Doom 3 alpha looks better than final?

FearMeAll · 08-04-04, 11:22 PM

I know I know the leaked e3 mess does in no way represent the final game at all. And I know I can't post screenies of ye old 2002 alpha but do some of you think that the alpha looked better graphically than the final?
Yes it's framerate was hellish and it was really really buggy, but it looked to me that more stencil shadows were being applied, and that they moved more with the light. Remember the bathroom scene in the alpha where the monster is eating the zombie guys stomach out? the shadows swayed a lot on that scene and were really impressive. For some reason in the final game the shadows don't seem to sway as much...they "seem" more static to me for some reason. I'm only in the first couple level's of the Final Game so I don't know if this kind of scene still happens.
I noticed in the alpha that on the doomguy's head stencil shadows were on his whole face, but in the final I guess Carmack decided to simply use a normal map shadowing technique for skin. It does look a lot smoother I suppose.
I wish I could post side by side screenshots to illustrate my point but I won't. And even if I did I don't even have a point since the old demo was leaked and I should never see it anyway.
I haven't heard anyone talk about this since the game was released, and maybe I'm a fool for posting all this, but as a geek it is interesting to compare the Before and After of the game's shadowing techniques as it evolved.
Do those with the alpha think that it looks higher quality than the final?
Do you like the techniques of the final are better. (I like the 60-100fps myself lol)
Anyway's a wierd thread.

jAkUp · 08-04-04, 11:28 PM

This is a ss I took from the alpha:

SH64 · 08-04-04, 11:32 PM

Strange .. cuz my friend thinks the same way !

actually that makes me start thinking about it seriously & maybe install the alpha again & check !

FearMeAll · 08-04-04, 11:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jAkUp

This is a ss I took from the alpha:

WOW

My bet is that the normal maps on the alpha are higher.
Doesn't matter I guess cuz the game still rocks. It must've just been a development choice.

FearMeAll · 08-04-04, 11:57 PM

ok I can confirm one big instance where the alpha looks better than the final. In the apha character's stencil shadows are shown on the themselves. Say if a character's arm in in the way of the light then the shadow is cast onto his body.
In the final this is not the case. A character's shadows cannot be cast on themselves.
Am I the only one that thinks some of the shadows in the final may be static?

GlowStick · 08-04-04, 11:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FearMeAll

ok I can confirm one big instance where the alpha looks better than the final. In the apha character's stencil shadows are shown on the themselves. Say if a character's arm in in the way of the light then the shadow is cast onto his body.
In the final this is not the case. A character's shadows cannot be cast on themselves.
Am I the only one that thinks some of the shadows in the final may be static?

That can be turned on in the final doom 3 version : )

FearMeAll · 08-05-04, 12:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GlowStick

That can be turned on in the final doom 3 version : )

oooh tell me this!! PLEASE!

Edge · 08-05-04, 01:22 AM

Yes, self-shadowing seems to be disabled by default in the full version, however from what I hear there is a way to turn it on. If I'm not mistaken there was a user-made "ultra-high quality mode" setting that changed a few things, including enabling self-shadowing.

Also I noticed in the alpha that there were a few rendering anomalies with the self shadowing system (like the shadow seemed "broken" on a few of the polygons), perhaps this is why it was disabled in the full version?

-=DVS=- · 08-05-04, 01:48 AM

all you need to do is oped CFG file and find selfshadow or playershadow 0 -> 1 im at work can't check , but i did it and have my own shadow

at one point i got scared of my own shadow

jAkUp · 08-05-04, 02:52 AM

1 more alpha shot...

nVidi0t · 08-05-04, 03:11 AM

To me the alpha looks better than the final. The alpha was crammed with visual effects and high detail textures. I have not played the final in all honesty but judging from the screenshots on this site and on a few reviews I have been reading it seems to have lost a bit of detail.. which sucks.

JumboJack · 08-05-04, 05:33 AM

Here is a low rez texture in retail on ultra quality.

08-04-04, 11:22 PM	#1
FearMeAll Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Georgia, USA Posts: 827	Doom 3 alpha looks better than final? I know I know the leaked e3 mess does in no way represent the final game at all. And I know I can't post screenies of ye old 2002 alpha but do some of you think that the alpha looked better graphically than the final? Yes it's framerate was hellish and it was really really buggy, but it looked to me that more stencil shadows were being applied, and that they moved more with the light. Remember the bathroom scene in the alpha where the monster is eating the zombie guys stomach out? the shadows swayed a lot on that scene and were really impressive. For some reason in the final game the shadows don't seem to sway as much...they "seem" more static to me for some reason. I'm only in the first couple level's of the Final Game so I don't know if this kind of scene still happens. I noticed in the alpha that on the doomguy's head stencil shadows were on his whole face, but in the final I guess Carmack decided to simply use a normal map shadowing technique for skin. It does look a lot smoother I suppose. I wish I could post side by side screenshots to illustrate my point but I won't. And even if I did I don't even have a point since the old demo was leaked and I should never see it anyway. I haven't heard anyone talk about this since the game was released, and maybe I'm a fool for posting all this, but as a geek it is interesting to compare the Before and After of the game's shadowing techniques as it evolved. Do those with the alpha think that it looks higher quality than the final? Do you like the techniques of the final are better. (I like the 60-100fps myself lol) Anyway's a wierd thread. __________________ Consoles: Xbox Elite with HDDVD drive and PS3. Screen: Panasonic AX200U Widescreen Projector (1280x720), 160" HighPower Screen, AND A BIG COUCH. [FONT="Courier New"] HTPC: Intel Wolfdale 3ghz, 4 gigs DDR2 800 ram, 500gig HDD, Craptastic 7600GS, Windows 7 32bit, XBMC installed [/FONT] :D [B]My Video Encoding/Office rig:[/B] [I] Intel QX9650 @ 3ghz, 1333mhz FSB, 4gigs Patriot Extreme DDR3 @ 1333mhz, XFX 790i 3-way Sli mobo, Xf-Fi Extreme Gamer, 400watt Fanless Power Supply, 9500GT 64-bit bus(ouch!), 8.750TB HDD, Windows 7 64-bit Ultimate. [B][FONT="Arial Narrow"]Everything at stock and completely boring..[/FONT][/B][/I] :type:

08-04-04, 11:28 PM	#2
jAkUp eat. sleep. overclock. Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Chino, California Posts: 17,744	Re: Doom 3 alpha looks better than final? This is a ss I took from the alpha: __________________ 965xe \|\| evga x58 classified \|\| 3x evga gtx 480 \|\| 6gb g.skill \|\| win7 x64

08-04-04, 11:32 PM	#3
SH64 MAXIMUM TECH Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Indiana Posts: 12,202	Re: Doom 3 alpha looks better than final? Strange .. cuz my friend thinks the same way ! actually that makes me start thinking about it seriously & maybe install the alpha again & check ! __________________ - "My name is RAM and my tank is full" http://warhawk64nv.mybrute.com/ <-- pupils go thaarrr! Or, http://silenthunter64.mybrute.com

08-04-04, 11:57 PM	#5
FearMeAll Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Georgia, USA Posts: 827	Re: Doom 3 alpha looks better than final? ok I can confirm one big instance where the alpha looks better than the final. In the apha character's stencil shadows are shown on the themselves. Say if a character's arm in in the way of the light then the shadow is cast onto his body. In the final this is not the case. A character's shadows cannot be cast on themselves. Am I the only one that thinks some of the shadows in the final may be static? __________________ Consoles: Xbox Elite with HDDVD drive and PS3. Screen: Panasonic AX200U Widescreen Projector (1280x720), 160" HighPower Screen, AND A BIG COUCH. [FONT="Courier New"] HTPC: Intel Wolfdale 3ghz, 4 gigs DDR2 800 ram, 500gig HDD, Craptastic 7600GS, Windows 7 32bit, XBMC installed [/FONT] :D [B]My Video Encoding/Office rig:[/B] [I] Intel QX9650 @ 3ghz, 1333mhz FSB, 4gigs Patriot Extreme DDR3 @ 1333mhz, XFX 790i 3-way Sli mobo, Xf-Fi Extreme Gamer, 400watt Fanless Power Supply, 9500GT 64-bit bus(ouch!), 8.750TB HDD, Windows 7 64-bit Ultimate. [B][FONT="Arial Narrow"]Everything at stock and completely boring..[/FONT][/B][/I] :type:

08-05-04, 01:22 AM	#8
Edge 3d animator for hire! Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Minnesota, USA Posts: 3,564	Re: Doom 3 alpha looks better than final? Yes, self-shadowing seems to be disabled by default in the full version, however from what I hear there is a way to turn it on. If I'm not mistaken there was a user-made "ultra-high quality mode" setting that changed a few things, including enabling self-shadowing. Also I noticed in the alpha that there were a few rendering anomalies with the self shadowing system (like the shadow seemed "broken" on a few of the polygons), perhaps this is why it was disabled in the full version?

08-05-04, 01:48 AM	#9
-=DVS=- .:. Lafiel .:. Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Outerspace Posts: 3,009	Re: Doom 3 alpha looks better than final? all you need to do is oped CFG file and find selfshadow or playershadow 0 -> 1 im at work can't check , but i did it and have my own shadow at one point i got scared of my own shadow __________________ *.:. Lian Li X500FX .:. i7 2600k* .:. PNY GTX 680 .:. Corsair DDR3 8GB .:. Silverstone 800W PSU .:. Asus P8P67-M Pro .:. Crucial M4 SSD 512GB .:.**

08-05-04, 02:52 AM	#10
jAkUp eat. sleep. overclock. Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Chino, California Posts: 17,744	Re: Doom 3 alpha looks better than final? 1 more alpha shot... __________________ 965xe \|\| evga x58 classified \|\| 3x evga gtx 480 \|\| 6gb g.skill \|\| win7 x64

08-05-04, 03:11 AM	#11
nVidi0t Quad Damage Join Date: May 2003 Location: San Fancisco. CA Posts: 1,569	Re: Doom 3 alpha looks better than final? To me the alpha looks better than the final. The alpha was crammed with visual effects and high detail textures. I have not played the final in all honesty but judging from the screenshots on this site and on a few reviews I have been reading it seems to have lost a bit of detail.. which sucks. __________________ System: Intel Core 2 e6600 @ 3.6ghz (450*8) @ 1.475v \| Koolance Exos 2 Water Cooler \| 4096Mb Mushkin ASCENT 8500 @ 2.1v @ 1160Mhz\| Asus P5k Deluxe P35 'bearlake' 804bios \| PC Power & Cooling Silencer 850W\| BFG 8800GT OC2 675Mhz \| 150GB WD Raptor X \| Seagate Barracuda 250GB SATA \| Lian Li V2000 PC2 Case \| Pioneer DL Burner \| Creative Sound Blaster X-FI FATAL1TY FPS \| Dell 2707WFP 27" LCD \| Windows Vista Ultimate \| Sennheiser HD-590 Prestige/Sennheiser HD-650 Headphones w/ Emmeline Hornet Amp \| Razer Deathadder \| Razer tarantula Keyboard \|

08-05-04, 05:33 AM	#12
JumboJack Registered User Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 18	Re: Doom 3 alpha looks better than final? Here is a low rez texture in retail on ultra quality. Last edited by JumboJack; 08-05-04 at 05:44 AM.

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