This is something of a surprise: NVIDIA's FXAA technology has made its way into several shipping games now and there's even support in recent builds of Unreal Engine 3, so the non-appearance of any form of anti-aliasing in Gears 3 - even one as light on resources as FXAA - is curious. Well, on the levels we had to look at there, with the low-contrast colour schemes and blending atmospheric effects, that was definitely the case, but the final game throws out a lot more range and there are plenty of "jaggies" in evidence, especially in the more colourful stages. Indeed, in our Gears of War 3 beta coverage, we went so far as to say that aliasing wasn't really an issue in the game.
Gears of War 2 implemented 2x multi-sample anti-aliasing (MSAA) but the coverage was patchy to say the least, and it's fair to say that the post-processing techniques we see in the sequel do much more than the old, borked MSAA ever did in terms of reducing aliasing issues across the run of play. In terms of technical comparisons with its predecessor, the only compromise we see is that in line with most Unreal Engine 3 titles released recently, there is no noticeable anti-aliasing. In most cases, Epic prefers to engage v-sync here consistently, meaning that the engine-driven cinematics can switch between 20FPS and 30FPS, giving a somewhat disjointed look as the narrative switches between cuts. Where things remain the same is in the handling of cut-scenes. Screen-tear is present and noticeable, but generally not as intrusive as it was in the previous game. Performance in Gears of War 2 could be somewhat variable, but remarkably, Unreal Engine 3 has been enormously improved for this sequel and if anything, the overall performance level is even better than it was, only really struggling when a cocktail of post-processing effects are in play. However, it's incredibly tough work to keep to a specific rendering budget, so when performance dips, v-sync is disengaged and torn frames crop in. Frame-rate is capped to 30 frames per second, ensuring a consistent look, with v-sync engaged. Those familiar with our analysis of Unreal Engine 3 games will know that generally speaking, the performance of the technology follows a pretty specific pattern - one that's fairly common to the majority of console games this generation, certainly on the Xbox 360. The question is, can the technology keep up with the demands placed on it? The good news is that in terms of the experience and spectacle of the final game, the development team has more than delivered. That particular sampler gave us our first taste of the upgraded engine but at that point we only had some idea of the plans Epic had for the all-important campaign. Projects such as the multiplayer beta only came about via the extended window of development Epic had to get this game right. Almost three years in production, Gears of War 3 has enjoyed a development cycle considerably longer than that of its predecessor: beyond the technical achievement, what really stands out here is the level of polish - the care and attention - that has gone into the final product. What the new release may lack in terms of surprises or innovation, it more than delivers in terms of handing in the most refined, polished Gears experience yet. While we have adhered to these guidelines and omitted all cut-scenes and as much plot-related dialogue as we could, those who wish to remain spoiler-free may wish to duck out of this article until they've played the game.Īnd what a game it is. In the run-up to the game's launch, Microsoft issued a range of eminently sensible guidelines on what we can and can't show, mostly related to story elements. In this feature we'll be showcasing the technical make-up of the new Gears, using screenshots and video to demonstrate why we think this is a landmark achievement for the Xbox 360 platform. Developed in parallel with the hugely popular Unreal Engine 3 technology, the game looks absolutely remarkable: put it side-by-side with the last game, or even up against Epic's own Bulletstorm, and it's clear that the current gen is still capable of some genuine surprises. The smart money says we're nine months away from the reveal of brand-new Xbox hardware, that major advances in visual technology are being held back by the hardware limitations of six-year-old architecture.