Fungi Forums
Video Games => Video Game Chat => Topic started by: WarpRattler on October 05, 2011, 06:04:04 PM
-
Something that often comes up with games on Xbox 360 (and, presumably, PS3) is the size of text. A lot of games are designed to be played on HDTVs, and if a display can actually handle 720p or 1080p, there usually aren't display issues. However, if you still use an old analog TV (like I do, though I do have a reason beyond "I haven't bought one") that can't handle these resolutions, you end up with unreadable text; it's usually very small and not clear enough to be legible.
Most of the games I own have this issue. Only one (Tales of Vesperia) does anything about it (by providing an option for a larger font).
Who else has to deal with this issue? What games do you guys play that you really notice it in? What games have you seen that do anything to actually counteract it, like what Tales of Vesperia does?
-
Yes, lots.
MAG and Uncharted 3's Beta have both had this. And it sucks.
-
I have a 22-inch 1080p TV and don't have any consoles capable of resolutions over 480p (my laptop doesn't even have HDMI output (not that I could play any games other than RollerCoaster Tycoon at over 480p on my laptop anyway)), so it hasn't been much of an issue for me yet. But back when I had my tiny TV, there were some problems.
(https://themushroomkingdom.net/board/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Flh3.ggpht.com%2F_z3qOPdy0bWw%2FSXFJeKWtkaI%2FAAAAAAAABXY%2FOe5zDZcubfo%2Fs800%2FIMG_3024.JPG&hash=97a1187d9c503f832db18656b9251a14)
Three years later, my TV is a bit bigger and I'm a bit thinner. My arms definitely seem noticeably thinner.
I don't wear skirts quite as often now.
-
The only time I can think of it being an issue is, in the time between the 720p breaking and getting a 1080p, was during the dead space 2 demo. And it was unplayable. After getting the new T.V. I did actually manage to get through it. Was not crazy about it, if you were curious.
-
Oh yeah, other dumb current-gen issue that's related because it's only an issue if you've got a 4:3 TV: forced widescreen obscuring your vision.
Obviously a less common issue (I've only had it come up with a couple of games), but it's still a thing. Some stages in Space Invaders: Infinity Gene are an absolute pain because of enemies attacking you from off-screen, and I'm not bothering with RayStorm HD for the same reason.
(Having part of the playing field cut off is bad in any game, but it's particularly unforgivable in Infinity Gene because it was originally a vertically-oriented iOS game. The console version is a widescreen vertical shooter.)
-
This (http://www.amazon.com/Premium-Digital-Optical-Microsoft-equipment/dp/B0030CGMAC/ref=pd_sim_pc_5) item's product description must've been written with this thread in mind.
-
You'd think someone would take a few minutes to check out how a game looks on an old small CRT screen (for those who hadn't upgraded yet) before shipping a game. The XNA thing for XBox 360 even has recommendations for where to put text (and probably other items) so there's no risk of them being cut off on old TVs (the "title area" I think).
I remember with old N64 games (or at least Turok 2), low resolution would make the HUD items big (health, ammo, etc.) and high resolution would make them small. But then, that was with a game option to switch between the two, as opposed to making the game always run in high resolution.
But yeah, I'm getting annoyed with how text is getting smaller on newer devices. Looking at one of the newer Macs is disorienting at first because there's miles of space and the text is on the small side. I've also seen DVDs where the subtitles were small enough that I had to get real close to the TV to see them (and I have a mild case of nearsightedness). Given subtitles are just text laid on top of the movie, shouldn't it A) use a look and size determined by the DVD player so you get a consistent appearance among different DVDs, and B) have an option somewhere to change how big the subtitles are?
-
As far as stuff being cut off, the big issue is with games that force a widescreen resolution (generally 720p) rather than just using letterboxing. I have plenty of games that do the latter with no issue (aside from small text).