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Your friendly GAF heads up: Don't get HELLDIVERS on Vita

A

Amir0x

Banned
Edit: This game is crossbuy, so if you buy one version you get them all. This thread is basically a heads up to not waste your time with the Vita version as it's a mess apparently. And if you're a Vita-only owner, it's important to know. And yes they exist! ;P

So I was hearing for a minute now that the Vita version of Helldivers was kind of rough (understatement), but now some of the folk reviewing the game are confirming it's really rough. Probably you should skip and get the PS4 version if you have access rough.

Given the game's focus on coop play too, the types of ways in which the Vita version is rough make it extra avoidable.

From fellow GAFers:

Scanna said:
I want to clarify, beino the author of the VGNetwork review, that the 3/5 you see is actually a mistake, cause it's the grade for the PS vita version of the game, which really sucks. Something got lost in communication between me and the video editor, he must have only looked at the vita grade to create the video. Sorry, everyone, can OP edit the grade somehow?
Click to expand...

Link

Basically the review got 3/5 on VGNetwork because the Vita version is complete shit, and Scanna wanted to clarify that he would rate the PS4 version much better.

Hanmik asked Scanna if he had the same bad experience he did, to which Scanna replied:

Scanna said:
Awful, unfortunately. It's really telling that they skipped the precision shot section of the tutorial...
Click to expand...

Link

Hanmik said:
As a coop multiplayer game it is really fun and challenging.. as a singleplayer game it is a boring grind.
Vita version has some problems:
- Longer loadtimes.
- Shadows and some objects look terrible.
- Reload and throwing Grenades are done by swipping Down on the touchscreen on the back of the Vita. That is terrible in a hectic firefight.. terrible.. Grenades get thrown at other players feet and it is hard to reload instantly.
Click to expand...

Link

When I responded thanks for the heads up, Hanmik expanded:

Hanmik said:
I almost forgot..I joined several games on my Vita where there was 3 other players, the framerate went to shit.. for real I thought there was a problem with my Vita. It was like playing the game in slow motion. As soon as one player was dead the framerate was better, but once all 4 players were back, the framerate went to shit again.
It wasn´t like that all the time, but like 50% of the games I played on the Vita.
Click to expand...

Link


So basically on Vita:

● Framerate goes to complete shit at least 50% of the time in a 4 player game... to the point where Hanmik thought his Vita was broken. And this is a game heavily dependent on seeing its hardest content with other players. It's a single player game too, but it comes into its own when you have your other players. It's core to the game design.
● Shadows and objects look markedly worse on Vita. Expected, but for completeness sake.
● Reload/Throw Grenade is done by swiping down on touchscreen, and is an abominable mess that barely functions as an option in hectic gunfights. And grenades are an important part of life in this game.
● Missing Precision Shot Tutorial
● Talking to others, framerate is pretty much significantly worse than other versions at all time.


So, friendly heads up GAF. Developers are not going to tell us ahead of time and for obvious reasons, so at least now if you go for the Vita version you're informed. :)
 
N

Nesther

Member
Thoraxes said:
Yes, but not everyone may own all the systems. A Vita-only owner would be screwed by this.
Click to expand...

yeah but the OP specifies skipping the Vita version and getting the PS4 version instead, implying crossbuy doesn't exist for this version.
 
A

Amir0x

Banned
Yes, I mean play it on PS4 instead. Was giving the heads up if you have the option. Since it's crossbuy it's no skin off anyone's back, just thought I'd give the heads up. And if you're a Vita-only owner, you should know.

My apologies folks. It's early in the morning and I have insomnia, so I should have made it clear.
 
Tizoc

Tizoc

Member
Hmm been wanting to ask you if you got a particular game on Vita amir0x, mind if i pm you about it?

breakfuss said:
I doubt these people exist.
Click to expand...

They do exist on GAF, I've chatted with a few people who don't have a PS3 or a PS4 when it came to game suggestions. SHame to hear about the performance but I think it can get fixed in a future update.
While the top down aspect interests me, it feels very co-op for my tastes :p
 
S

Shinriji

Member
Too bad that the Vita version is trash. Lately I feel that more and more indies are releasing their games on vita with bugs, shit performance, etc.

Gonna wait for PS+
 
A

Amir0x

Banned
Shinriji said:
Too bad that the Vita version is trash. Lately I feel that more and more indies are releasing their games on vita with bugs, shit performance, etc.

Gonna wait for PS+
Click to expand...

I think it's the problem of more and more devs shifting focus on indie development tailored toward late end PS3/low end PS4, and as a result Vita is now having trouble keeping up in the world of crossplay.

Tizoc said:
Hmm been wanting to ask you if you got a particular game on Vita amir0x, mind if i pm you about it?
Click to expand...

Sure, PM away
 
N

Nesther

Member
Shinriji said:
Too bad that the Vita version is trash. Lately I feel that more and more indies are releasing their games on vita with bugs, shit performance, etc.

Gonna wait for PS+
Click to expand...

Yeah I was really bummed out by Isaacs performance: really long boot time and prone to fps drops once the screen becomes somewhat busy.
 
H

HassanJamal

Member
Dang, thats sad to hear, was looking forward to playing co-op with my family. Hearing all this though, may have to go with PS3/PS4 instead, which is a huge shame. Hopefully, they patch it.
 
I

impact

Banned
Aside from the framerate, you guys had to know this was coming. Vita doesn't have enough buttons for a lot of games and most games either have the resolution or framerate (or both) nerfed. It's just not that powerful.
 
A

Amir0x

Banned
bobawesome said:
3/5 hardly sounds like complete shit.
Click to expand...

Only because the core game is so good that it elevates the score by default. Scanna himself called the Vita version complete shit and it's his review :p

impact said:
Aside from the framerate, you guys had to know this was coming. Vita doesn't have enough buttons for a lot of games and most games either have the resolution or framerate (or both) nerfed. It's just not that powerful.
Click to expand...

I think it's good developers and Sony keep trying to find some way to support Vita, but at a certain point if you can't get a port functioning at an adequate level they need to Let-It-Go-Elsa.gif. ;)
 
S

Shinriji

Member
impact said:
Aside from the framerate, you guys had to know this was coming. Vita doesn't have enough buttons for a lot of games and most games either have the resolution or framerate (or both) nerfed. It's just not that powerful.
Click to expand...

Helldivers don't even look good or hardware taxing in the first place. I think if the port was handled by Blitworks, the final result on vita would be much better.
 
N

Necromanti

Member
The number of substandard and/or unpolished ports on the Vita is disheartening. I'm surprised some developers even bother at all to begin with when the end product is what it is.
 
Kssio_Aug

Kssio_Aug

Member
Vita rear touch does it worse then would do if never existed. I have yet to see any use of the rear touch that feels right. And its incredible how some developers use it that way, so stupid.
 
S

Scanna

Member
Shift Breaker said:
Eh, as bad as it is it can't be any worse than Jak and Daxter.

...Right?
Click to expand...

It's worse cause it's mostly multiplayer...
Plus, the almost online only nature of the game implies that every time you turn off the screen of the vita, it disconnects from the internet and sends you back to the title screen. Which is understandable during games, but when you are alone on the ship it is really annoying
 
R

Ridley327

Member
How bad are we talking here? My baseline for "you have got to be kidding me" for indie Vita titles is CounterSpy, which is about as bad as a port could possibly get for my tastes.
 
A

Amir0x

Banned
Ridley327 said:
How bad are we talking here? My baseline for "you have got to be kidding me" for indie Vita titles is CounterSpy, which is about as bad as a port could possibly get for my tastes.
Click to expand...

I didn't play Counterspy on Vita. How bad was that? Do you think it dipped under 20fps consistently?
 
R

redcrayon

Member
breakfuss said:
I doubt these people exist.
Click to expand...
I've only got a Vita. but I accept I'm in an extreme minority.

To be fair Helldivers was always going to be a hard sell to me. It looks like a game built for epic multiplayer sessions and I doubt there's another Vita owner on my train! :)

Still, I don't really see the point of trying to squeeze stuff like this and Borderlands 2 on the Vita if it barely functions. I'd much rather they focused on the SP campaign on Vita games, and this just seems pointless wthout pals to drop shuttles/mechs on.
 
R

Ridley327

Member
Amir0x said:
I didn't play Counterspy on Vita. How bad was that? Do you think it dipped under 20fps consistently?
Click to expand...

Yes, yes it did. It also had loadtimes that were close to a minute long.

I assume this game isn't on Unity, which I've had problems with in other titles on the Vita, but it's interesting that it's having nearly identical issues.
 
A

Amir0x

Banned
From the people I talk to about Helldivers other than Hanmik and Scanna, I don't think it sounds quite as bad as Counterspy the way you're describing it because at least in Helldivers if you're not playing a heavily co-op game you can get through the game OK. The game is still under 30fps a large part of the time but you can play it at least. It just gets progressively worse the more players you add and at four players it basically 50% chance of it turning into an unworkable slide show so we're talking likely single digit framerates.
 
I

impact

Banned
Shinriji said:
Helldivers don't even look good or hardware taxing in the first place. I think if the port was handled by Blitworks, the final result on vita would be much better.
Click to expand...

Neither does Dustforce. The game is not playable on Vita though....

I'm not saying this is right or should be encouraged. It's horrible. But it's expected.
 
K

Karu

Member
Scanna said:
I mean, a bad port of the last of us wouldn't get 4s and 5s right?
Click to expand...
If it's nearly unplayable or just an unpleasent experience, it should just get a "Fuck this game"-rating, Last of Us or not. Shadow of Mordor PS3 would be an example of that.

Regardless, a bummer. This "We will port no matter what" can be really annoying, especially if there are gamers who only have one of the supported platforms or there is no cross-buy.
 
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