Performance-squeezing games castration: From "Until Dawn" to the current state of PS4 games

Compared to the remastered games for Microsoft XBox One, if you have a PS4, then congratulations, the exclusive game package Sony prepared for players in August can be said to be very conscientious.

From One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3 to Until Dawn: The Fall of the Manor, these exclusive games have been launched on the PS4 game platform, which undoubtedly made many players very happy. It also proved that Sony, the conscience of the industry, always said "everything is for the players".

Although the game is fun to play, it also makes people see the current situation of some PS4 games.

Squeezing performance = ultimate experience?

1080P and 60fps have become the standard for next-generation console game graphics, and game makers have not only highlighted the game content, but also put a lot of effort into the rendering of the graphics.

Therefore, squeezing out the performance of the PS4 machine seems to have become their goal.

Take the PS4 exclusive game "Until Dawn" for example. This horror game, which has been rated as a B-level movie, does have a 1080P resolution on the game screen. However, during the game, the game frame rate remains at around 25fps, and sometimes frame drops occur when the game switches scenes.

Frankly speaking, Until Dawn is not the only game that squeezes the performance of the PS4. The earlier Dynasty Warriors 7: Limited Edition has much better graphics than the PS3, but there are frequent frame drops during the game due to too many enemy soldiers. In Battlefield 4: Hardline, which was released in March, although it basically maintained 60fps, it not only dropped frames in the Dust Bowl map, but also had flash memory problems.

This has also caused many people to doubt whether the performance of the PS4 is really that strong. For game manufacturers, is it really correct to over-exploit the performance of the console in order to give players the ultimate experience?

The answer is no.

The powerful machine performance of PS4 can indeed better present the game to the players, but excessive exploitation will make the console overwhelmed and the gaming experience will be further reduced, resulting in a series of problems such as frame drops and flashing, which will not only damage the console but also make the players worry.

Regional culture leads to game castration

"Until Dawn" is a horror game with graphics and content comparable to B-level movies, and it also achieves a good level of horror, but this game was "destroyed" in Japan.

The reason is that some bloody scenes were censored in the Japanese version, and the scenes were blatantly "black screen cuts", so you can only hear the sound but not see the people. Many players lamented that they had no idea how the plot would develop, and the quality of the castration was too random.

This is a bit strange. As a blockbuster game with a rating of 18+, Grand Theft Auto V was not censored in Japan. In addition, bloody scenes and inappropriate language frequently appeared, which was relatively childish compared to Until Dawn. But why was Grand Theft Auto V ok, while Until Dawn was censored?

This has to do with the impact of regional culture and policies on games. In the eyes of the Japanese, bloody violence does not seem to have any impact. After all, there are many gangs in Japan, and occasional conflicts are inevitable. Although Japan's ghost culture is relatively developed, American-style horror and thriller games will scare children in their eyes. Even though many Japanese players over the age of 18 protested on Amazon, the ones that should be harmonized will still be harmonized.

In China, any games involving violence, blood, and other elements are not allowed to enter, which is also the reason why there are not enough major PS4 games in the country. Classic games like "GTA5" are not available in the country. If you want to play them, you can only buy the Hong Kong version or the European version to enjoy the pleasure brought by 3A masterpieces.

Does the squeeze on console performance mean that games are developing too fast? Does the emergence of censored versions and lack of content mean disrespect for players and game developers?

Of course, even Microsoft's Xbox One is no exception to this problem. Sony's "everything for players" is not empty talk, and the experience brought to players by the PS4 console is obvious to all. After all, the next-generation consoles have not experienced as many tests as their predecessors, and the emergence of problems will also bring more improvements.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.