Hey PlayStation.Blog readers! I’m Masaki Kawase, Lead Software Engineer and Shader Architect from Silicon Studio, and I’m thrilled to talk with you directly on game development for PlayStation 4. It’s an exciting time since E3, but let’s roll up our sleeves and get into the nitty-gritty on making games for PS4.
We’ve been partners with Sony Computer Entertainment for years now (PS3 fans remember Silicon Studio for the PS3-exclusive 3D Dot Game Heroes), and we couldn’t be more delighted to work on PS4. PlayStation is in prime position with PS3 and PS Vita, but PS4 will bring souped-up visuals for gamers anticipating cutting-edge experiences.
We’re made up of two parts: first, we make traditional games, but second, we provide middleware solutions to developers around the world. YEBIS 2 is our most recent middleware offering, a real-time post-processing lens simulation middleware, famously utilized in Square Enix’s trailer of Final Fantasy XV. We’ve worked with Square Enix for years, and we are thrilled to integrate our post-processing effects software into their game engine. Agni’s Philosophy looks beautiful, and it’s in part because of the developmental research and work we put into YEBIS 2.
At this time, there’s no other piece of software other than YEBIS 2 that provides developers post-processing physically-based optics simulation, granting devs multi-color customizable glare effects, advanced depth of field, motion blur, high dynamic range options, active color adjustment, and cross-platform compatibility – all in real-time. Our proprietary algorithm ensures a balance between post-rendering speed, quality, and performance.
YEBIS 2 has been in R&D for a decade now, and you’ll see it in more games as we settle into this next generation. Developers appreciate our software as it piggybacks on a game’s engine itself (e.g., Square Enix’s Luminous Engine, Direct X 11 and so on). Within a day, artists go from having no post-processing effects to incorporating the full suite of features in one library, such as lens flare, bokeh effects, vignetting, and more. If you watch the trailer of Final Fantasy XV, and the tech-demo Agni’s Philosophy, you’ll see YEBIS 2 enabling those teams to push PS4 visually.
Middleware is an important key to next-gen development. In the current generation, games could be developed entirely by the dev team utilizing their own proprietary software. With this next generation, development time, manpower, and other resources have increased, so a smart studio will look for any opportunity to save time and streamline their processes. This is where we come in: on PS4 you will see our middleware literally shine. Take a look at our effects trailer to see our effects in action.
As Square Enix’s CTO Yoshihisa Hashimoto says, “YEBIS 2 is a high quality solution set for post-processing. For this reason in the current situation where lower costs are also considered important, if a new team is going to be developing things from scratch then I think using YEBIS 2 is a good deal from the perspectives of both cost and development efficiency.”
Minimizing costs and maximizing visuals is important. One key feature of Japanese development is a focus on visuals. For developers in Japan – and abroad – interested in high-end visual effects and realism, YEBIS 2 lets them create impressive and natural lighting without detracting from the horsepower of PS4.
Basically, any developer that uses YEBIS 2 will be able to perform high-level visual effects without the traditional hardware obstacles many expect when pushing technical limits. Because of our extended research, YEBIS 2 will let game developers better focus on what gamers care about: video games.
PS4 is a top-line piece of hardware, and everyone at Silicon Studio cannot wait to see YEBIS 2 in full glory on PlayStation’s new platform. Believe me — we are only scratching the surface of greatness.
Developers interested in trying YEBIS 2 on their game can download it here.
Fascinating stuff to be sure, but if you want to confirm 3D Dot Game Heroes 2 in the comments, go for it. I loved that game. ;)
I think that some of their effects are great but some, not so much. Bleaching and blurring the whole screen does nothing for me. I like to see the detail the devs put into the world not a world over-saturated with light effects and blurs that look like they come from a mall photographer.
Agni’s Philosophy should be Final Fantasy XV instead of that emo game called Versus XIII.
Damn that looked really awesome can’t wait to see more of your work
ok give us our release date for the PS4 already.. we been waiting long enough…now your just teasing us
@Monterossa
Wow really!? Now all of a sudden vs13 isn’t so good cause it’s FFXV? w.e
We need 3D Dot Game Heroes 2 on PS4 or PS Vita!!
(make sure it’s a physical release if you do, I’m soo tired of this digital only release crap on PS Vita already. Like people have unlimited HDD/MC space smh,
3D Dot Game Heroes 2 for PS Vita and PS4!
On PS Vita you could tone down the special effects, just make it native res, 4xMSAA. On PS4 turn the fireworks up to 200%!
can someone name all the games shown for me?
I’ll admit Agni’s Philosophy better come to be a real game tho. I was expecting it to be a game to look forward to
YEBIS? The logo in the video looks as though it is meant to me EYEBIS.
@9 Teflon02
I wish square would focus more on getting their games done instead of fiddling around with tech demos. What is the point?! Just make awesome games again!
@Teflon02- on the bottom right hand of the screen it says a few names but its mostly Agnis Philosophy tech demo, then there was Monster Monpiece and Gunslinger Stratos
Like you said Ghostwize, “I wish square would focus more on getting their games done instead of fiddling around with tech demos. What is the point?! Just make awesome games again!”
As much as i personally hated 3D Dot heroes, i thought it looked beautiful. I also liked the Agnes Philosphy tech demo you guys made. Hopefully this will be used to compliment the gameplay in games instead of the graphics being the only main focus, in the case of recent Square Enix FF Games.
I want my PS4 NOW! Waiting until Christmas is TOO MUCH!
Hey Masaki Kawase, did Sony give you a firm release date for this system yet? Yes/No
I think your post development would definitely help PS4 games which eat up tons of space on visuals. Devs, may have their own vision or intent of what it should look like an opt not to use your program & spend the extra time & space & horsepower of the system.
What do you say to them?
All I see is a blurry lens set on top.
I love how we all see the Silicon Studio logo and immediately wish for 3D Dot Game Heroes 2.
I want a sequel too :(.
Wait a minute, so you guys are the ones responsible for the engine used for Agni’s Philosophy and Final Fantasy XV?
Awe yeeeaaah glad my launch Ed PS4 is already pre-ordered just need a release date now!!!!!!!!!!
Give me OTOGI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I only see gloom and lack of definition…bad for you.
Yes and no. Some were nice, but some simply blurred everything.. I really dislike extreme light, I prefer seeing more details instead..
Hopefully another company picks this up and does something cool wit it. Square Enixs issue isnt really that their games don’t look good enough graphically, but thats another issue. Its cool stuff, cant wait to see what happens regardless.
Does anyone know what programs support this I jumped the gun thinking it would work with autodesk programs
Agni’s Philosophy PS4 please!
Am I the only one that thought that filter made almost every example look worse then it did before the filter? So you guys are the ones that will make the blurry/fog crap I don’t like to see in games? Thanks and congrats. I hope this wont be on all games.
I like what this middleware is doing. Instead of everything being super crystal clear, which is unrealistic, things that should be out of focus are out of focus, and sun glare that is supposed to be in your eyes causes the scene to wash out, just like it would in real life. I can appreciate this technology. Brings a lot more realism to the scenes, instead of everything simply looking “crisp” and “clear”.
This is absurdly interesting. More of these kinds of post please?
3D Dot Game Heroes would be epic on Vita + cross save. New touch-based character creation? Yes please.
With the lack of power in the AMD cpu’s compared to the Core series from Intel, I wonder if any 1080p games will actually be able to run this or if the res will have to be dropped to 720p to make up for the lack of power in the cpu and gpu of the “next-gen” consoles. (yes, I am still not happy about the next-gen not being next-gen! But you can share videos of yourself gaming *sarcasm*)
I would also like to see some serious testing on gaming computers where resolution is not limited to 1080p to see what kind of hardware is actually needed to take full advantage of this.
If implemented correctly by devs, this could be a great addition to games but the blurring and flare effects really need to be kept to a minimum, in my opinion. I think Skyrim would benefit from this for those sweeping views on top of the mountains!
This is great stuff. I can’t wait to see games actually using this tech to push the PS4. It’s a great time to be a gamer, that’s for sure.
In most cases, the glare effect causes the image to just be blurry and the definition of things just go down too far to be nice looking.
I don’t understand what everyone’s complaining about. People always say they want games to look more realistic, well this is about as realistic as they can get! It really adds that extra something to the game when the visuals look just as they would in real life! Can’t wait to get my PS4! Just watching the videos and seeing the expressions in the characters faces, and looking at the realism I’ve seen so far has got me so excited! Granted they should have an option to turn it off for the complainers. Personally though, I think games looking that real is perfect!
Some of you are either way insane or gamers at heart with no idea of game development or what this video was trying to provide.
Yebis is a firm middleware that is likely to excite developpers in many ways.
Yes some segments were ok and others not so much but I must say this middleware is a game director’s dream, especially for pre-rendered scene or “cut scene” where post processing boundaries can go really far.
Now I agree with you, subtlety is key. Some of these effects need some tweak to subtle blur/DOF, and/or flare(s). You also know that no matter who is working on those games, they are still in production and hopefully to be slightly revised.
Though, if Yebis brings what it claims which is to reduce workflow and time consumption for post proc then this middleware is effectively advantaging devs.
I have to agree with socialclimber_85. I understand it’s a demo but at times it was a little too much. If I’m not mistaken the PS3 had some white wash issues with a few of it’s games. I hope they tone this down a bit and put the ability to see what’s going on above realistic glare.
P.S. This is not an actual photo of me. (If you didn’t pick up on my sarcasm it’s because I wasn’t being sarcastic, that is not a photo of me, I swear)
I just looked in the mirror. I apologize. As it turns out, this IS an actual photo of me. Sorry for the confusion.