X360 - worth it without "high def"?

[le geek]

Quick question for you lucky X360 owners out there...

Is the X360 a definite improvement, even if you don't have a high def television? I'm assuming GRAW and Fight Night are, but what about other titles?

PRG3?
Condemned?


Thanks!

Ben

[Oobgarm]

Sure. I mean, you're not going to be using it to it's fullest extent, but you will notice a difference. I've played it on a standard TV with composite cables, and it still looked next-gen to me.

[THATinkjar]

I can't really answer your question, but you could look at it this way (if you're a PC gamer)...

Does Half-Life 2 look better than Quake 2 at 640x480? Something like that, anyway. Yes, Half-Life 2 will look better at 1280x1024, but at 640x480, it still looks better than a previous generation game like Quake 2. Etc.

Am I helping?

[ClubNinja]

I don't have hi-def and I think the X360 looks great through standard composite.

[segagamer4life]

I don't have hi-def and I think the X360 looks great through standard composite.

yeah I run mine through regular composite, and its fine with me, I had it through a high def tv at one time, and its not a MAJOR difference, but there is a difference, but its not a make or break HUGE difference.

[njiska]

As someone who has run it in both i'd just like to say that the gameplay of the new 360 games alone makes it a worth while purchase be it in HD or not.

Now that being said if you only see it in SD then you won't have a problem, but once you see it in HD you'll never be able to go back.

[GrayFox]

Quick answer. Yes.

[Juganawt]

You'll miss out on higher resolution textures, and little details like Zacks Xbox strip written down his teletubby outfit in DOA4... but it still looks truly next gen and is worth every penny of your hard earned / stolen cash.

Grab a 360, grab DOA4 and GRAW, grab an Xbox Live account if you haven't got one, and join JohnnyRock, Njiska and myself on the next Fight Night.

I think the best way to think of it is like a PC game. Standard TV's are like running a game at High Quality settings, HDTV is like running it at Very High Quality or Ultra High Quality. Everything's crisper, sharper, and more detailed on HDTV but the gameplay experience is just as good without it.

[le geek]

Cool. I'm probably going to wait until E3 to see what is revealed. Plus it gives me time to save up for one. I'm most excited about Tomb Raider Legends at the moment strangely enough...

Cheers,
Ben

[Slate]

I haven't tried it on anything but HDTV (At walmart) But i know that even without a HDTV, It'll look next-gen. (I don't own a 360 yet)

[Chunky]

it looks great no matter, but say when your playing GRAW and you snipe it's so much clearer and crisp.

i went from from a older projection to a new HDTV lcd projection hatachi and well even burnout is really good looking.

[diskoboy]

Most definately..

Plus, if you don't have a HDTV, that's why microsoft came out with the VGA cord. 99% of PC monitors can recieve 720p signals (1280x720)

Just use your PC monitor for a cheap HD solution!

[YoshiM]

In S-Video (which is how I play) the games still look great. For PGR3 I think it actually looks better compared to the flat screen kiosk demo I played because on kiosk screen the course looked "real" while the car looked kinda fake. But that's just me.

If the only thing that's keeping you from getting a 360 (besides finding one) is the HDTV...just take the plunge.

[grimlock]

It looks fine either way but on a HD display, it looks much, much better. Actually, I think widescreen should be the biggest concern. Once you play in widescreen, it would be very difficult to go back :)

[unwinddesign]

I'm going to go against general opinion here and say no.

Why?

The games look rather run of the mill in standard def. Sure, they look slightly better than their Xbox counterparts, but there's really not much difference. This system was made to played with a widescreen, HDTV and 5.1 theatre system, and it really shows.

Perhaps if you don't originally play it on an HDTV, you can stomach -- and will even be wholly impressed by -- gaming it up on a regular ol' TV. However, once you experience the 360 in all of its glory (hell, my display is downscaling the 720p signal to 800x600, and it looks fucking amazing), it's tough reverting to the realm of old technology.

Better games have been released in the month of March -- Tom Clancy's G.R.A.W., Burnout Revenge and Elder Scrolls IV are all triple A titles of the highest caliber. Of course, you still have the older stuff like Kameo, Perfect Dark Zero and PGR3, but those can't really hold a candle to the second wave of games.

And there's always Geometry Wars Evolved... LOL (most addictingly frustrating game ever)

[CrimsonNugget]

I use a standard TV with my Xbox 360 since I do not have any HDTVs. The graphics are definitely better than current-gen, and they're even better with S-video hooked up.

I wouldn't suggest going the VGA route unless you can get close enough to your monitor to see fine details. If you have your monitor on a computer desk right in front of your face, go for it.

[Nesmaster]

Worth it without them? totally.

Will you get the whole grand package that is the 360? Of course not.

[Anthony1]

Actually, I would have to differ with most of the takes so far. I don't think it's worth it to get a 360 if you don't have a "widescreen" HDTV.


The 360 would be a dissapointment for me if I wasn't playing it on a widescreen HDTV. I mean, you would still be able to tell that the technology is definitely beyond Xbox 1, but the leap wouldn't be that significant. The High Def factor is such a huge factor, and the aspect ratio of 16:9 as well. Taking those two things away is a watered down experience. It's like getting a Ferrari with automatic transmission (if such a thing was possible). You go out and get the sexiest sports car in the world, yet it's neutered.


At the very least get the VGA cable so you can sometimes hook it up to a PC monitor to at least see what you really should be seeing. Even though the PC monitor isn't widescreen. Also, I would suggest hooking it up to a CRT PC monitor, not a LCD one. Not unless it has a super high response time. Even then, I think it would ultimately look better on a good CRT PC monitor like a Viewsonic. I would also play it in 16:9 mode even on a 4:3 PC monitor, just sit real close to it.


This will give you the experience that you really should be experiencing.

[Anthony1]

(hell, my display is downscaling the 720p signal to 800x600, and it looks fucking amazing),



Infocus X1 I presume????

[meancode]

Lets just say that I felt it a good idea to spend $1200 on a 32" Samsung LCD TV so I could play games at 720p. And yes, worth every-single-penny.

I tested games at 480i, 480p when I had a RCA EDTV. The difference there was pretty impressive. If your TV has component and you are using composite, for the love of all things good, use the component cables.

Switching to HDTV is a big leap too. Depending on the game, 720p runs laps around 1080i, and either shows you details and colors you cannot get at SD or ED.

To be specific to your question: Condemned looks very good in SD, I was very happy about this as I did not have a HD set when I bought my 360.

PGR3 looks very much bad in SD. The text on the HUD has serious aliasing issues. When you see the game in HD it is an entirely new experience.

A problem other than the graphics being not as crisp and detailed in SD, is these games are being build for the wide screen aspect ratio. When played at 4:3, some things just don't look good, and in some cases get cut off completely.

My suggestion would be to play a game in SD, then try it out in HD somewhere. You will be amazed. And as Njiska said, once you start playing things in HD, you will not want to go back at all.

If you are in the market for a HD set, I would suggest Samsung. I researched for quite some time before I bought my set (actually a techie purchase that I did not buy on impulse for once) and Samsung are very good. There is a reason they are the "official" HD set of the Xbox 360.

The bonus is they also have HDMI for when/if you ever decide to get a PS3 8-)

Here are some links for Samsung sets. This is the place I buy my expensive toys.

http://butterflyphoto.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=LNR328W

http://butterflyphoto.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=LNR238W

[le geek]

Well for those who recommend high def, I have a standard 36" Sony WEGA, that I got a couple years ago and will keep for some time. I don't want to play via VGA, RGB, in my computer room either...

The TV does have component though...

But yeah, I don't see getting an HDTV until they are cheaper. I'm saving up for my next car for cryin' out loud! LOL

Thanks for the responses though, keep 'em coming :)

Cheers,
Ben

[YoshiM]

I'm going to go against general opinion here and say no.

Why?

The games look rather run of the mill in standard def. Sure, they look slightly better than their Xbox counterparts, but there's really not much difference. This system was made to played with a widescreen, HDTV and 5.1 theatre system, and it really shows.

I don't know if it was my contacts that are defective but games like Fight Night look amazing, blowing the Xbox version out of the water. I know I could get it to look better if I converted a PC monitor or ponied up the dough for an HDTV. But should I have denied myself the fun by just waiting to get a 360 and an HDTV? I don't think so. I can't justify the price of an HDTV for *just* video games. DirecTV only has like 10 channels in HD-channels I wouldn't be interested in anyway. By the time more programming uses HD, the TVs will be cheaper so it wouldn't be a big decision. On the monitor side, I work in front of one 9+ hours a day. I'd like to kick back across the room and play on a 27"+ screen.