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Leo-Tyrant

Member
Jan 14, 2019
5,081
San Jose, Costa Rica
Unfortunately HDR is supposed to "just work" in Unreal, however when you do use it, it.. doesn't exactly look good, and that is the end of the documentation. It's one of those things we would like to get working further down the line, but we had to prioritise other work on the game.

Thank you for the response and insight.

Absolutely, the game itself needs to be great before thinking about HDR.

I do believe the game is already great, with only some lingering bugs. Congratulations to you and your team, you gave me something no one else does (an amazing isometric single player experience, with great visuals, great gameplay flow-feedback, an amazing WORLD).

I wish Microsoft-Bethesda could give you the Fallout IP...
 

Gitaroo

Member
Nov 3, 2017
7,985
That is so strange. This is one of those games that SHOULD have HDR by default (use of lights, highlights, colors).

Do we know if HDR is even coming in the future?
It was dropped but you can do the UE4 hack to add HDR yourself. I would not recommend it because it looks bad, black is very crush and you can't adjust.
 

Leo-Tyrant

Member
Jan 14, 2019
5,081
San Jose, Costa Rica
It was dropped but you can do the UE4 hack to add HDR yourself. I would not recommend it because it looks bad, black is very crush and you can't adjust.

Thanks, I would really like an official implementation that actually looks good, I can wait for it, or just enjoy the amazing SDR output (I think people are also confused with the HDR on this game because SDR looks SOO GOOD with the colors and lights that you would think its HDR).

I'm also playing on the Series X so I cant really modify things like in the computer.

What is a bit odd is how Digital Foundry or other outlets werent specific that this was SDR Only. Or maybe I missed it.
 

HoodedSoldier

Member
Sep 29, 2018
2,266
Thank you to a few of you who mentioned opening up the MS Store app to get the update. This shit is crazy that I have opened up the Xbox app at least once a day since launch and never got the update. Even when checking the store apps and update section The Ascent wasn't even showing up. I had to then search for the game which then prompted the 12gig update to auto download. I am pretty sure I will have to do the same for the ray-tracing fix. I should of just bought the game on Steam and saved myself the hassle.
 

Jogi

Prophet of Regret
Member
Jul 4, 2018
5,445
Playing on xsx and the main bug I run into is not being able to shoot. usually fix it via going into the menu. Couple random crashes, but I really hope this turns into a franchise. They've done an outstanding job in creating this world, it'd be a shame if this was the only entry.
 

ss_lemonade

Member
Oct 27, 2017
6,648
Weird bug where no enemies would spawn unless I restarted the game.

Huge difference in performance between graphics cards and settings (eg 2080s at 4k a stutter fest, 3070 at 1440 magnificent, but that is to be expected, but it is a punishing game on the gfx).

Still love it. Awesome ambience, excellent soundtrack.
Not counting the stuttering, a 3090 can drop below 50 FPS in certain areas when in 4k so it is quite a demanding game at that resolution. This is with the game pass version though, so no raytracing (and DLSS to help performance)
 

Ra

Rap Genius
Moderator
Oct 27, 2017
12,201
Dark Space
I've just started really getting into the game. Was playing on Intel integrated graphics because my 2080 died. Finally broke down and bought a mid-range laptop (Intel Tiger Lake 6-core, RTX 3050 Ti) to get me by until the good 5nm stuff drops in 2023. Game runs super well with RT off, 100+ fps constant, literally halved or thirded with RT on depending on the scene. These entry-level RTX cards are not built for heavy RT scenarios, even with DLSS activated.

Went and did Balls Deep at Level 4, found an area of Level 24 Ferals that literally one-shot me, but they gave stoopid amounts of XP so I used them as rushdown management training dummies until I reached Level 12. Could've kept leveling but got bored and wanted to move on with the story. Now I'm super overleveled for Poone's wet work. When and massacred the full metal guys and the following boss fight against the fat boys.

I'm really enjoying the game, great twin stick shooter, nice balance of arcade action and actual RPG-lite gameplay elements.

Thank you to a few of you who mentioned opening up the MS Store app to get the update. This shit is crazy that I have opened up the Xbox app at least once a day since launch and never got the update. Even when checking the store apps and update section The Ascent wasn't even showing up. I had to then search for the game which then prompted the 12gig update to auto download. I am pretty sure I will have to do the same for the ray-tracing fix. I should of just bought the game on Steam and saved myself the hassle.
That sucks. I bought it because they will never fool me into trusting the Microsoft store again.
 

Ricker

Member
Oct 27, 2017
7,983
Beautiful Province of Quebec.
Ooof at that Data Miner quest where you have to survive a wave of ennemies for 3 minutes...cant even do it on Easy lol...I have 4 sidequests that are either bugged(Rescue Ubi) or places I cant access yet so grinding for levels is kinda boring...oh well,I will try different combination and try and beat it...one day ;)
 
Oct 30, 2017
796
Ooof at that Data Miner quest where you have to survive a wave of ennemies for 3 minutes...cant even do it on Easy lol...I have 4 sidequests that are either bugged(Rescue Ubi) or places I cant access yet so grinding for levels is kinda boring...oh well,I will try different combination and try and beat it...one day ;)
Had to do a couple of side missions to upgrade my guy and equipment before going back on there. Leveled up like 3 steps and when I went back, I did it on my first try.
 

Acrano

Member
Nov 2, 2017
1,141
Germany
I caved and bought the steam version. I love this game so much that I don´t mind playing it multiple times with my friends. Good thing that I could import my savegame.

Windows Store is just such a bad experience, nearly every game poses some problems, like the 12 GB Patch which will not download automatically. I had realy bad stutters with DX12 gamepass but on steam it´s a lot better, also thanks to a tip I found.

Robspassion Where can you get the FOV Unlocker?

Damn does it look amazing with ray tracing, falling in love all over again.
 
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Robspassion

Member
Jan 10, 2019
90
Robspassion Where can you get the FOV Unlocker?

Hi! I found it on the pcgamingwiki website: https://www.pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/The_Ascent
under Field of View (FOV) there is the link.
However you should be aware that this tool will get detected as a virus. I had to disable the windows defender then extract the file and also create an exception for the file. After that you can enable the windows defender again.
Start the game then start the trainer. That´s it. Ingame press F9 once to unlock FOV and then press F4 as often as you like to increase the FOV :). Helps me a lot with enjoying this game since the Default FOV is way to narrow as I´m sitting very close to my 48 inch CX :D
 

Arctic Chris

Member
Dec 5, 2017
2,174
Ottawa Canada
I went back to clean up the missing Achievements on my XSX. I was able to get everything except two: Comprehensive (Fill the Codex); and Flatliner (unlock all the Enemy Codex entries). Not sure how I can finish the game but miss an entire enemy.
 

maouvin

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,757
Blumenau - Brazil
Got to spider mech yesterday.
After 10 deaths to the small spiders (which I only noticed exploding in my face on my 4th try), dialed it to Easy and bam.

The robot enemies on the way there were also a pain, until someone dropped a digital shotgun. Need me a digital something with longer range though.
 

Acrano

Member
Nov 2, 2017
1,141
Germany
Hi! I found it on the pcgamingwiki website: https://www.pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/The_Ascent
under Field of View (FOV) there is the link.
However you should be aware that this tool will get detected as a virus. I had to disable the windows defender then extract the file and also create an exception for the file. After that you can enable the windows defender again.
Start the game then start the trainer. That´s it. Ingame press F9 once to unlock FOV and then press F4 as often as you like to increase the FOV :). Helps me a lot with enjoying this game since the Default FOV is way to narrow as I´m sitting very close to my 48 inch CX :D
Thank you kindlyf for the explanation. Will try it out tonight after work. I also sit a bit too close to my 65 inch C9 :D
 

Quikies83

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,455
Mississippi
Got to spider mech yesterday.
After 10 deaths to the small spiders (which I only noticed exploding in my face on my 4th try), dialed it to Easy and bam.

The robot enemies on the way there were also a pain, until someone dropped a digital shotgun. Need me a digital something with longer range though.
Talking about the Megarachnoid? I've been stuck on this guy for a minute lol.
 

astro

Member
Oct 25, 2017
56,888
I gave this a go, I've played for about an hour or two. I did the opening mission and then a couple more after you reach the main hub.

I bought a Machine gun which feels more fun than the other starting weapons.

How long does it take before the game begins to give more powerful weapons and abilities? My friend wants to co-op together, but he doesn't have much time and if a game doesn't get into the good stuff quickly enough we tend to bounce off and pick up something more immediate.

I've got this shelved for now just in case we co-op, if we don't I'll play it through myself.
 

DuvalDevil

Member
Nov 18, 2020
4,176
Sooo... is the patch for Xbox already out? Sorry if thas has been answered already but well...I haven't gotten any notes on xbox for a patch.
 

Gjallarsean

Member
Oct 10, 2018
746
I gave this a go, I've played for about an hour or two. I did the opening mission and then a couple more after you reach the main hub.

I bought a Machine gun which feels more fun than the other starting weapons.

How long does it take before the game begins to give more powerful weapons and abilities? My friend wants to co-op together, but he doesn't have much time and if a game doesn't get into the good stuff quickly enough we tend to bounce off and pick up something more immediate.

I've got this shelved for now just in case we co-op, if we don't I'll play it through myself.
As far as more powerful weapons, you get some better stuff relatively quickly - within the first few hours, you should see the Dread AR drop, along with an LMG that's pretty solid. The issue is the abilities - those don't really become available for probably 3-4 hours. You can buy a few, but they're all prohibitively expensive at first, so you're just stuck with the Hydraulic Slam for a little while. And that's kind of the biggest issue the game has IMO - once you start finding other augmentations and throwables, the combat gets way more dynamic and interesting, but it does take a bit to get there. The atmosphere and environment did a lot of heavy lifting to get me through the first few hours until things really got more fun, but if it isn't doing that for you and your friend, it definitely might be one where you bounce off it.
 

astro

Member
Oct 25, 2017
56,888
As far as more powerful weapons, you get some better stuff relatively quickly - within the first few hours, you should see the Dread AR drop, along with an LMG that's pretty solid. The issue is the abilities - those don't really become available for probably 3-4 hours. You can buy a few, but they're all prohibitively expensive at first, so you're just stuck with the Hydraulic Slam for a little while. And that's kind of the biggest issue the game has IMO - once you start finding other augmentations and throwables, the combat gets way more dynamic and interesting, but it does take a bit to get there. The atmosphere and environment did a lot of heavy lifting to get me through the first few hours until things really got more fun, but if it isn't doing that for you and your friend, it definitely might be one where you bounce off it.
That sounds like a shame, it's a perfect setting and the gameplay feels great for us to play and chat while we do.

Still might try with him just in case we stick it out. Thanks for the feedback!
 

Panic Freak

Member
Oct 26, 2017
4,583
Ooof at that Data Miner quest where you have to survive a wave of ennemies for 3 minutes...cant even do it on Easy lol...I have 4 sidequests that are either bugged(Rescue Ubi) or places I cant access yet so grinding for levels is kinda boring...oh well,I will try different combination and try and beat it...one day ;)
There is a stair case toward the bottom of the screen that you can use to shoot people as they come down. I didn't even have to move once during that entire fight.

That said, this game is tough as nails on solo. How is it so hard to beat a group of enemies that are the same level as you?
 

sagi

Alt Account
Banned
Apr 6, 2021
250
I cant believe the gamepass version STILL does not have the same features (DLSS) like the steam version
 

Zissou

Member
Oct 26, 2017
1,889
What's going on with the bugs people are mentioning? Is the steam version OK and gamepass is fucked? Or is the gamepass version just more fucked but both are at least mildly fucked?
 
Oct 27, 2017
3,893
ATL
I have the Gamepass PC version and Ray-tracing still doesn't appear to be working for me. Was the last patch effective for others? I flip the RT settings on and off, but I get no performance or visual changes.
 

IMACOMPUTA

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,530
I cant believe the gamepass version STILL does not have the same features (DLSS) like the steam version

I have the Gamepass PC version and Ray-tracing still doesn't appear to be working for me. Was the last patch effective for others? I flip the RT settings on and off, but I get no performance or visual changes.

In the last page of this thread they said there would be an update soon adding DLSS and functional RT.
 

cyrribrae

Chicken Chaser
Member
Jan 21, 2019
12,723
Been playing this game quite a bit this week and enjoying it mostly. I think traversal is perhaps an overlooked weak part of this game, though, fast traveling helps a little bit. The map is SO BIG and dense and complicated that not being able to move around quickly hurts. And boy is this map dense. There are so many nooks and crannies that are not only useless and seemingly never really explored - but are unlikely to even be found by players. That's really impressive on one hand (even if they're using a lot of tricks to get there) and also surprising for a small team. Or perhaps it's indicative of not having enough editors to cut work.

I actually have been enjoying the story so far (just finished data miners). But, it really does make me wonder what a top tier RPG writing team could do with a world this detailed and realized and even reactive.. It's pretty dang cool to see what Neon Giant has achieved here.

Just let me run around faster!!
 

flyinj

Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,941
I have the Gamepass PC version and Ray-tracing still doesn't appear to be working for me. Was the last patch effective for others? I flip the RT settings on and off, but I get no performance or visual changes.

The patch still isn't out even though all the news sites say it was out two weeks ago.

No one seems to have any idea when it is coming out
 

cowbanana

Member
Feb 2, 2018
13,666
a Socialist Utopia
This was the first game I fired up to test my new PC last night. DX12, everything maxed including RT. I loaded up my post-game save and taxied to various zones to blow stuff up. Ran like a dream (Ryzen 9 5900X / RTX 3070 Ti).
 

javycane

Banned
Jun 4, 2018
410
Posted this on another forum but sharing here

I gotta say its a solid 7.5 (could push to 8) game.

Pros:

  • Incredible art direction
  • World feels incredibly alive
  • Fun gameplay loop
  • Rewarding (?) Loot system
Cons:

  • Too many bugs and glitches that just taint the experience
  • No HDR (or RT) despite being promised as features
  • The minimap on the top corner is useless without a layout
  • rpg elements kinda half baked
  • Missions way out of level given early or without meeting certain requisites for them.
  • Insane difficulty spikes at times
  • Bounties kinda make no sense?
In short I can say I really loved my time with it it despite all these issues and Im excited to see Neon Giant grow as a studio and how they develop the series going forward.
 

Ra

Rap Genius
Moderator
Oct 27, 2017
12,201
Dark Space
That FOV tweak is godlike! Robspassion thanks for posting that! I was getting tired of so many shots coming from off screen and having to blind fire until I had a visual.

This was the first game I fired up to test my new PC last night. DX12, everything maxed including RT. I loaded up my post-game save and taxied to various zones to blow stuff up. Ran like a dream (Ryzen 9 5900X / RTX 3070 Ti).
what kind of fps are you getting with the RT turned up?
 

Hawk269

Member
Oct 26, 2017
6,043
The patch still isn't out even though all the news sites say it was out two weeks ago.

No one seems to have any idea when it is coming out
Been waiting for a while for the Series X patch. Sadly no update from anyone on the status. Last we heard about a week and a half ago or so is that it was at MS for certification. But nothing since then. Perhaps it got rejected and the team is reworking it...but have not touched the game in 2 weeks waiting for this patch and would love to play it but will wait for the patch.
 

Jogi

Prophet of Regret
Member
Jul 4, 2018
5,445
I actually have loved my time with the game (one mission left), but I can't help but to think that the economy is almost useless?
You don't really have to spend money on most guns/augs because you just find them, and you get ucreds at such a rapid pace. Anyone else have a ton of ucreds just sitting there?
 

Snefer

Creative Director at Neon Giant
Verified
Oct 30, 2017
339
Been waiting for a while for the Series X patch. Sadly no update from anyone on the status. Last we heard about a week and a half ago or so is that it was at MS for certification. But nothing since then. Perhaps it got rejected and the team is reworking it...but have not touched the game in 2 weeks waiting for this patch and would love to play it but will wait for the patch.
It's coming very very soon, not rejected or anything.
 

Hawk269

Member
Oct 26, 2017
6,043
It's coming very very soon, not rejected or anything.
Excellent news and thank you for the quick response. Even though I have the game via Game Pass I still also bought a copy to support you and your team. The game is great...but what I hear about the patch it would make a big difference and the reason I held off playing more of it. Again...thank you to you and your team!
 

cowbanana

Member
Feb 2, 2018
13,666
a Socialist Utopia
what kind of fps are you getting with the RT turned up?

A locked 60 fps. But I only play at 1200p on a 60hz display. I have no interest in 4k or faster frame rates, but I'm getting a 1440p monitor once I find one I like.

The RT killer app is LEGO Builder's Journey where I only get 45 fps at 1200p with max settings and no DLSS. But it looks incredible with GI and is more than playable at 45 fps due to the nature of the gameplay.
 

Terbinator

Member
Oct 29, 2017
10,217
Been waiting for a while for the Series X patch. Sadly no update from anyone on the status. Last we heard about a week and a half ago or so is that it was at MS for certification. But nothing since then. Perhaps it got rejected and the team is reworking it...but have not touched the game in 2 weeks waiting for this patch and would love to play it but will wait for the patch.
The delays to patches being launched out on Xbox and GP PC are crazy given how much MS and the dev seemed intertwined for marketing.
 

Ra

Rap Genius
Moderator
Oct 27, 2017
12,201
Dark Space
A locked 60 fps. But I only play at 1200p on a 60hz display. I have no interest in 4k or faster frame rates, but I'm getting a 1440p monitor once I find one I like.

The RT killer app is LEGO Builder's Journey where I only get 45 fps at 1200p with max settings and no DLSS. But it looks incredible with GI and is more than playable at 45 fps due to the nature of the gameplay.
My new laptop has a baby RTX (3050 Ti), it's very interesting having these options on a lower-end card.
 

mcruz79

Member
Apr 28, 2020
2,789
Trying to finish this game playing solo.
games has incredible aesthetics And this is the main reason I am still trying to finish.
game really is unbalanced and while gameplay can feel good, i think that mission design is a little so so and specially the fact that we have to face many enemies to arrive in the point of the missions, the game gets a little boring and repetitive.
 

PeterVenkman

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,770
Been waiting til today to actually play the co op on PC Gamepass and it literally doesn't work. Aside from the Xbox app and Windows Store app both sucking ass for different reasons, the furthest we were able to get was "connecting to host." Nothing worked, even a fresh install.
 

voidecker

Member
Oct 27, 2017
130
Been waiting til today to actually play the co op on PC Gamepass and it literally doesn't work. Aside from the Xbox app and Windows Store app both sucking ass for different reasons, the furthest we were able to get was "connecting to host." Nothing worked, even a fresh install.

I've been waiting to try this on GP PC with some buddies, but have been waiting for the patch mentioned here

It's coming very very soon, not rejected or anything.

To see if it would improve the network connectivity issues I've been hearing about. Fingers crossed.
 

UraMallas

Member
Nov 1, 2017
18,847
United States
I thought I read there is a difficulty patch coming or was that made up?

I played the whole game solo on Normal without issues until the final 'boss' section with just ridiculous amounts of enemies. I finally relented and pushed it to Easy but... it's still fucking too tough for me. I was at 8.5 on this game until this very frustrating end.