Prior to the release of Trials Rising, Ubisoft ran an open beta allowing players on all platforms to get a soil sample. Digital Foundry took this opportunity to see how the Switch beta stacked up against the competition.
If the beta is anything to go by, the image quality and frame rate are the main concerns. The game runs at 720p and has a 1280 x 720 native resolution in docked mode, with a lot of low-quality alpha effects on display. In portable play, the game strives for 1280 x 720 in an attempt to match the pixel dimensions of the screen itself and relies on dynamic resolution scaling. Unfortunately, it can drop during more intense scenes down to 854 x 480 and with multiple players on-screen, it’s further reduced.
In terms of performance, the Switch version runs at 30fps in docked mode. Even then, there's still the occasional stutter and frame rate skip, resulting in the ride not feeling quite as smooth as it should. In portable play, performance drops are even more noticeable. As this test is based on the game's beta, Digital Foundry remains hopeful the final version of the game has resolved a lot of these problems.
Do you plan to pick up Trials Rising on Switch? Tell us down below.
[source youtu.be]
Comments 29
Pass. Even if the game ran well, not going to pay for a game with loot boxes in 2019. Should've been free to play.
Well, I mean it IS a beta test.
@Heavyarms55 one week before release? It’s a marketing move not a proper beta if there isn’t sufficient time for feedback to get back into the GM build. Hell, Amazon shipped my copy 5 days early for some reason so while that “beta” was running I was on a final build at the same time. And yes, that final build while fun does have noticeable frame rate drops etc still.
Absolutely slapping the word “beta” shouldn’t give companies a free pass, especially when that beta is literally days before release and the games already on trucks moving to stores.
@Kevember I know I could write the script for them! Here goes! “Game runs like molasses and looks even worse. Remember to like and subscribe! cue music” video would be 5 seconds long
I preordered this a while back since the idea of portable Trials is awesome..
..but...sigh...I'm really hoping the visuals are only because it's a beta...
@Smigit I see. I didn't bother to check when the actual release date was. That close is not a good sign.
The game looks great on Switch. Especially in handheld mode. Looks pretty much 720p to me. I haven’t noticed any drops in resolution or frame rate, so if they’re there, it’s extremely brief or just not discernible to the naked eye, or limited to 8 player on screen at once which 99% of the time is not the case. I observed this by playing the game for myself, not watching a video pick apart numbers a software program is spitting out.
Unfortunately, Digital Foundry does nothing more than rip games apart and tell you how they’re inferior in every single possible aspect (this does not mean I think DF are evil or have ill intentions people- its just a fact they spotlight negligible issues most would never notice). Trials, for example, looks and runs better than DOOM (another game that was picked apart by DF), and most people who bought that game were more than happy with it. If you wanna judge a game proper, play it, don’t watch a DF video. All that’ll do is brainwash you into thinking it’s a technical disaster when in truth it’s a perfectly competent game. I will say though, I’m glad Digital Foundry has pointed out the solid 30fps framerate. Quite a few tried to portray it as having a horrible framerate which I knew wasn’t the case after playing it myself. Goes to show people will literally say anything to crap on a game to manipulate you into not wanting to buy it.
Anyways, docked looks... acceptable. Nothing special but, nothing too bad either. It’ll do.
The game honestly looks solid and plays solid, and is so incredibly fun and addictive it’s practically crack on a cartridge. And that’s all that matters. I LOVE this freaking game. So glad it came to Switch- we are truly blessed to have this game on the system. It’s a fine addition to the library, and just seems made for the Nintendo audience. Extremely fine tuned physics based, gameplay-focused game. It’s exactly the kind of game Nintendo fans love from Nintendo. If this game had NINTENDO on the box it would be selling 2 million copies and heralded as the new “Waverace/1080p”
@Heavyarms55
It is actually beta, and not the final build.
For example, the replays don’t replay correctly. Moving objects do not move in the replays. You’ll still see the player moving if a lever is rising up or something, but you don’t see the lever actually moving so it looks like you’re just floating up through space. Yet the devs have confirmed they are not only already aware of the issue, it’s already been fixed for the launch release.
Case in point that betas are not final builds. And often they don’t really need much feedback because for many issues present, they’re already aware and they’ve already been fixed.
That said, the game plays pretty smoothly.
@JaxonH
DF has given Switch a lot of love especially John Lineman did you even watch his videos on Doom? He points out a lot of flaws but he always gushes over it and other ports like Warframe. They point out the pros and cons with objective information I’m sorry that’s so troubling for you in the era where review scores are 7-10.
No it would still be torn into outside of the Nintendo zealots, Trials’ core is about making precise landings and having 30fps with frame pacing hiccups makes high level play extremely difficult. You talk of manipulation but it sounds like you’ve been conditioned into not understanding these issues.
@JaxonH Others have said it releases in a week. Those sounds like a lot of issues that need fixing in such a short time.
Meanwhile you guys already reviewed it and gave an 8/10. Gotta be honest, this doesn’t really inspire confidence in the reliability of your reviews...
I'm sure the final version will get patches to improve the experience.
And I can absolutely understand the 8/10.
I was really happy with the beta, it ran pretty well I think
@JaxonH come on man.m, its an objective assessment not some kind of nefarious crusade to point your beloved switch game in a bad light. I mean they are not reviewing the game, they are not saying the game isnt fun or competent, they are not saying the game is a technical disaster. Your viewing DF foundry articles like a review rather than a objective technical evaluation.
@JaxonH Thanks for your comments on this and other games. I know you're truly passionate about gaming and I trust your opinion a lot. That plus my own impression of the beta, is making me consider to pick it up today.
Good game but its a really lazy Switch port.
@SimplyCinnamon53 Nah need a 10 minute 1 second video for ad revenue
@JaxonH
Wow. Hold your horses, dude. Don't go on a rant here, because you have a hard time dealing with criticism. Lots of people, myself included, enjoy watching DF's analysis videos, because they present facts, and offer a fascinating insight into some of the stuff that goes on behind the curtains.
Brainwashed? No, not really. Informed! Not brainwashed.
And then reviews have been popping up since yesterday and reactions have been really positive recommending players to buy the game because it's good and runs smoothly and it's a lot of fun despite ridiculous microtransactions (the content you get with your purchase is robust) and some drops (in some occasions). That's what reviewers have been saying: it is a great port considering Switch's limitations
DF will do a new video with all versions so then we will see if the final game is technically improved over the beta.
Dunno why some people get so upset over DF video's. They love the switch so please don't give the impression that they are anti Nintendo.
@misterMike
Nothing "hurts". Its just unfortunate fanboys like yourself now weaponize analyses videos to delegitimize as many games as you can, and it's unfortunate the effects of their videos has done more harm than good. Because their focus is always on how much a game doesnt measure up by nitpicking things most people dont notice.
@diwdiws @BrettAwesome @SalvorHardin
Woah woah woah.
I get that. And I do think there's value to be had in analysis. And I'm not implying DF have ill intentions. I'm not "mad" or "ranting" about DF as if they're evil.
But, I stand by what I said. I'm disappointed at the side effects of their existence and the disproportionate laser focus on rather negligible problems. I myself value their analysis so I can see how games actually perform. But I regret the impact they've had on the narrative around games. The result is often good games getting blasted from all sides over rather negligible mishaps.
@kobashi100
I assume you're referencing me.
I'm against what the videos have done to conversations around games, even though what they do is nothing wrong. This was a pretty decent analysis and confirms the game runs pretty well. Still, the effects not 3 comments down were "omg look at the issues" that weren't really issues for people who actually played the beta. Stuff sounds worse than it is. And that's what's unfortunate. People would come to different conclusions about games by playing them then watching technical analysis tell you about poor alpha particles and showcase worst case scenarios.
@Heavyarms55
It releases tomorrow.
But that doesnt change the fact there are proven issues present that are already confirmed to be fixed, but also, it doesnt seem to be "alot of issues"? Did you play the beta? Its runs solid. Looks solid. I mean... it holds a stable 30 even according to DF with only an occasional blip in handheld mode... res takes a bit of a hit, true (more in docked- but Xenoblade was 720p as is KH on Xbox, it's not the end of the world- handheld looks gorgeous)... just doesnt seem to be that many glaring issues to me. Certainly not after playing it for myself. It's not perfect, but... so called issues aren't enough to impact scores, which should be telling enough.
@misterMike
On handheld? Very brief dips? Probably not many people. Theres a difference between running at 480p constantly, and running 720p the majority of the time, with only occasional, "worst case scenario recorded" dips for a second.
And again, very brief framerate dips that last only a split second, in an otherwise unmarred, perfect solid line? Come on dude. I played that beta for hours. Docked and handheld. Its fine. The only framerate issues I encountered were during crash animations. And even then just very brief, flash in the pan stuff.
@misterMike
I agree, its nothing to write home about. It's really not. And I wish they could've done more with it in that respect. I have a large 55 inch 4ktv. I'm well aware it isnt the best. And that's fair criticism. In fact that's probably my biggest.
That being said, its serviceable... it's noticeable, as any 720p game on the TV is, but its decent enough given the benefits of handheld (where it actually looks spectacular). Which brings me to the whole PS3/Vita thing. It does look like a PS3 game... as most Switch games do. Which makes sense given it's a portable close to being on par with 7th gen consoles. That's expected. What's not true, however, is saying it looks like a Vita game in handheld. It looks nearly identical in handheld as even the analysis shows, so also like a PS3 game, but even better than that thanks to the small screen.
I agree it definitely does not look like a Vita game in handheld mode. That's an OTT reaction for sure.
Love this video! I always appreciate getting exact numbers so I can compare that to what my guess was. Digital Foundry does such a great job making interesting and fun to watch videos about technical aspects of games. I also appreciate Nintendolife's review of Trials. I would buy it if it ran at 60fps like I was expecting it to. It's still a good game,and I'd recommend it to people who don't seem to notice 60fps versus 30fps. Unfortunately, 30fps looks cheap and sort of "not really solid" to me. It really takes a lot of enjoyment out of a game for me, so it's the relatively rare game that runs under 60fps and wins my approval and gameplay time.
In a lot of ways, Trials HD had better graphics than this switch port, better looking textures, lighting effects, and shadow quality for example...and that game came out 10 years ago in 2009...look up some old videos to see for yourself.
Standard ubisoft performance!
Would love to buy one copy and be able to play on Xbox and Switch with cross progression. I think this game is perfect for Switch and don't really expect the same frame rate or image quality. I do expect the same great play and fun experience.
The review of this game was quite spot on. As for the DF analysis: must say I never noticed any framerate dips & the game feels very smooth, so don't know what anyone would possibly complain about in that department. Not my type of game, but definitely not a failure when it comes to how it runs on the platform.
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