Hello Jonathan ! 
 JF> Not really.  Quake II's environments are a lot more detailed than its
 JF> predecessor's brethren.  They're also bigger, with more subtle
 JF> lighting effects, and the enemies look more intimidating and less
 JF> goofy. And of course, if you have a GL 3D card, the point is moot!
Really. I. Have. Lost. Interest. In. This. Thread. - sorry :)
 JF> Actually, the main reason PSX games are looking and running better is
 JF> because the system has actually been undertaxed up until recently.  I
 JF> think Formula 1 used about 60-70% of the system's power; Tobal No. 2
 JF> (which isn't even available over in the US) uses 90%.
So you are agreeing that to produce effeint code, clever tricks on a set 
system takes time. Think about developers coding for a *constantly* shifting 
platform (the PC), they can /never/ produce effient code, by the the fact 
they can never fully get used to the hardware, cos a new model comes out 
every few weeks.
 JF> And you don't need much hardware at all to do many of the PSX
 JF> effects; they're largely cleverly done translucencies, for the most
 JF> part, and the PC can still do more.  There's no perspective
 JF> correction on the PSX, and its max resolution is 512x512; the
It still has a lot of cool games and it costs less.
 JF> upcoming game Virus 2000 is supposed to use that, but its designer
 JF> (David Braben of Elite fame) isn't sure if the PSX can handle it.  He
 JF> sees no qualms with the PC, however!
David Brabens last release was so riddled with bugs it was ridiculous and 
needed a hell of a lot of memory and processor power for the time. He might 
have good games design ideas but he (or his programming team) aren't very 
'hot' IMO.
 JF> Believe it or not, not one PC 3D chip right now was ever intended for
 JF> consoles.  The Voodoo chipset spawned from some SGI work that was
SGI worked with Nintendo to produce the N64 chips, SGI gave the technology, 
Nintendo helped reduce the cost of manufacturug the chips. SGI then used the 
low cost chips to produce a cheap SGI desktop workstation, I presume the 
technology got filtered down to the PC card. :)
 JF> being done.  In fact, the Voodoo chipset ended up in arcades - ever
 JF> played San Francisco Rush or Mace?
Nope. Ain't San Francisco Rush by Atari?
 JF> Any real "inefficiencies" usually stem from the necessities of
 JF> compatibility, enhanced features, and/or improved graphics.  G-Police
 JF> on the PC usually runs at 640x480 (though you can go above that, I
 JF> think); on the PSX, it's at 320x240 or so.  And what about texture
 JF> detail?  If you have the AGP version, the billboards are much more
 JF> animated, and the city seems alive.
I doubt it adds much to the gameplay however. Just adds eye candy and eats up 
resources.
CheeryBye
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