The Division dev says new consoles like PC 'home turf'

The Division managing director David Polfeldt explains that as opposed to the last generation, the new consoles feel like their "home turf" of PC architecture.

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The Division was one of the more visually striking games at E3 this year, thanks in part to the developer's long history of PC development. Ubisoft Massive managing director David Polfeldt says part of the reason the studio made the leap to console development in this new generation is how familiar the tools felt to them.

"We were a very, very hardcore PC gamer studio before," Polfeldt told GameSpot. "And we never understood the previous generation of consoles very well from a technological standpoint. But then when we saw the specs for this generation consoles... I remember we had a meeting at Massive and we just looked at each other and said 'Is this what I think it is?!' 'Is this our home turf?' Because on this hardware, we can be excellent; we can be one of the best. And as soon as we had that, we just started focusing on this generation of consoles like crazy."

There was one other reason it targeted the new generation of consoles and chose to leave out the last generation: Snowdrop. According to Polfeldt, the Snowdrop engine is "tailored to the current generation." PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 are not only different from PS4 and Xbox One, but also from each other. "So in our case, it would be like having to develop the engine for two more platforms," he said. "And it's just a huge job that we could do, but were excited not to."

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  • reply
    June 24, 2014 7:33 AM

    Steve Watts posted a new article, The Division dev says new consoles like PC 'home turf'.

    The Division managing director David Polfeldt explains that as opposed to the last generation, the new consoles feel like their "home turf" of PC architecture.

    • reply
      June 24, 2014 8:48 AM

      So hardcore that they've reduced the visual fidelity already, so consoles can compete.

      http://www.dsogaming.com/news/rumor-the-division-has-already-been-downgraded-visually/

      Granted, that's not sourced. but after the terrible problems and launch of WatchDogs, would it surprise you?

      • reply
        June 24, 2014 11:06 AM

        The stuttering with Watch_Dogs on PC is unfortunate. The worst part is the patch doesn't fix it.

        Don't preorder Ubisoft PC games :/

        • reply
          June 24, 2014 11:25 AM

          a good rule just in general, when it comes to Ubisoft. Wait for full reviews and/or 2 patches.

        • reply
          June 24, 2014 6:54 PM

          Don't preorder buy Ubisoft PC games :\

          FTFY

    • reply
      June 24, 2014 8:55 AM

      Bigger news from that article. microtransactions verified

    • reply
      June 24, 2014 10:55 AM

      I forgot it was these guys who made World in Conflict. That was an awesome game.

      • reply
        June 24, 2014 4:05 PM

        yeah it is

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        June 24, 2014 4:08 PM

        #1 reason why I don't think they're full of shit. You guys remember how fucking awesome Ground Control and World in Conflict were? These guys.

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          June 24, 2014 4:56 PM

          WiC was awesome at making you feel like you're part of a much bigger fight, controlling your little mixed squad using your superior tactics to inflict heavy casualties.

          Plus the offensive/defensive capabilities that each unit have are really cool.

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        June 24, 2014 4:11 PM

        Aaaah that helps a lot. That phrase alone does not instill confidence.

      • reply
        June 24, 2014 11:21 PM

        oooh I didn't know that. ground control and WiC were a+

      • reply
        June 25, 2014 12:23 AM

        [deleted]

    • reply
      June 24, 2014 1:18 PM

      [deleted]

    • reply
      June 24, 2014 3:43 PM

      I've heard that before.

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