red dead redemption has great graphics, better fighting from a horse
and just came out
so the console is not old yet

After the mess that was the PS3 version of Fallout 3, I am a little worried about TES V on this generation of consoles, and that's all I'm worried about when it comes to this generation of consoles and TES V.

If they released for next gen they would have the same problem oblivion has for this gen.... Horrible optimization.

Now that i have thought about this it is not that graphics matter greatly, I just want a game that feels a lot different from oblivion and if it is made with a similar engine on a similar console, it will likely use many of the same mechanics, systems, and stuff, thus making the next game likely to feel like an improved oblivion instead of a new game. And i think a new gen release would just make the next installment all the more mind-blowing, and that console anology you made was kinda wierd. Of course if i play a super nintendo game on the wii its going to be the same.

I don't disagree with the idea that Microsoft and Sony are already working on the next gen of consoles. They've both probably been working on something since around the time the PS3 hit the market. However, that doesn't mean that they have any intent on releasing them anytime soon. I'd imagine that their both probably have teams working on hardware design at we type, but that doesn't mean they are done with the current generation of consoles. I doubt we'll see them at E3 this year or next. Though maybe year after next, who knows. Though I'm sure Microsoft will wait well until NATAL is out the door before they let any information slip, last thing they would want to do is let any sales drop from NATAL because some people want to wait for next gen.

I think they can make a different game on these current consoles. Level of detail in people, speech, environment. If the NPCs have the same perfect egg heads, i think i'd shoot myself in the foot. But, i have faith in bethesda to deliver a new feeling game as well as a more indepth story than oblivion had. Morrowind to Oblivion was one thing, they couldnt top MW no matter what, but they can def top oblivion.

My point there was that the game their developing will be the same on either console, because either way its not going to tax the system too much. Putting TES V on next gen console would be like running an old game on a new console anyway.

Since Todd stated he wanted to release another BGS developed game for the current generation of consoles, and the only two known IPs that could be developed prior to the next generation are TES and FO, logic would dictate that TESV would be that game.

yah dude that makes a lot of sense for real, hopefully they will pull something tight for this next game

The thing is, the 360 may have been maxed out, but the PS3 has lots of life left in it. And Oblivion was made early in the 360s life, they could probably do much better by this stage.

Fallout 3 for the PS3 was horrible in how smoot it ran, after DLC was released for it. Can anyone please explain what the problem was there? Is there a way around this problem for TES V?

The 360 hasn't yet reached its maximum potential, nowhere near. The most obvious evidence of this is project NATAL but I could offer other examples as well.

Thank the Nines you aren't the lead designer! The vast majority of gamers would be unhappy with the game quality, and Bethesda would take a massive financial hit and drop in stocks

A good game excels in a couple of aspects. A great game excels in all aspects. I'm hoping TES:V will be a great game.


You're right, and that's why it won't be until next year at the earliest that we hear about the next gen. But a new generation of consoles could also coincide with a price drop for the current gen. The PS2 was 6 years old when the PS3 was released, and it can still be found on store shelves to this day, over 10 years since it was first released! I'm sure Natal and Move won't delay next gen announcements for very long.


Bethesda did a terrible job of porting it from the PC and 360, basically. Hopefully they've learned how to avoid this problem in the future. Although the PS3 is a very powerful piece of kit, it is designed in a very alien way for game developers. As a result of its CPU and RAM structure it is difficult to port games made for the 360 and PC first, without either losing performance or making significant changes to the game's code. That's why despite first party games looking better on PS3 than 360 (Uncharted 2 and God of War 3, compared to Fable 2 and Gears of War 2), multi-plat games tend to look better on 360 - such as Bayonetta having a lower contrast on PS3, and Red Dead Redemption running at a lower resolution on PS3, as well as the lag and freezing you see in Fallout 3. It's a shame. Valve even refuses to release games on the PS3 full stop because of this problem.


That's an exaggeration. The console is very near its maximum potential, especially with CryEngine 3 on the horizon. I will be amazed if we see any games better looking than that, let alone games that far exceed it as your 'nowhere near' statement suggests. Natal even leaches processor power from the 360 when it is used, which has led to developers stating that they cannot provide backwards compatibility for Natal with games already released, since there isn't enough processing power left to give.

Developers will always find ways to better optimize their games, but at this stage that will only lead to small improvements. There is no doubt that with the graphical knowledge gained since Oblivion's release, and indeed a knowledge of the console specs this time around, we will see a massive graphical boost from TES:IV to TES:V.

Lol, I wouldn't have a game look like Daggerfall. I was just trying to get my point across.

It might be a bit of embellishing, but to still to say the system is close to approaching maximum potential is not all too true either. The 360 has another two good years to go still. Developers have yet to utilize all the system's resources. Yeah there's only 512MB of RAM in the xbox 360, but the firmware doesn't use too much, and I hear no complaint about the fact that the PS3 only has half that but is supposedly isn't as dated as the 360 (No system flame wars please, I'm not deriding the PS3). Sure the PS3 has a superior CPU, but it's not likely to become as well utilized as the 360's because of the difficulty associated with programming for it. I don't believe the 360 has reached its full potential, recent titles have shown this. Additionally, I'm stating that even with a hardware performance increase, it means little without the dev software in use be modded to accommodate what resources are available. Graphically we won't see much movement forward in the 360, or the PS3 too much for that matter. However, that is more on the end of the fact that most american have yet to bump their consoles to HD TV's. I really think that at this point in time the proverbial "juice" won't be worth the squeeze from pushing ahead with the hardware.

Doesn't matter. As PC gamers on the bleeding edge are always sad to remember, developers are going to shoot for the broadest market they can. The sacrifices needed to bring something to the Wii take it out of contention for AAA multiplatform titles, so the 360 basically sets the standard on requirements.

That's exactly it.
Just think about if Bethesda released TES:V for the next gen consoles. It'd have the same exact problem OB had. Just because it's new, doesn't mean it's the best choice to pick.
They know how to work with the 360 better to make a better game, just like they did with Fallout. Them making it on the 360 is actually what we should be praying for, and I'm pretty sure it'll happen.

I wouldn't be able to afford a new console, so that's one less copy sold i it isn't on this generation.

Aside from which, I and others have explained elsewhere that contrary to popular belief Oblivion didn't come anywhere close to maxing out what the 360 could do, and that even if it had the poor optimization and older software would be issues. Trust me, they could make the same leap between then and now just on software and tinkering.

Im not so sure that the 360 will be able to pull of a similar 'leap' of visuals, to what we saw in MW to Oblivion... I think the 360 is being pushed quite hard. I think that is made clear by the frame-rates you often get...

I have been thinking for at least a few years, that it seems the 360 gets choppy, even on confined basic games, like that wolverine game... I am constantly unimpressed by the frame-rates associated with the 360

But on the flip-side, i have a strong feeling that If they ARE going to push ahead on the current gen technology, they may focus their efforts on some truly brilliant gameplay...
I mean, remember the graphical whammo that Oblivion made...? Imagine that much resources poured into crossbows, factions, flying beasts, flying spells, polymorph spell who knows.... just a thought. A pleasant one too