First impressions of Alien: Isolation suggested parity between the PS4 and Xbox One versions, with both sporting native 1080p visuals while sharing an extensive range of assets and graphical effects. Performance is an issue though, with PS4 commanding a distinct advantage thanks to a more consistent frame-rate and a complete lack of screen tear.

On the basis of those results, it seems like a clear win for Sony's system, but with the game available across no less than five different systems we were also interested to see how Creative Assembly's game translated onto the ageing Xbox 360 and PS3, and of course what benefits the PC version brings. On top of that, there was also those stuttering cut-scenes: what was causing that judder?

To kick things off, let's start by taking a close look at Alien: Isolation on PC. Early impressions suggest a game that is extremely easy to run at high frame-rates while requiring only modest hardware set-ups, but exactly what kind of experience are we getting compared to PS4 and Xbox One? We start by selecting a 1080p resolution to match the console versions and opt for SMAA T2x, the highest available anti-aliasing preset in the game.

Surprisingly, image quality closely reflects the consoles, with only minor differences in the AA pattern at a pixel level, leading us to believe that all three share the same basic method of dealing with jaggies. Long edges and sub-pixel details suffer from pixel crawl and shimmering, while shader aliasing is commonplace across specular reflections throughout the game. Still, while there's nothing you can do to improve image quality on console, on PC it's possible to force other anti-aliasing techniques via the GPU control panel to clean things up further.

This content is hosted on an external platform, which will only display it if you accept targeting cookies. Please enable cookies to view. Manage cookie settings Alien: Isolation compared on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Use the full-screen button and full HD resolution for the best viewing experience. Please feel free to also check out our PC comparison videos below too.

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Generally speaking, texture quality, modelling and lighting are a match between consoles and PC running at ultra settings. Texture filtering also appears to be identical. with all three versions operating using 16x anisotropic filtering, although there are a few discrepancies where some surfaces are filtered more cleanly on one system than another. The PC does benefit when it comes to shadows and ambient occlusion though. The use of contact-hardening soft shadows creates smooth-looking diffused edges, which appear more natural thanks to hard-edged shadows with dithered filtering. Meanwhile, HDAO appears to be present across all three formats, although the effect is a little more buggy on PC. Some surfaces seem to lack coverage in certain scenes, while the effect is visibly present elsewhere. [UPDATE 12/10/14 09:36: Creative Assembly has confirmed that HDAO isn't implemented on console].

So far, it's fair to say there's only a minor boost in graphics quality on PC compared to PS4 and Xbox One. Instead, the major differential rests with performance, where PC completely trounces consoles. Obviously this comes down to individual hardware configurations, but benchmark tests show high frame-rates using mid-range GPUs, even with ultra settings enabled. Cards such as the Radeon HD 7870 can hit 60fps, while high-end GPUs manage well over 100fps. Our own gaming rig featuring an Intel Core i5 3570 and GTX 780 has no problems in delivering a solidly v-synced 60fps at 1080p using ultra settings, resulting in an experience that looks and feels so much smoother to play than the PS4 and Xbox One versions.

Texture quality, modelling and lighting are a match between PS4 and Xbox One, which in turn is uncannily similar to the ultra preset on PC. The use of contact-hardening soft shadows gives these elements a smoother, more natural appearance on PC. The penumbra is diffused more heavily under certain lighting conditions, simulating how shadows come into contact with objects at various distances. Ambient occlusion initially appears to be a match across PS4 and Xbox One, but only PC has HDAO. However the overall effect is a little more buggy on the PC, with more unreliable coverage in some scenes. Image quality leaves much to be desired across all platforms. While the sharpness of a native 1080p presentation is appreciated, the anti-aliasing solution in play here fails to tackle jaggies and shader aliasing to a respectable degree, so excessive shimmering is frequently present. Lighting is completely dynamic in Alien: Isolation, casting shadows across characters and the environment equally on both consoles. The way locations are illuminated is used to dramatically alter the atmosphere and feel throughout the game.

In comparison, both consoles target 30fps as the target frame-rate, although neither manages to solidly stick to it under load. Performance is mostly stable on PS4 with frame-rates incurring a light drop in combat, but the action remains v-synced at all times, so we never encounter any tearing. The main distraction comes in the form of brief freezes throughout the game, which temporarily sees frame-times languishing in the 200-460ms area, depending on the length of the pause.

A look at the Xbox 360 and PS3 builds suggests poorly optimised asset streaming could be the cause. Xbox One code suffers from fewer issues with the engine stalling, although the game struggles to maintain anything approaching a consistent 30fps. Frame-rates are extremely variable, with gameplay averaging 28fps for prolonged periods, with some noticeable screen tearing. Essentially, the framebuffer is flipped a little late if the render isn't able to deliver a complete frame in time for a 33.33ms refresh.

Judging by PC results on lower-end hardware, it doesn't seem outside the realms of possibility for the PS4 - and to a lesser extent the Xbox One - to deliver something closer to a 60fps experience given the benefits of closed-box optimisation. So what could be the limiting factor on consoles? Perhaps the low-power AMD CPU cores are to blame.

This content is hosted on an external platform, which will only display it if you accept targeting cookies. Please enable cookies to view. Manage cookie settings The PS4 version of Alien: Isolation mostly hits a solid 30fps throughout, with frame-rates only mildly impacted in more demanding scenes. On the other hand, performance takes a bigger hit on the Xbox One, where frequent frame-rate drops and tearing is commonplace.

Moving on, performance is unbelievably disappointing across all formats during cut-scenes, where no version of the game delivers a satisfactory experience. These appear to be capped at 30fps on PC but still suffer from frequent judder that ruins any cinematic impact. On console things are considerably worse, with variable frame-rates dropping into the low 20s and below as these sequences degrade into a stuttering mess. Curiously, some scenes see the Xbox One gain a distinct advantage over the PS4 and vice versa.

The cause of the judder comes from constant uneven frame delivery, where we see some frames rendered at 16.67ms, some at 33ms and others at 50ms. What is interesting is these scenes don't appear to be rendered in real time. Instead, they appear to have been created using offline-rendered in-game assets. It seems that video playback is severely impacted by the game loading data in the background and this causes skipped frames, judder and massive variances in performance.

Alien: Isolation is primarily built around running on next-gen hardware, but the game is also available for the Xbox 360 and PS3 and we were particularly interested to see how well the experience holds up on these ageing consoles. Does the lack of raw horsepower lead to significant changes to the graphical make up of the game, or has Creative Assembly managed to keep the core experience intact despite steep technological limitations?

This content is hosted on an external platform, which will only display it if you accept targeting cookies. Please enable cookies to view. Manage cookie settings Cut-scenes descend into a stuttering mess across both consoles as frames are repeatedly dropped. These sequences are seemingly pre-rendered, but playback is impacted by what we suspect is behind-the-scenes streaming as the game loads in data for the next chapter.

Remarkably, as we saw with Bungie's Destiny, the look and feel of Alien: Isolation successfully translates over to the last-gen hardware - dynamic lighting and volumetric fog effects infuse the world with plenty of atmosphere, while environments remain highly detailed and authentic to the developer's original vision. That said, there are inevitably some significant cuts in graphical quality that eat away at the game's moody presentation.

Resolution is dropped from the native 1080p to a more manageable sub-HD framebuffer. In this case we're looking at something in the region of 1120x680 on 360 and an even lower 960x680 on PS3, with both versions sporting cheap post-process anti-aliasing solutions that miss plenty of edges while impacting texture quality significantly [UPDATE 12/10/14 09:36: Creative Assembly says that both last-gen console versions have a 720p vertical resolution, but there's definitely a significant reduction on both versions' horizontal]. The reduction in resolution means the game looks softer, while upscaling accentuates jaggies - issues that affect the PS3 version more prominently due to its smaller framebuffer.

Geometry detail doesn't appear wildly different to the PS4, Xbox One and PC builds, with the modelling of characters and environments comparing favourably, although incidental details - such as debris and papers scattered across the floor - are either removed or cut back. Additionally texture detail, normal maps, lighting and effects work are also pared back to accommodate the massive drop in available memory capacity and processing power compared to the PS4 and Xbox One.

Texture resolution takes a massive hit against the current-gen consoles and PC on 360 and PS3, while normal map details on many surfaces are either pared back or culled entirely. Fewer objects cast shadows on the 360 and PS3 versions of Alien: Isolation, while the number of light sources is also pared back. Indirect lights in particular are the ones that are primarily cut. Fewer objects cast shadows on the 360 and PS3 versions of Alien: Isolation, while the number of light sources is also pared back. Indirect lights in particular are the ones that are primarily cut. A number of post-processing effects are absent in the 360 and PS3 versions. Here we see how the removal of motion blur and chromatic aberration reduces the intensity of action sequences and the general cinematic look of the game. Depth of field and film grain both remain intact. Creative Assembly makes a few extra cuts to the PS3 code of Alien: Isolation over the 360 release. Texture resolution and normal map quality are reduced compared to on the 360. Specular reflections are also missing on various surfaces on the PS3, although this seems more like a bug rather than a deliberate downgrade, since the effect is present in some scenes.

On the whole, indirect light sources are given the chop, fewer objects cast shadows, lens flare is simplified and chromatic aberration effects are gone, while ambient occlusion is downgraded to a low-quality SSAO implementation that looks rough. Camera and object blur are also missing entirely on 360 and PS3, reducing the intensity of fast-paced scenes and combat encounters, although depth of field and film grain effects remain present, so the game doesn't entirely lose the filmic look Creative Assembly is aiming for. Besides the downgrade in resolution, PS3 owners are also hit with lower-resolution textures and normal maps, along with a graphical bug that results in missing specular reflections on some surfaces.

Performance wise, Alien: Isolation is a shaky affair on last-gen consoles, with both versions suffering from heavy frame-rate drops from the target 30fps and plenty of screen tear. Out of two consoles it's the Xbox 360 that comes out on top under load - particularly in scenes where there are a number of light sources and alpha-based effects on-screen - although frame-rates still regularly take a dive down to the mid-twenties and below in these situations. Demanding scenes hit the PS3 much harder as the game stutters itself through more detailed locations. Shockingly, frame-rates come crashing down still further at some points, as the engine stalls while waiting for data to be streamed in.

Both versions suffer from these stalls in rendering, although the issue is more prevalent on PS3. Alien: Isolation requires installation on both consoles, with the game streaming data concurrently from disc and hard drive. On 360, content from the first disc is automatically installed while the game runs from the second disc. This set-up is supposed to increase available bandwidth and alleviate streaming issues, but performance is still impacted. As the game briefly freezes we can hear the disc drive chugging away as it tries to load the relevant data in time. As with other games that dual-stream from both physical media and the HDD, we advise not to install the second disc as this could worsen these performance issues.

This content is hosted on an external platform, which will only display it if you accept targeting cookies. Please enable cookies to view. Manage cookie settings As expected, the 360 and PS3 versions of Alien: Isolation are visibly pared back, but performance is the bigger issue.

Loading times in general are very long between missions and also disrupt gameplay when moving from one large location to another. Often we find ourselves waiting 10 seconds or more for doors to open, while some scripted events take even longer to kick in. In one sequence the Alien failed to load in at all and we were left taking on enemies that were supposed to die at the hands of the Xenomorph for story purposes but instead just stood around waiting while the game played sound effects of their demise.