What are the disadvantages to not using an HD TV with a current-gen console?

October 06, 2010

Just got an Xbox 360 and I was wondering. My guess is that it simply looks better, but I'd like an answer from someone who actually knows. Does it affect framerate in any way? Text has also been small enough to be barely legible, but that may just be because of the screen size - would changing the aspect ratio make this any better?

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zigfried - October 06, 2010 (09:24 PM)
For the text part, you should be playing on a widescreen set. Otherwise, you'll have problems reading stuff until you upgrade your TV. I made it a year like that.

Then again, if you've already got a widescreen TV, maybe it's just small.

As for framerate, that's just because Xbox 360 programmers are ace wizards who make games that automatically deserve 10's. Higher rates are a lot more common than they were on PS2 or Xbox. If you're using an HDTV, it seems even more fluid.

//Zig

zippdementia - October 06, 2010 (10:45 PM)
I can answer this because I played on an SDTV until late last year and that was well into my ownership of a PS3. I'm strapped for time at the moment, so I'm going to be brief.

The shorter answer is: you really want to play on an HDTV.

The short answer: you can very well game next-gen on an SDTV. But it does affect the gaming in many ways.

1) Many games use wide screen layouts now to display their HUD information (on Uncharted 2, I never knew how many grenades I had on the SD).

2) You lose a lot of color information when you don't play on an HD. I don't remember the exact details of this but it's a significant difference in data. Eye strain follows. Even myself, who is color blind, instantly gave a sigh of relief just from the difference between the SD menu screen and the HD menu screen.

3) Gameplay suffers. Why? Because things aren't as crisp so if you're playing a game like Halo or Left 4 Dead where a lot of pinpoint accuracy is involved, it's much harder to figure out what you're drawing a bead on. This can also affect action games or other titles with a lot of on screen movement. Things become a blurred mess on the SD.

Overall, the SD really does give next generation games a kick in the pants. Everything is dimmer on an SD, almost like a layer of fuzz is put over the screen. And games are programmed for HD screens these days. That means they are thinking about their textures, models, and HUDS on a larger playing field. It would be like if they tried to port Heavenly Sword onto the PSP... the screen is so much smaller that all those sections where the camera pulls back... boy you'd be fucked.

This is all from someone who absolutely refused (for financial reasons, mostly) to purchase an HDTV for more than two years after buying a PS3. When I got the HD, I started replaying all the games I'd originally bought. Some that I'd sold, like GTAIV, I imagine I might have liked better had I not played them on an SD.

dementedhut - October 06, 2010 (10:59 PM)
Agreed on how it's difficult to see a lot of things on an SD TV, and the sad thing is, you won't know this until you've switched. When I went back to play a Halo game in SD, I was shocked at how I couldn't even tell where the red dots on the radar were coming from. And Bayonetta, half the time it looked like someone splashed a bucket of red paint all over the screen. x_X

radicaldreamer - October 07, 2010 (12:42 AM)
What about framerate? Is that affected at all?

zippdementia - October 07, 2010 (01:14 AM)
Definitely. HD uses a much higher progressive scan than SD. Many flicker problems are reduced by switching to HD and the refresh is part of what makes the HD seem much smoother.

Keep in mind, if you can't afford an HDTV, playing on SD is better than nothing! So don't pack away your 360. But if you can pick up an HD, I would recommend doing so. Don't cut corners, either, when picking it up. A lot of HDs will cut their price and claim to be giving you a deal when in actuality they've also cut down the framerate or 1080 support. Do a little bit of research first. It's well worth it.

I have a Vizio and I absolutely love it. funny, I mostly use it as a hook up for my computer. typing papers and browsing the internet in HD may be unnecessary, but it's great.

radicaldreamer - October 07, 2010 (10:58 PM)
This is Radical Dreamer, and I wrote that. Glad you found it an interesting read.

Anyway, I did a quick search on HDTV's on Amazon but I was swamped with a million results and wasn't even sure if all of them were HDTV's. Any way I can narrow my research? Affordability is a big priority, and the main thing I'm willing to sacrifice for it is screen size. Any direction would be helpful.

overdrive - October 07, 2010 (11:10 PM)
From my experience as a dude who really fucking needs to upgrade his TV: small text is a negative. Let's just say that while playing Front Mission Evolved for assignment, I've learned to be GRATEFUL the game offers generic Wanzers that you can use as an alternate to mixing parts to build your own. When text gets to a certain size, it's blurry to the near-unreadable point.

Games like that are rare (from my experiences), though. From more recent plays, Oblivion and Lost Odyssey and Dragon Age aren't overly problematic, but can be a bit squint-errific with various sub-screen stuff and Comic Jumper is squint-errific for the descriptions of unlocked bonus materials.

So, overall, I'd say that with SD, you USUALLY will be okay, although the graphics obviously won't be as sharp. However, as I'm finding out, there is certain text of varying degrees of importance that doesn't display well on non-HD.

Through my mom via phone a few weeks ago, I heard that, supposedly, TVs will be cheap for a limited time in the near future. If that happens, I'm upgrading. It's not a HUGE inconvenience, but it's one that's gotten OLD over the near-two years I've had my 360.

Feedback
	zigfried - October 06, 2010 (09:24 PM) For the text part, you should be playing on a widescreen set. Otherwise, you'll have problems reading stuff until you upgrade your TV. I made it a year like that. Then again, if you've already got a widescreen TV, maybe it's just small. As for framerate, that's just because Xbox 360 programmers are ace wizards who make games that automatically deserve 10's. Higher rates are a lot more common than they were on PS2 or Xbox. If you're using an HDTV, it seems even more fluid. //Zig
	zippdementia - October 06, 2010 (10:45 PM) I can answer this because I played on an SDTV until late last year and that was well into my ownership of a PS3. I'm strapped for time at the moment, so I'm going to be brief. The shorter answer is: you really want to play on an HDTV. The short answer: you can very well game next-gen on an SDTV. But it does affect the gaming in many ways. 1) Many games use wide screen layouts now to display their HUD information (on Uncharted 2, I never knew how many grenades I had on the SD). 2) You lose a lot of color information when you don't play on an HD. I don't remember the exact details of this but it's a significant difference in data. Eye strain follows. Even myself, who is color blind, instantly gave a sigh of relief just from the difference between the SD menu screen and the HD menu screen. 3) Gameplay suffers. Why? Because things aren't as crisp so if you're playing a game like Halo or Left 4 Dead where a lot of pinpoint accuracy is involved, it's much harder to figure out what you're drawing a bead on. This can also affect action games or other titles with a lot of on screen movement. Things become a blurred mess on the SD. Overall, the SD really does give next generation games a kick in the pants. Everything is dimmer on an SD, almost like a layer of fuzz is put over the screen. And games are programmed for HD screens these days. That means they are thinking about their textures, models, and HUDS on a larger playing field. It would be like if they tried to port Heavenly Sword onto the PSP... the screen is so much smaller that all those sections where the camera pulls back... boy you'd be fucked. This is all from someone who absolutely refused (for financial reasons, mostly) to purchase an HDTV for more than two years after buying a PS3. When I got the HD, I started replaying all the games I'd originally bought. Some that I'd sold, like GTAIV, I imagine I might have liked better had I not played them on an SD.
	dementedhut - October 06, 2010 (10:59 PM) Agreed on how it's difficult to see a lot of things on an SD TV, and the sad thing is, you won't know this until you've switched. When I went back to play a Halo game in SD, I was shocked at how I couldn't even tell where the red dots on the radar were coming from. And Bayonetta, half the time it looked like someone splashed a bucket of red paint all over the screen. x_X
	radicaldreamer - October 07, 2010 (12:42 AM) What about framerate? Is that affected at all?
	zippdementia - October 07, 2010 (01:14 AM) Definitely. HD uses a much higher progressive scan than SD. Many flicker problems are reduced by switching to HD and the refresh is part of what makes the HD seem much smoother. Keep in mind, if you can't afford an HDTV, playing on SD is better than nothing! So don't pack away your 360. But if you can pick up an HD, I would recommend doing so. Don't cut corners, either, when picking it up. A lot of HDs will cut their price and claim to be giving you a deal when in actuality they've also cut down the framerate or 1080 support. Do a little bit of research first. It's well worth it. I have a Vizio and I absolutely love it. funny, I mostly use it as a hook up for my computer. typing papers and browsing the internet in HD may be unnecessary, but it's great.
	radicaldreamer - October 07, 2010 (10:58 PM) This is Radical Dreamer, and I wrote that. Glad you found it an interesting read. Anyway, I did a quick search on HDTV's on Amazon but I was swamped with a million results and wasn't even sure if all of them were HDTV's. Any way I can narrow my research? Affordability is a big priority, and the main thing I'm willing to sacrifice for it is screen size. Any direction would be helpful.
	overdrive - October 07, 2010 (11:10 PM) From my experience as a dude who really fucking needs to upgrade his TV: small text is a negative. Let's just say that while playing Front Mission Evolved for assignment, I've learned to be GRATEFUL the game offers generic Wanzers that you can use as an alternate to mixing parts to build your own. When text gets to a certain size, it's blurry to the near-unreadable point. Games like that are rare (from my experiences), though. From more recent plays, Oblivion and Lost Odyssey and Dragon Age aren't overly problematic, but can be a bit squint-errific with various sub-screen stuff and Comic Jumper is squint-errific for the descriptions of unlocked bonus materials. So, overall, I'd say that with SD, you USUALLY will be okay, although the graphics obviously won't be as sharp. However, as I'm finding out, there is certain text of varying degrees of importance that doesn't display well on non-HD. Through my mom via phone a few weeks ago, I heard that, supposedly, TVs will be cheap for a limited time in the near future. If that happens, I'm upgrading. It's not a HUGE inconvenience, but it's one that's gotten OLD over the near-two years I've had my 360.

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