Watch Dogs Pc graphics limited on purpose, E3 2012 graphic files found hidden inside the game files.

[IKSA]

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=838538

The Worse, creator of the mod on Guru3d: http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?t=390114

Has made massive discoveries/improvements. He has discovered that almost all of the shaders and improvements seen in 2012 and 2013 are still in the game files, such as the e3 2012 explosions. For now he has managed to implement dynamic shadows from headlights, the increased rain density, increased NPC density, as well as 2012 e3 bloom and lens flare.
When he manages to unpack certain files, he will be able to activate everything, such as POMs, etc.
Originally Posted by Included in the mod...

Included in this mod(not all features are available yet):

-Changes to the default fog values
-Enabled bokeh DOF for the main cameras
-Stuttering Improvements (They actually had working stutter fixes but for some reason hid them away too)
-E3 2012 Bloom
-Performance Improvements
-Enabled Headlight Shadows
-LoD Changes
-Reflection changes
-Added 3 new cameras to the game(closer, normal, further)
-Rain changes(High quality rain drops, properly reacting to light, etc)
-LensFlares(WIP)
-Lighting changes(TESTING AND WIP)
-Civilians density changes

So what do you guys think about this?


EDIT: Screenshots from the game with the files unlocked: http://imgur.com/a/23usB

 

[AmberSword]

My goodness...

They freaking have this in the game files themselves and they couldn't even be bothered to allow PC users the option to apply them?

 

[erbkaiser]

According to some people, performance is even better with this mod.

This seems very damaging for Ubisoft. If true, it is pretty damning evidence that the PC port was crippled to make the PS4/XBone look "as good" in comparison to the PC release.

 

[josemlopes]

To be honest some of the shit that was present in the conference didnt have any reason to not be in the final game (the explosion for example), the animation and the programing was already there, the gas stations still explode so if the animation was already made there really is no point in using the much simpler one for a system that can be upgraded to hell and back.

The same with the slo-motion raindrops and DOF. A lot of it never was about Ubisoft being capable of pulling it off or being smoke and mirrors as they were just things that werent present in previous games because the engines didnt properly supported them since the systems that the games were coming out couldnt possibly run those features (they could always still do it like it was with the first Crysis where most PC couldnt play it maxed out but everything the engine could do was there for when they eventually could run it).

 

[IKSA]

My goodness...

They freaking have this in the game files themselves and they couldn't even be bothered to allow PC users the option to apply them?

Yeah people are speculating that they crippled the game on purpose so that PS4 and Xbone would look as good as PC so people who bought the game on ''next-gen consoles'' wouldn't cry about getting an inferior product compared to PC.

 

[AmberSword]

Yeah people are speculating that they crippled the game on purpose so that PS4 and Xbone would look as good as PC so people who bought the game on ''next-gen consoles'' wouldn't cry about getting an inferior product compared to PC.

Ubisoft: OH HEY GUYS! Lemme just tell you, we really love our pc market! PC is our lead platform for development, we appreciate all the support from you guys and will strive to release the best PC version we possibly can!

Okay.

 

[Gankytim]

I'd washed my hands of Ubisoft long ago, and I only have this to say.

I feel sorry for the console plebians who got this, the PC users are gonna rub their screenshots in their faces for a loooong fucking time.

 

[AmberSword]

By now the only thing they have that can grab my attention is Assassin's Creed. But even that's starting to wear off because of ancient unchanging core mechanics, franchise fatigue and a consistent negligence of the other side of the world when they really have no reason to do so.

 

[Gethsemani_v1legacy]

My goodness...

They freaking have this in the game files themselves and they couldn't even be bothered to allow PC users the option to apply them?

Yeah people are speculating that they crippled the game on purpose so that PS4 and Xbone would look as good as PC so people who bought the game on ''next-gen consoles'' wouldn't cry about getting an inferior product compared to PC.

Hanlon's Razor: Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.

I think it is more likely that when the next-gen consoles started running into performance issues with all the graphics options they simply downgraded all three platform evenly. That way they cut down on development costs and time (on a game already sorely delayed) and could focus on stability and performance more efficiently than if they had had to allocate a bunch of programmers to only focusing on the high-end graphics of the platform likely to see the least sales.

Mind, I am not supporting this kind of thing. But it makes a lot more sense that it was simple time, cost and efficiency issues that forced the PC version to do less than it is capable off instead of some nefarious conspiracy of "wanting to showcase the new consoles", a race in which Ubisoft doesn't even have a horse.

 

[AmberSword]

Hanlon's Razor: Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.

I think it is more likely that when the next-gen consoles started running into performance issues with all the graphics options they simply downgraded all three platform evenly. That way they cut down on development costs and time (on a game already sorely delayed) and could focus on stability and performance more efficiently than if they had had to allocate a bunch of programmers to only focusing on the high-end graphics of the platform likely to see the least sales.

Mind, I am not supporting this kind of thing. But it makes a lot more sense that it was simple time, cost and efficiency issues that forced the PC version to do less than it is capable off instead of some nefarious conspiracy of "wanting to showcase the new consoles", a race in which Ubisoft doesn't even have a horse.

Do i sense a fellow troper? Ignore if irrelevant.

On topic though, I really don't appreciate the fact that their damage control is based on lying. They thought the next gen systems would be bleeding edge beasts, so they made an impossibly impressive trailer for E3 2012. Then in 2013 after realizing the new consoles couldn't handle what they had created, they proceeded to downgrade the trailers little by little, and likely also pushed back the release date because they wasted time trying to find solutions to this problem (speculation). I believe I don't need to explain how everything I just said was covered up in a totally dishonest way by them.

 

[IKSA]

My goodness...

They freaking have this in the game files themselves and they couldn't even be bothered to allow PC users the option to apply them?

Yeah people are speculating that they crippled the game on purpose so that PS4 and Xbone would look as good as PC so people who bought the game on ''next-gen consoles'' wouldn't cry about getting an inferior product compared to PC.

Hanlon's Razor: Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.

I think it is more likely that when the next-gen consoles started running into performance issues with all the graphics options they simply downgraded all three platform evenly. That way they cut down on development costs and time (on a game already sorely delayed) and could focus on stability and performance more efficiently than if they had had to allocate a bunch of programmers to only focusing on the high-end graphics of the platform likely to see the least sales.

Mind, I am not supporting this kind of thing. But it makes a lot more sense that it was simple time, cost and efficiency issues that forced the PC version to do less than it is capable off instead of some nefarious conspiracy of "wanting to showcase the new consoles", a race in which Ubisoft doesn't even have a horse.

I would like to point out that I said ''people are speculating'' I'm myself neutral on this until ubisoft says anything.

 

[Gethsemani_v1legacy]

I would like to point out that I said ''people are speculating'' I'm myself neutral on this until ubisoft says anything.

Go ahead and point it out. I wasn't so much targeting you as was targeting the usual histrionic conspiracy theories that the gaming community seems to spew forth whenever a game doesn't live up to the hype or something awesome-yet-cut is found within the game files. Sometimes I can really see why we get such a bad rep as socially inept, detached from reality nerds, because as a community we tend to blow up over the smallest things and blow them way, way out of proportion.

 

[Monoclebear]

On reddit some people even reported that the mod helped with stuttering and FPS issues.

 

[Stavros Dimou]

OMG WTF UBISOFT ???
The amounts of ridiculosity in the games industry has become way to high!!! its over 9000!!!

 

[Tanis]

I...wow.
Just...holy shit.

This, wtf, I mean.
Wow.

Ubisoft.
My 'aint gonna buy your shit, unless it's used (because you don't get any of the money)' embargo is still going strong.
And I feel even better about it.

 

[Dragonbums]

I'd washed my hands of Ubisoft long ago, and I only have this to say.

I feel sorry for the console plebians who got this, the PC users are gonna rub their screenshots in their faces for a loooong fucking time.

You say this like most console gamers actually care. This comment is like the epitome of the PC Master Race stereotype.

 

[Dragonbums]

Hanlon's Razor: Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.

I think it is more likely that when the next-gen consoles started running into performance issues with all the graphics options they simply downgraded all three platform evenly. That way they cut down on development costs and time (on a game already sorely delayed) and could focus on stability and performance more efficiently than if they had had to allocate a bunch of programmers to only focusing on the high-end graphics of the platform likely to see the least sales.

Mind, I am not supporting this kind of thing. But it makes a lot more sense that it was simple time, cost and efficiency issues that forced the PC version to do less than it is capable off instead of some nefarious conspiracy of "wanting to showcase the new consoles", a race in which Ubisoft doesn't even have a horse.

Do i sense a fellow troper? Ignore if irrelevant.

On topic though, I really don't appreciate the fact that their damage control is based on lying. They thought the next gen systems would be bleeding edge beasts, so they made an impossibly impressive trailer for E3 2012. Then in 2013 after realizing the new consoles couldn't handle what they had created, they proceeded to downgrade the trailers little by little, and likely also pushed back the release date because they wasted time trying to find solutions to this problem (speculation). I believe I don't need to explain how everything I just said was covered up in a totally dishonest way by them.

I personally don't see that as even remotely an adequate excuse for them. Devs get this stuff a year or so early before the consoles release. If they actually played around with it- I'm damn sure they knew the limits before hand.

 

[an annoyed writer]

I'm actually wondering what else could come of this. You see, the missions showcased during both E3 demos were heavily altered, having entire scenarios, character moments, and music tracks cut or altered significantly for the final release, and honestly, I kinda wish they'd stuck with the original versions. The music in the E3 2013 version of The Rat's Lair was leagues better than the stuff in the final version, and I want to know if those files are still in there.

 

[The Rogue Wolf]

After the PR disaster that was "it's too hard to put playable women in games", I wonder how Ubisoft is going to (ham-)handle this?

In the meantime, Watch_Dogs won't be seeing my hard drive until the inevitable $10 Steam sale.

 

[NiPah]

Maybe Ubisoft just really hates PC users?
More likely it's just because budget limitations prevented testing of advanced effects so they just focused on the mid-range computers and consoles where their user base is.