The basis of the game, the Giants Engine has been the engine that drives Farming Simulator since its inception. Coming from a university project, the developers have been able to improve their tool in order to add features specific to a simulation game. Today version 8 of the engine emphasizes graphic post-processing effects.
It is true that Farming Simulator, even if version 17 was very far from ugly, did not shine with these graphic effects. The engine remains in tune with the times and can display models in high definition, with a high number of polygons. What was he missing? Post-processing effects.
Bloom, light scatering, volumetric fog, etc.
It's no longer a secret, we've been used to these barbaric names for ages in many games, including FPS based on Unreal Engine, Frostbite or Cry Engine. These effects aim to improve the graphics quality by providing realistic effects. Farming Simulator 19 puts them to good use. “It's no longer a game, it's a movie” a friend said to me, passing behind my screen during my tests of the game.
Without modifying too deeply the existing 3D models of the previous opus, the Giants Engine version 8 works wonders. It's the visual slap from the start of the game. Abundant vegetation, dynamically generated clouds, light scattering, realistic fog, depth of field, galore metallic textures, HDR, glare, ambient occlusion, all the ingredients are in the recipe!
New engine, new PC?
If users of the latest generation consoles do not have to worry about hardware, the same is not the case for PC players. The minimum configuration to launch the game is within the reach of all budgets: an Intel Core i3-2100T @ 2.5GHz supported by 4GB of RAM and a GeForce 560 do the job. Needless to say, this is to run the game in "Weak" graphics mode. FYI, I launched the title on an office oriented laptop computer equipped with an AMD A9 @ 3,2GHz processor which integrates an AMD R5 video chipset. This entry-level configuration could not display more than 10 frames per second, regardless of the setting.
Another configuration tested: an ASUS G552 laptop, powered by an Intel Core i7, 16 GB of RAM and an nVidia GeForce 960M. The game runs here in "very high" mode on condition that the resolution be lowered, due to insufficient video memory (2GB), at a resolution of 1280 × 720 (anti-aliasing allows for a very correct display. ).
Finally my test config allowed me to display, without any slowing down, the game at 60 frames per second. What's in it? An 8-core Intel Xeon, 16 GB of RAM and above all, an nVidia GeForce GTX 1070. She does the job. And on this PC, I even had the luxury of going beyond the “very high” setting by pushing the display distances of the scenery elements to 200%, all in QHD resolution. What else?
Here you are with a basis for comparison.
The Mac version suffers, for the moment, from repeated lags during the game even on a muscular configuration. We will correct this article when the issue is resolved. For the console version, I invite you to watch our live review of the PS4 pro version, made at Paris Games Week with the youtubeur Gwendal : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Nrwq-_mEsk
And the publisher?
The strength of the Giants Engine lies before its ability to integrate mods. And to do this, Giants Software provides an editor, but also a complete documentation, for their realization. These tools are available on the Giants Developer Network: https://gdn.giants-software.com/
Because beyond a gameplay that continues to evolve, it is above all the ability of players to customize their favorite simulation that has been the strength of Farming Simulator for 10 years. Today Giants Software provides version 8 of its flagship editor. It allows you to integrate the latest innovations, in particular on the creation of maps, from FS 19.
Adventure tempts you? Meeting on gdn.giants-software.com and let yourself be guided. Video tutorials will allow you to start on a good basis. Youtube is also a gold mine to deepen your knowledge, not to mention the countless number of modding teams, from whom you can ask for some advice on Facebook.
The rest of our FS 19 file
- Summary of the file
- Giants Engine evolutions
- New maps, gameplay: some welcome changes
- Crops: oats, but especially cotton
- Animals: the business of horses, not to mention the dog
- In the garage: Vehicles, at this level it's art
- Modding, the centerpiece of the game
- The opinion of the players
