Just finished the video. I agree that the game is improved overall. Looks gorgeous. Love that motion blur can be toggled.
I appreciate that Dark did a direct comparison of the water room. He does mention toward the end that the puddle room does look better in the E3 build but ultimately that it's due to artistic reasons vs technical ones. I agree for the most part.
Regarding the theory about cube maps -- it makes sense to pretty up a demo to make it look incredible. The move to more generic cube maps is understandable (having to hand-create a ton of detailed maps for god knows how many similar scenes would be insane) and explains why the reflections look less detailed. Also explains why they would use a smaller puddle, as the more generic cube maps would be much more obvious with more reflect-able surface.
What I don't agree with is the lighting change being chalked up to being "more realistic". This could just be preference honestly. The direct cast shadows looked more realistic IMO, especially given that you have direct (and bright) light coming in from horizontal and vertical sources. I'm looking around at the office now and see many over-hanging light strips cast shadows on nearby pillars thanks to the direct sunlight coming in from the windows around the room. The scene in the game looks like it has much bigger windows than we have in here, but, alas. No mention of character-cast shadows is kind of a shame, but, you can only fit so much in one video. They do appear less detailed for 2/4 onscreen characters in the scene.
But it doesn't matter! All in all, excellent analysis, and a great looking game. Well done, Insomniac.
