Xbox & Bethesda E3 2022 Deep Dive: Starfield & Forza
Overview of the Xbox & Bethesda Showcase
This episode of Digital Foundry Direct Special features a comprehensive technical analysis of the major gameplay reveals from the Microsoft and Bethesda presentations. The team evaluates the graphical fidelity, performance, and development trajectory of several highly anticipated titles.
Core Technical Analysis
• Starfield: The team discusses the impressive evolution of Bethesda's Creation Engine. Key improvements include sophisticated volumetric lighting, valley height fog, and significantly better distance rendering compared to Fallout 4.
"It does look like it is, as we expected, a continuation of their work in the past, the creation engine stuff... but there's a lot of major improvements here especially with the way they're handling distance rendering."
Key Highlights
• Forza Motorsport: A standout for its use of ray-traced reflections in gameplay at 60 FPS on PC—with expectations of similar fidelity on consoles. The team praises the studio's consistency in performance profiling.
• Forza Horizon 5 - Hot Wheels: Highlights include the expansion's massive biomes and a potential shift toward ray-tracing integration in the playable environment.
• A Plague Tale: Requiem: A significant step up in facial animation and environmental detail from the original, though the team notes a shift toward more direct, combat-oriented gameplay mechanics.
• Diablo IV: The team agrees the art style is a return to form for the series, opting for dark, "sword and sorcery" aesthetics rather than the brighter palette seen in previous iterations.
Critical Takeaways
• Presentation Concerns: While the showcase improved by minimizing CG trailers, the team criticized the lack of transparency regarding specific hardware platforms used for capture.
• Cloud Ambitions: There is skepticism regarding Hideo Kojima's unnamed cloud-based project, emphasizing the difference between leveraging cloud infrastructure (like in Flight Simulator) and relying on dedicated streaming.
• The Future of Tech: A recurring theme is the transition to Unreal Engine 5, which brings both opportunities for higher fidelity and concerns regarding performance optimization, specifically potential frame pacing and stuttering issues.