Sprite Scaling vs. Early Polygon 3D - Which Holds Up Best? Real Console Hardware HD 60FPS

Join me as I dive into a side-by-side comparison of two iconic visual styles from early gaming: sprite-scaling pseudo-3D games-an innovative solution born out of hardware limitations that still look incredible-and early polygon-based 3D games, the first steps into a new era of graphics. Using real console hardware wherever possible, I bring you authentic comparisons that let you decide which approach holds up best today.
Please Consider Helping Me on Patreon, Becoming a KZbin Member, or with Hardware Donations or Real Hardware Video Captures!
/ consolecombat
/ @consolecombat
Hardware Potentially Used to Capture from Real Consoles:
ODV GBS-C for Scart YpBpr and VGA RGB to HDMI output.
Mcbazel ODV-II Component/CVBS/S-Video to YpBpr Converter.
RGBS/VGA to YpBpr and a YpBpr active splitter for live Streaming to play on a CRT while outputting to HDMI for KZbin.
The Famicom has been modded for RGB output.
Mister Pi FPGA will be used in instances I do not have access to real hardware. this will be noted in the video.
Emulation will be used in instances when I do not have access to any of the above mentioned hardware. This will be noted in the video.
I’m a fan of original console and computer hardware playing games and running software on original systems. These devices won’t last forever so my goal is to try to preserve and compare original real hardware and show what gameplay was like on those systems. As you can imagine, getting access to original hardware is difficult and expensive so if you feel as passionate about genuine classic gaming hardware like I do, please consider becoming a patron or donating hardware for the cause! Thank you.

[@ConsoleCombat]

Please Consider Helping Me on Patreon, Becoming a KZbin Member, or with Hardware Donations or Real Hardware Video Captures! patreon.com/ConsoleCombat KZbin.com/@ConsoleCombat

[@Feruchio1]

- Sprites are prettier, faster and more exciting. - Polygons are more realistic.

[@swapfiregame]

The sprite scalar games are better at achieving the emotional impact of the game. They are faster, brighter, and more intense. Once games went full 3D, the emotional component was decreased in favor of realism. Games are about fast, fun, interactivity and sprite scalar games do that better for 3D, than polygons; at least with regard to fast-paced, arcade style, shooting and racing games like this.

[@lazarushernandez5827]

This is a tough one to tackle. A lot of the Sprite Scalars are presented at a point where they were very fluid, while the 3D polygon games were on very early (as pointed out) 3d hardware. There was also a generation gap in some of the comparisons (16 bit Sega Cd Soulstar and Batman Returns vs 64 bit StarFox 64 and Vigilante 8). Galaxy Force 2 on Saturn might have been better compared to Stellar Assault/Shadow Squadron or Star Wars Arcade on 32X. You could also compare Power Drift to Diddy Kong Racing on the N64, unlike Mario Kart 64, that one uses full polygon models for the racers vs sprites in Mario Kart 64. The Rad Mobile/Gale Racer vs Daytona seems a valid one at the time: both are running on the same home console, both are ports of arcade racers, both made by Sega. Both exhibit 'pop up': the sprites only go a certain distance into the background, while the polys also have a specific draw in distance, Because of the hardware, the Super Scalar runs at a faster more consistent frame rate... On the polygon side, the Saturn did get better with Sega Rally. And some of those polygon games are the successors to those super scalars (if not outright, in spirit): -You wouldn't have a Cruisin USA if not for Outrun, you wouldn't have a lot driving games if it weren't for Sega and Outrun, which goes back to 1986 (Yes, there are other driving games which pre date Outrun; Pole Position, Sega's own Turbo and Monaco GP, and plenty of computer titles... Outrun was still a landmark title). -Panzer Dragoon is an evolution of the Space Harrier game.

[@f.k.b.16]

Some how sprite scaling almost always have an intense feeling of speed vs polygon. Would have been cool to see some games use both... Might have been a good way to get a Saturn Sonic game off the ground. But in the end we know who won this battle! Great video!

[@bjraleigh1439]

They should have done 'Sonic Drift SS' Super speed or sega saturn, either or. I'm not a fan of Street Racer on Saturn, but it may have been a good graphics solution with VDP2 floor, scaled sprites for racers and polys for trackside detail. I've always hoped someone/s would produce something in the homebrew scene to demonstrate it. Sonic R was ok in the end, but I've said this before, that the water in Sonic R looks that good they should have made a sonic water racing title of sorts with with sclaed sprites for the racers. 4mb ram expansion to really ramp up the number of animations for the racers too.

[@rashed2761]

sprite scaling had matured enough by early 3d games but even then the 3d games look and feel better

[@bjraleigh1439]

I think if sega got serious about doing a new racer on the saturn using only scaling sprites and line scrolling, they could have produced something really special.

[@koschmx]

Outrun still looks amazing to me.

[@ConsoleCombat]

Me too

[@inceptional]

Because of the premise, which is playing games that are trying to mimic some kind of true 3D view and motion, the 3D polygon graphics should hold up better by their very nature, but you can see that great sprite art and smooth sprite scaling can still certainly do a great job of compensating for the lack of proper 3D volume and perspective.

[@RetroArcadeGuy]

Fun thing about Rad Mobile I think that was the last scaler game before they release Daytona USA.

[@abcmaya]

3:50 Unlike Space Harrier 2 for the Genesis, Burning Force look so smooth.

[@MarcoPolo82]

Apparently, they have used some sort of sprite scalling by software.

[@bjraleigh1439]

Should have listed the dates the games were originally released. Most of the sprite scaling titiles were just really old rereleases. By the time the saturn, ps1 and n64, im not sure if we actually got any new traditional sprite scaling titles. Id have to do my homework to see if there were any.

[@ConsoleCombat]

@bjraleigh1439 thanks for your feedback. I’ll work dates into the process for next time.

[@ArneChristianRosenfeldt]

Yeah, 3d matured 3do 1993-1996 3dfx . Superscaler was pole position 1983-1992 wing commander

[@5871s]

Thanks for the video, the voice only comes from the left channel, this is strange.

[@ConsoleCombat]

@@5871s thank you for the feed back. I’ll have to recheck my settings.

[@foursquarehomerepair]

Using the Saturn for the Gale Racer/Saturn is fair and reasonable. Using the Arcade is also fair and reasonable, but I'd argue gets you two different answers. Otherwise generally I think the sprite scalers have more character, but the poly actually look better. Power Drift/Sega rally is a great example. And those sprite scalers were limited in their controls.

[@mariuszszarek1992]

Win for 3D

[@DukeDudeston]

Not sure Silpheed and Starblade are considered "true" polygon graphics... yes they do contain some but most of the footage, especially the background are pre-rendered videos straight off the disc. It can do very primitive polygon graphics, most the enemies will be, everything else is probably very well animated 2D Sprites. I know this is for a fact with Silpheed, I assume Starblade is similar.

[@bjraleigh1439]

spot on.

[@Eleminop]

Panzer Dragoon might not be the best example here. Most of the backgrounds/landscape is all vdp2 sprite scaling/rotation stuff. just enemies and objects are polygons. The scene you used, the sky, water, and reflections are all 2d done by vdp2.

[@ConsoleCombat]

thank you for your feed back.

[@BlindTrustProject]

VDP1 and VDP2 both uses some sort of deformation, rotation and scaling of 2D textures to display 3D graphics. That's why people usually say that Saturn uses Quadrangle instead of triangle : VDP1 manipulate a texture 4 corners to place it in perspective. VDP 2 ground and water planes are as much "3D" as the quadrangles drawn by VDP1. One can even argue that VDP2 infinite 3D planes are much more 3D perspective correct than the VDP1 Quadrangles (read perspective deformed 2D images) that can suffer of improper Z sorting, bad floating point precision and can't do triangle shape without huge deformation. The comparision is perfecty valid from my point of view.

[@Nebulous6]

I think every attempt to make a polygon version of Space Harrier shows how sprite scaling is its own thing and dominates certain types of presentation. kzbin.info/www/bejne/q2KrhaFvnM-AhLs

[@surfinbirdzx]

You got thumb up. But I don't get an idea of playing sound from both consoles all the time. My head almost exploded and I had to turn sound off:)

[@ConsoleCombat]

@@surfinbirdzx thank you for the thumbs up. I’m sorry for that the audio experience you had. I get mixed responses when I play one audio at a time vs playing one on the left speaker and one on the right. So I’m not certain which is better for most people.

[@locked01]

I've never been a fan of the SEGA superscaler days. Besides playing for a bit OutRun as a kid, the rest never appealed to me.

[@ArneChristianRosenfeldt]

Talks “polygon”, shows quads on Saturn.

[@ConsoleCombat]

@@ArneChristianRosenfeldt see the discussion on vdp in panzer dragoon in the comment section. Smarter people than us have a clearer understanding of how how quads act like polygons.

[@ArneChristianRosenfeldt]

@ in most of the video clips quads act as sprites or polygons act as sprites. Yeah, wait 10 years an you can emulate “act” any hardware. Panzer dragoon has a very limited level design tailored towards quads and VDP2 . Porting to Saturn was a hassle : see Doom

[@dr.charlesedwardflorendobr3952]

The Hang on on Sega Dreamcast is disgraceful. the Dreamcast is more powerful than the Atari Jaguar, and this version of Hang on looks almost like it was just 16-bit. the jaguar super Burn-Out which was also a scaler game is much better.

[@ConsoleCombat]

The Dreamcast version is from a 16bit port. The purpose of using that one is because I don’t have an actual arcade board of that version of hang on but i try to only use real hardware rather than emulation. Thats the purpose of my channel. I will next time try to make it more apparent as to what I was trying to do.

[@mark771977]

If anything 3D is noisy asf

[@ArneChristianRosenfeldt]

That’s why N64 is so blurry and Dreamcast has this interlaced blur filter. So, you don’t like explosions which fill the whole screen? Me too! Pokémon on N64 is the worst.