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Except that development ostensibly originally started for WiiU in or before 2013 when the game was announced. The difference in architecture between the WiiU a

Except that development ostensibly originally started for WiiU in or before 2013 when the game was announced. The difference in architecture between the WiiU and Switch is significant enough to make porting it a non-trivial affair. When combined with the other evidence that the Switch was rushed to launch (e.g. lack of browser, Virtual Console, etc.) even if you consider the "hardware nuances [to be] pretty well known to the developers" it's doubtful that they had the time to work around the differences between the two platforms as well as they should have.

Hydraulix989 10y ago
You do realize that other games have been in similar circumstances before, like FF7, and they have coped with it much better. My sources all tell me it is because the hardware is woefully underpowered (I don't think I can share any details), not because the software engineers were rushed (most game development is done under what you would consider "rushed" timelines, compared to the rest of the software industry as a whole).
- derstander 10y ago
  Yes, I do. Though I disagree that FF7 is a good example of a game in similar circumstances. Although FF7 began life on the SNES game, both that and an N64 version were completely scrapped before work started on the PSN version. I'd submit that starting an engine from scratch is a more straightforward task than getting partially through development on one platform, then having to port the engine and ensure it works reasonably well on both the old platform and a new one. Regardless of whether or not FF7 is a good or bad example, I agree with the general sentiment that there are other developers that have done a better job porting games across disparate platforms. My comment was merely to point out that having knowledge of hardware nuances isn't the same as being aggressive in optimizing for those nuances. I also don't consider a Tegra X1 to be woefully underpowered in the Switch's form factor. Given that and the other evidence of a rushed launch, it seems more likely to me that insufficient optimization is to blame. But I look forward to additional details, post-mortems, etc. becoming available (from you and others) as NDAS and such expire.
  - Hydraulix989 10y ago
    Yes, I agree with you about FF7, and although I have more interesting things to say, I don't think I can discuss this any further, sorry.
    - derstander 10y ago
      Understandable. Any idea when this info might come out, given that folks abide by their agreements?

Hydraulix989 10y ago

You do realize that other games have been in similar circumstances before, like FF7, and they have coped with it much better. My sources all tell me it is because the hardware is woefully underpowered (I don't think I can share any details), not because the software engineers were rushed (most game development is done under what you would consider "rushed" timelines, compared to the rest of the software industry as a whole).

derstander 10y ago
Yes, I do. Though I disagree that FF7 is a good example of a game in similar circumstances. Although FF7 began life on the SNES game, both that and an N64 version were completely scrapped before work started on the PSN version. I'd submit that starting an engine from scratch is a more straightforward task than getting partially through development on one platform, then having to port the engine and ensure it works reasonably well on both the old platform and a new one. Regardless of whether or not FF7 is a good or bad example, I agree with the general sentiment that there are other developers that have done a better job porting games across disparate platforms. My comment was merely to point out that having knowledge of hardware nuances isn't the same as being aggressive in optimizing for those nuances. I also don't consider a Tegra X1 to be woefully underpowered in the Switch's form factor. Given that and the other evidence of a rushed launch, it seems more likely to me that insufficient optimization is to blame. But I look forward to additional details, post-mortems, etc. becoming available (from you and others) as NDAS and such expire.
- Hydraulix989 10y ago
  Yes, I agree with you about FF7, and although I have more interesting things to say, I don't think I can discuss this any further, sorry.
  - derstander 10y ago
    Understandable. Any idea when this info might come out, given that folks abide by their agreements?