DCS World image quality - 2017 vs. 2020, which is better?

I was watching an A-10C video I had recorded back in May of 2017, and it seemed to me that strictly from an image quality perspective, the 2017 video looked more realistic than what we have today. That's just my own opinion, and before you flame me, yes, I'm fully aware of improvements made to the graphics engine and that 2.5.6 is still a work in progress, yet I found myself longing for the image quality that was available back in the day. I took a screen print from the 2017 video (which had an inset image of me flying with Helios running) and a screen print today from roughly the same location over Nevada. I've attached both, and I'm interested to hear your comments regarding which image looks more realistic. I'm looking for comments and opinions based strictly upon the image quality between those two screen prints.

I felt that the 2017 image looked richer and a bit more detailed, while the current 2020 image looks more washed out and and the terrain looks more "cartoonish" for lack of a better word.

What are your thoughts? Image on left is 2017 and 2020 is on the right.

left looks better. however are you sure you have same graphics settings on the 2017 vs 2020? to be fair and using scientific method be sure to have all the parameters the same. my graphics look pretty rich now.

Whereas to me everything about the 2020 version looks better & more realistic.

I guess that's why they have menus in restaurants.

left looks better. however are you sure you have same graphics settings on the 2017 vs 2020? to be fair and using scientific method be sure to have all the parameters the same. my graphics look pretty rich now.

I have new hardware now, need to update my specs as I'm now running an I9-9900K on a Z370 board with my old Titan X. I don't think Gamma was even a thing yet back in 2017. When I try reducing Gamma currently, I get bluish tints in the shadows and other odd color anomalies, but it could very well be my equipment. The settings, however, should be very close to what I had back in 2017. Gamma was at 2.1 in the 2020 photo.

Yep, your gamma is too high, imo, also bear in mind monitor settings, etc.

Current settings attached.

nm

I hadn't changed the gamma since it once looked great before the last several updates, but I'll try fiddling with it both in DCS and also in the monitor and see if I can get it dialed in better.

What stands out the most is that more small buildings are visible in the 2020 image. The 2017 one has a bunch of blurry spots. Not sure if that's hardware or settings, or something other than the graphics quality, but 2020 looks better to me.

Well, I've fiddled and tweaked until I'm blue in the face and I'm still unable to get the current DCS looking realistic/natural. The only thing I can think of at this point is that the DCS team is developing on monitors/TVs that far exceed the technology that my 9 year old 46 inch 1080P TV is capable of. Maybe it's time to upgrade, BUT I've tried before. My problem is that I like using a large display, and large monitors (40+ inches) are prohibitively expensive coupled with the fact that 1080P TVs are pretty much a thing of the past. I don't want to give up Helios because I love my glass cockpit controls, so now in order to upgrade, I'm looking at trying to run DCS on a 4K TV plus running Helios on a second 1080P touch screen. Running DCS smoothly on 4K alone will be a challenge, let alone trying to render an additional 1080P touch screen at the same time. Maybe when the 3080ti cards come out things will change. I guess time will tell:-)

I prefere the 2020 version tbh.

You will not be able to get that 2017 look back because with one of the DCS 2.5(?) versions ED introduced deferred shading rendering to the engine and made it mandatory with the update to OB on 04-25-2018

...Deferred Shading render locked in the game and can not be turned off. DCS ceased support of old graphic render without Deferred Shading....

https://forums.eagle.ru/showpost.php?p=3463558&postcount=8

2020 version is better and more realistic - because the desert looks like desert - without that weird blue tint from 2017 that makes stuff look flat

2020 - no contest!

They look basically the same from a graphical fidelity POV except the lighting in 2020 is better. It sounds like you just like the less saturated colors of the 2017 screenshot but that isn't more realistic, just different.

2020 version is better and more realistic - because the desert looks like desert - without that weird blue tint from 2017 that makes stuff look flat

My opinion is that current desert rendering is somewhat too "vivid" and too "bright".

But a lighting settings are important part of it all.

Don't know would the reshade work with the DCS world currently or not, but it could maybe help. Or maybe Nvidia Ansel could be supported at least.

My opinion is that current desert rendering is somewhat too "vivid" and too "bright".

But a lighting settings are important part of it all.

 

Don't know would the reshade work with the DCS world currently or not, but it could maybe help. Or maybe Nvidia Ansel could be supported at least.

Maybe a little on the bright side, but I do like to see a well lit landscape. I think the terrain is a little oversaturated in the red spectrum, which could maybe be tweaked with monitor adjustments.

I've always felt that the "day-time" in pre-PBR(old DCS) looks better than post-PBR(new DCS). However, any other time of day, the post-PBR looks way better.

The transition to PBR I wouldn't say is complete, the tranistion only features PBR but as officially said the new lighting is only a first of like several steps to get to the intended look, it's down to fine-tuning of lighting and LODs and even all good new tech can look worse if the final step isn't done.

Especially Tree LODs, I'm not talking about the amount of trees, but the LOD of the trees, I've talked about it before how the radius and LOD is all interwined currently in the options screen, not optimal.

I'd say 2020 image is considerably better. But, time of day and lightining conditions seem not to be exactly equal do they?

I used to like 1.5 lighting and rendering better than 2.5 untill 2.5.6 came, which, I believe, is really, really great looking.

I prefer the 2020 image. Deserts and landscapes in bright sunshine are, well, bright. Not gray.

I would agree with the 2020 image, its a little to bright on the Gamma for my taste, I have mine normally 1.4-1.6; but thats a personal view of course!

Neal

The old one looks much less hazy, far more visibility distance there.

2020 simply because the colours are more real (2017 is way to grey, even the trees are grey).

One has to remember that apart from gfx engine, NTTR map itself went separately through numerous colour tone revisions, so comparison is not quite fair.

Well... The color tone revisions helped make it look more realistic. I've been to that area many times. Looks pretty decent IMO in the 2020 pic. Maybe if it was overcast and it had just rained through that entire area it might look slightly like the pic from 2017... Not really though. Also... we're talking about whether it looks better... I'd say the color revisions help it look better :).

Regarding all the things aside from the color tone... The 2020 pic is still better... A lot. Look at the trees. I'd say that the trees need more variety in their color tone for sure though... but the roads, ground and buildings are better defined and the shading of the buildings themselves look much better... except for the actual shadows they cast... I think those look better on the older pic... but I'd like to see the new pic with the gamma turned down to a normal level.

As Eldur mentioned I dislike the haze on the 2020 pic... That said... I think the haze is pretty much the same in both pics. the difference is that the darker ground textures seem to conceal it a bit? If you look for detail you can't really find any more in the distance in the 201 pic. It just doesn't "appear" to have as much haze. I think it does.

but...

2020 pic is way better.