14 DAY TRIAL // id Software is one of the biggest and most respected development studios in the world, being responsible for cult classics like Wolfenstein, Quake or Doom. That is because it has made a name for itself by pushing the envelope in terms of performance on the platforms for which it developed, particularly for the PC.
But for its upcoming post apocalyptic shooter/racer hybrid Rage, the team led by John Carmack hasn't been doing so well in bringing the same amount of performance for all of the three platforms on which it will appear, the PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
The developer from id Software revealed to Edge magazine that, even though the more powerful PlayStation 3 would benefit from getting the game on a single Blu-ray disc, it would generate a lower frames-per-second rate than the Xbox 360 or PC versions, due to some hardware limitations.
Carmack said that while the game, which is running on the company's new Tech 5 engine, would achieve a 60 fps rate on PC and 360, the PS3 would only reach “20-30 fps.” He added that: “The PS3 lags a little bit behind in terms of getting the performance out of it. The rasteriser is just a little bit slower - no two ways about that. The RSX is slower than what we have in the 360. The CPU is about the same, but the 360 makes it easier to split things off, and that's what a lot of the work has been, splitting it all into jobs on the PS3.”
The developer didn't mention whether these things would be resolved until the game would be launched next year. Hopefully though, the very talented team at id will pull through and bring all gamers, no matter their preferred console, a great experience.