an enemy. There is no leaning against walls or leaning to the side. There is no rolling when laying down. The left trigger does a king of aiming zoom, but you cannot go from that viewpoint to a regular zoom and it is quite annoying when trying to switch views quickly.

You can roll with the "Y" button and moving the stick to the side you want to roll. Also, after you click in to zoom you can use the left trigger to hold your breath and steady the shot ... just like the Splinter Cell mercs. Hopefully that helps. I have noticed that the multi-player control is a bit twitchy compared to the silky smooth single player control.

Spooky · Post by **Spooky** » Thu Mar 09, 2006 11:51 pm

mixdj1 wrote:
Spooky wrote:When zoomed in, it is a nightmare trying to hone in on an enemy. There is no leaning against walls or leaning to the side. There is no rolling when laying down. The left trigger does a king of aiming zoom, but you cannot go from that viewpoint to a regular zoom and it is quite annoying when trying to switch views quickly.
You can roll with the "Y" button and moving the stick to the side you want to roll. Also, after you click in to zoom you can use the left trigger to hold your breath and steady the shot ... just like the Splinter Cell mercs. Hopefully that helps. I have noticed that the multi-player control is a bit twitchy compared to the silky smooth single player control.

See that is where I am having difficulty. The controls for the single player mode are not the same for multiplayer. There is NO holding breath in the online mode as far as I can tell or rolling. The controls are stripped down and more cumbersome.

reeche · Post by **reeche** » Fri Mar 10, 2006 12:05 am

Spooky wrote:
mixdj1 wrote:
Spooky wrote:When zoomed in, it is a nightmare trying to hone in on an enemy. There is no leaning against walls or leaning to the side. There is no rolling when laying down. The left trigger does a king of aiming zoom, but you cannot go from that viewpoint to a regular zoom and it is quite annoying when trying to switch views quickly.
You can roll with the "Y" button and moving the stick to the side you want to roll. Also, after you click in to zoom you can use the left trigger to hold your breath and steady the shot ... just like the Splinter Cell mercs. Hopefully that helps. I have noticed that the multi-player control is a bit twitchy compared to the silky smooth single player control.
See that is where I am having difficulty. The controls for the single player mode are not the same for multiplayer. There is NO holding breath in the online mode as far as I can tell or rolling. The controls are stripped down and more cumbersome.

They are definitely different since the breath holding and cover are gone. I don't see how they are more cumbersome though outside of the adjustment you have to make when you play the two modes. I think a few other controls are slightly different also.

10spro · Post by **10spro** » Fri Mar 10, 2006 3:46 am

I just wished the "save from everywhere" option was back instead of the checkpoints.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Fri Mar 10, 2006 4:19 am

10spro wrote:I just wished the "save from everywhere" option was back instead of the checkpoints.

No kidding...I can't even get past the very first section. Eesh.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Fri Mar 10, 2006 5:50 am

I finally got through a few save checkpoints in the game and it's freakin' amazing. Very impressed. I'm finally getting the hang of aiming with a gamepad rather than the mouse and keyboard. I still find everything very clunky and unintuitive but that's just because I'm new to it.

BTW...don't play the Outfit demo after playing GRAW...it's actually pretty embarassing. GRAW is simply in another class.

Metman24 · Post by **Metman24** » Fri Mar 10, 2006 10:07 am

I just placed an order with Circuit City for a 360 and GRAW. You guys have me so stoked to get this. Unfortunately, it won't get here til Monday.
I hope to see you guys online when I get it.