Vice City Definitive Edition Analysis & Comparisons Topic

[Nikhilmao]

On 10/25/2021 at 10:07 PM, SquoniX said:

Parallax (or maybe not) interiors added to Ocean Drive buildings on the ground floor:

 

I'm very glad they added parallax interiors, but I do hope they look good from up close, since the ones on ground level can be easily seen if you just look into the store. It's alright if the interiors on higher floors are lower in terms of quality, since you won't be seeing them closely in gameplay. 

[Kalvin]

On 10/23/2021 at 10:19 PM, TenLucas said:

 

Spoiler

 

Wait a second! On this screen Tommy doesn't have buttons on his shirt, and most importantly, he has fixed sleeves. Soo... why is his model on this screen different? Will his in-game model be different from that used in cutscenes? Or maybe this confirms my theory that trailers and screens are a mish-mash of different beta versions of the game.
 

  

On 10/24/2021 at 12:40 PM, SquoniX said:

For some reason, not all GTA:VC screenshots feature the same buildings and details:

 

Screenshot:

Spoiler

 

 

Trailer:

Spoiler

 

 

No vegetation in the screenshot but there is in the trailer. This gives me hope that there is more work left and that the trailer is actually improving on things.

I don't believe this is a sign of different builds, it's just indicative that they're using the exact systems the original VC did.

 

The vegetation on these buildings didn't have a LOD in the original game, so if you were to go a bit far from them, they'd disappear:

 

It's the same for Tommy. Vice City had separate models for in-game and in cutscenes (with two specific shared characteristics for the in-game one - no 3D buttons, and a fixed sleeve):

 

It would've been nice for them to have made some internal changes and for example merged the skeletal systems into one (it's even been done previously by The Hero), but it seems clear the base game is very much still existing underneath the changes.

 

Who knows though, they could very well be making these changes as the days pass closer to the release, Rockstar is known for making huge changes even less than a month before in previous titles, so we'll just have to see.

Edited October 27, 2021 by Kalvin

[TenLucas]

2 minutes ago, Kalvin said:

  

I don't believe this is a sign of different builds, it's just indicative that they're using the exact systems the original VC did.

 

The vegetation on these buildings didn't have a LOD in the original game, so if you were to go a bit far from them, they'd disappear:

 

It's the same for Tommy. Vice City had separate models for in-game and in cutscenes (with a specific shared characteristic for the in-game one - no 3D buttons):

 

It would've been nice for them to have made some internal changes and for example merged the skeletal systems into one (it's even been done previously by The Hero), but it seems clear the base game is very much still existing underneath the changes.

 

Who knows though, they could very well be making these changes as the days pass closer to the release, Rockstar is known for making huge changes even less than a month before in previous titles, so we'll just have to see.

I really don't see a reason why they would repair the sleeves and slightly change face only on the in-game model. Plus, we are no longer in 2002, there is no need to change between two models for the game and the cutscenes, but ok.

[Kalvin]

9 minutes ago, TenLucas said:

I really don't see a reason why they would repair the sleeves and slightly change face only on the in-game model. Plus, we are no longer in 2002, there is no need to change between two models for the game and the cutscenes, but ok.

I should've noted, this is also a difference between the in-game and cutscene model in the original Vice City.

 

 

So they did not "fix" the sleeve, they simply tweaked the model to match the original's in-game one, too.

 

Very odd, but it is how they've gone about it. I also edited my original post to note this.

Edited October 27, 2021 by Kalvin

[TheBossMan5000]

On 10/25/2021 at 6:24 AM, Zerdical said:

the road layout always sucked too, you cant go from little havana to downtown directly, you cant go from sunshine to the airport directly etc. This is one of the reasons vice city is my least favorite game of the three, i didnt like the map, specifically i hated the second island

you can go from sunshine to the airport in VCS, lol. They added a tiny bridge there, there's a few more little logical shortcuts they added in that game, which is weird because it takes place prior to vice city, haha. I've been hoping they added those improvements to vice in this remaster, but I doubt it.

[T_o_r_e_n_o]

I want to see the Skumole Shack.

[OREOBOREALIS]

21 hours ago, Kalvin said:

  Who knows though, they could very well be making these changes as the days pass closer to the release, Rockstar is known for making huge changes even less than a month before in previous titles, so we'll just have to see.

hopefully all the complains of the characters looking too much like plastic dolls makes r* do some changes to make them less plastic and better looking before release

Edited October 28, 2021 by Mktz1

[OREOBOREALIS]

On 10/25/2021 at 9:35 AM, Eternal Moonshine said:

 

 

why his hands look like simpsons hands ,,,or like lego plastic

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

 

I don't want to complain too much, but these character remasters are fail in my opinion. Looks way too shiny and plastic. 

i hope they rework them before release.

 

I expected the characters look like more better detailed better graphic versions of the originals like this:

Spoiler

This is how they should have looked like. Not some shiny dolls.

Edited November 2, 2021 by Mktz1

[BS_BlackScout]

1 hour ago, Mktz1 said:

I expected the characters look like more better detailed better graphic versions of the originals like this:

This is how they should have looked like. Not some shiny dolls.

What a standard...

[Bigglo145]

7 hours ago, Mktz1 said:

 

I expected the characters look like more better detailed better graphic versions of the originals like this:

This is how they should have looked like. Not some shiny dolls.

I think that actually looks worse, the hands are stuck together and the line are jagged. I do feel like the Definitive edition character models could be better. Kendls face for example, she looks better in this screen you posted and not so good in the DE

[OREOBOREALIS]

4 hours ago, Bigglo145 said:

I think that actually looks worse, the hands are stuck together and the line are jagged. I do feel like the Definitive edition character models could be better. Kendls face for example, she looks better in this screen you posted and not so good in the DE

yes the fingers are bad, but other than that looks better than the definitive edition in my opinion. 

They said its going to have the feel of the original trilogy, but i dont think the characters are that.

Edited October 29, 2021 by Mktz1

[Americana]

Damn, these graphic mods are disgusting.

[VitoCorleone1992]

On 10/22/2021 at 2:25 PM, Fidzy said:

From the trailer:

Kek...this is cheating. They used one of the lowest resolutions possible. I remember playing vice city on pc and didn't look anything like that in a mile.
 

On 10/22/2021 at 2:54 PM, Pedinhuh said:

They made Tommy fatter?

 

Well, I can't say it doesn't suit him because it actually does.

Tommy Soprano.

[triks]

Unfortunately, it seems the Harwood Butcher has been butchered.

[The_Ghost]

On 10/25/2021 at 3:20 PM, cuban gang member said:

 

The design of the mainland was rushed.however mainland had a better design in VCS.

I always liked that area in VCS, probably where I played most too, I wish I had my PS2 still, I'd go on a walkthrough for it again.

[Cutter De Blanc]

I feel like they made this one the worst looking of the bunch so as not to compete with GTAVI

[DylRicho]

On 10/22/2021 at 1:41 PM, Spider-Vice said:

Screenshots, trailer, everything from GTA VC here!

 

GTAVC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They've done a f**king brilliant job with Vice City. I can't wait to play it.

 

And finally, vehicles will have lights where they're supposed to be. 

 

The foliage is by far the largest improvement from what I can tell.

 

I forgive them on this occasion for re-releasing an older game yet again for another sale.

[SquoniX]

9 minutes ago, DylRicho said:

 

They've done a f**king brilliant job with Vice City. I can't wait to play it.

 

And finally, vehicles will have lights where they're supposed to be. 

 

The foliage is by far the largest improvement from what I can tell.

 

I forgive them on this occasion for re-releasing an older game yet again for another sale.

 

Out of the trilogy, the foliage is the most impressive in SA imo. 

 

For VC, I hope they add grass to the Ocean Drive area and also upgrade the western island because it always felt lacking. 

[DylRicho]

2 minutes ago, SquoniX said:

Out of the trilogy, the foliage is the most impressive in SA imo.

 

That makes sense. At least 1/3 of the map is countryside.

 

In GTA III and Vice City, the tree canopies were extremely blurry textures and not solid.

 

San Andreas was a nice step up with its updated engine.

 

I hope we finally see Liberty City Stories and Vice City Stories come to PC and Xbox as remasters a few years down the line. Vice City Stories especially.

[DylRicho]

On 10/22/2021 at 5:51 PM, Len Lfc said:

It did.

https://i.imgur.com/2XrqWp4.png

 

I can confirm. Vice City render distance really is as poor as they are showing. I don't think they're being disingenuous.

 

I just took these screenshots from the game. 4K with max render distance (SilentPatch + dgVoodoo).

 

 

Edited November 1, 2021 by DylRicho

[DylRicho]

Hmm... Guys, what's the general consensus on how the vehicles and guns will sound?

 

Copy-paste GTA V audio, or enhanced versions of the original? Maybe something entirely new?

[SquoniX]

Just now, DylRicho said:

Hmm... Guys, what's the general consensus on how the vehicles and guns will sound?

 

Copy-paste GTA V audio, or enhanced versions of the original? Maybe something entirely new?

 

I think less ear-piercing and remastered, the NRG sounds different in the trailer where Tommy is riding his bike near the hospital/Ken's office.

[DylRicho]

4 minutes ago, SquoniX said:

 

I think less ear-piercing and remastered, the NRG sounds different in the trailer where Tommy is riding his bike near the hospital/Ken's office.

 

Historically, GTA trailers haven't been the best representation of vehicle or gun audio. Do you remember the original Vice City trailer? What we got sounded absolutely nothing like that.  They do that a lot with cutscene audio as well. The Cayo Perico truck entering the compound is the most recent one I can think of.

[boomboom5950]

45 minutes ago, DylRicho said:

Hmm... Guys, what's the general consensus on how the vehicles and guns will sound?

 

Copy-paste GTA V audio, or enhanced versions of the original? Maybe something entirely new?

i hope its different, cause some of the sounds are really bad, but they are iconic. I think they should just take the original sounds, make them better and improve them a little bit making them still kind of sound like the original but also sound more like what its actually based on

[Kalvin]

Continuing from my post here, this one's gonna be a little more nit-picky/negative.

 

As well as there being new rooftop props, for some reason the (left-side) skyscraper in Downtown has suddenly developed a huge box on top of it:

 

They also added ceiling lights to the entrance of the hotel in this screenshot:

 

They mis-assigned the textures on Laurence, the weird shiny stripped textures are meant to be neons:

 

The LODs seem to be weirdly distorted in this screenshot too, very strange - can't say I've had enough experience in Unreal Engine to know whether it's relevant/a trait or not:

 

The windows on Ocean View are a bit lazily done, they modelled them to be 3D, however they didn't bother remaking the texture or editing the UV map, so the glass part of the texture is over the border, making it look super strange:

 

They seem to have made the odd decision to have both parallax interiors and keep the old flat night-time planes behind the windows, perhaps for the sake of variety?:

 

They either remade or simply just recoloured the texture on the side of the Deacon Hotel:

 

They changed a palm tree from being straight to bent to avoid clipping issues after making the Colon(y) Hotel sign super large, and removed the dirt decal on the side of the Leslie building:

 

This screenshot shows a potential (massive!) newspaper, potential (super transparent) leaf (which could just be an odd shadow), and what seems to be a manhole:

 

They changed the neons on the Essex House from light pink to blue:

 

Finally, in this screenshot, puddles!

Edited November 1, 2021 by Kalvin

[CynicalMexican]

On 10/27/2021 at 7:36 AM, OJsAlibi said:

 

All things considered though, Saints Row 3 is a PS3/360 game remastered for PS4/One. 

 

Three PS2 games being remastered for PS5/Series, that's a wider chasm to cross.

 

Yeah I keep saying this. Looking at remasters for games released in the PS3/360 era doesn't make sense considering how old these games are.

[CynicalMexican]

On 10/28/2021 at 11:54 AM, Mktz1 said:

 

 I expected the characters look like more better detailed better graphic versions of the originals like this:

This is how they should have looked like. Not some shiny dolls.

 

Oh God no. Those models look terrible.

Edited November 1, 2021 by CynicalMexican

[OREOBOREALIS]

1 hour ago, CynicalMexican said:

 

Oh God no. Those models look terrible.

How? Looks the same as originals but sharper/cleaner details. ..and actually has the look and art style of the original sa, unlike the definitive edition doll characters.

Spoiler

The original:

That mod: Perfect imo just fix the fingers.

The definititive edition trailer (too smooth texture on everything and lacks character. Makes me think of sims characters actually)..:

 

That mods characters is much better than what we got in trailer,, in my opinion.

Im just not happy with the look of the new definitive edition characters and the art style.. if its even art style and not just computer ai made unreal versions of them, i dont know.

Also this should prob be in sa conversation not in vc.

Okay maybe im too bothered about the new look because im pretty visual and perfectionistic artist person myself and the new looks and art style just dont match with my mind and ideas how it should look and feel plus the childhood nostalgia of playing the originals.

They just dont have that original ps2 gta / R* games type of feel on them at all and looks more like sims people than characters made by R* games.

If i was in charge in the team that made these remasters i wouldent publish this until the characters are reworked bit more. Their just not good enough for final product.

Especially Kendl looks much better in the mod.

 

...or who knows if what was shown in trailer is the final product or not and the characters are actually better with more detail in the release.

I hope that.

Edited November 2, 2021 by Mktz1

[zanesix]

2 hours ago, Mktz1 said:

How? Looks the same as originals but sharper/cleaner details. ..and actually has the look and art style of the original sa, unlike the definitive edition doll characters.

I think what makes it look so unsettling is that its clear whoever made that mod didn't update the models at all, so you have that fanmade HD texture pack syndrome going on where everything looks jarringly out of place. One thing I will say about the "doll" characters is that despite how weird they look, they definitely fit into the world around them. That's why I think they went with a cartoonish style, while the game did have realistic elements it also had some old-school arcadey cartoonish ones, and rather omit or change the cartoonish stuff which would deviate from the original game or leave them in and have them look super out of place they just decided to make the whole game more cartoonish, which is fair imo as long as it's consistent. Which it kinda isn't, but that's another story.

 

2 hours ago, Mktz1 said:

Okay maybe im too bothered about the new look because im pretty visual and perfectionistic artist person myself and the new looks and art style just dont match with my mind and ideas how it should look and feel plus the childhood nostalgia of playing the originals.

 

This right here is probably why so many people have so many criticisms about the art style; it doesn't look how they thought it would in their head, and that's fair. But regardless, that's the style they're going with. I just hope they at least touch up the character models a little more so they look less... bad, specifically sweets overly-detailed face and Tommy's Jersey Shore skin tone. Patch that stuff up and it's a solid 8/10. That seems to be the main problem this game has so far; consistency. It looks like they spent a lot more time on some things and a lot less on others.

Edited November 2, 2021 by zanesix

[boomboom5950]

50 minutes ago, zanesix said:

 

I think what makes it look so unsettling is that its clear whoever made that mod didn't update the models at all, so you have that fanmade HD texture pack syndrome going on where everything looks jarringly out of place. One thing I will say about the "doll" characters is that despite how weird they look, they definitely fit into the world around them. That's why I think they went with a cartoonish style, while the game did have realistic elements it also had some old-school arcadey cartoonish ones, and rather omit or change the cartoonish stuff which would deviate from the original game or leave them in and have them look super out of place they just decided to make the whole game more cartoonish, which is fair imo as long as it's consistent. Which it kinda isn't, but that's another story.

 

This right here is probably why so many people have so many criticisms about the art style; it doesn't look how they thought it would in their head, and that's fair. But regardless, that's the style they're going with. I just hope they at least touch up the character models a little more so they look less... bad, specifically sweets overly-detailed face and Tommy's Jersey Shore skin tone. Patch that stuff up and it's a solid 8/10. That seems to be the main problem this game has so far; consistency. It looks like they spent a lot more time on some things and a lot less on others.

in my opinion, back then the vision for these games werent cartoons. In gta 3s beta stage they did plan for a cartoonish look but went for a more realistic look in the end, they did what they could given the ps2s capabilities, now with the remasters they went all in on the cartoonish approach and if the trilogy was made with modern hardware it wouldnt be so cartoony. im not a fan of the cartoony approach but im still excited