How to Make PS1 Graphics

This video is a review of how PlayStation graphics work and why the artefacts of the PS1 make games look so unique.

We explain the hardware and software limitations of the PlayStation, going over the reason why PS1 graphics artefacts happens.

The main topics covered by our review are:
- Wobbly textures
- Polygon jitter
- Lack of FPU
- Fixed point representation
- Lack of depth buffer
- Lack of mipmapping
- PlayStation dithering
- T-junction gaps

Links:

Chapters: 00:00:00
Intro 00:02:38
Visual artefacts
00:05:36 Hardware specs
00:10:13 Drawing primitives
00:12:07 Drawing on VRAM
00:18:13 Wobbly textures
00:27:46 GTE RTPT
00:31:41 OT & Lack of depth buffer
00:38:14 Polygon jittering
00:42:21 Fixed-point representation
00:50:33 Lack of subpixel rasterization
00:56:07 T-junction gaps
01:01:53 Lack of mipmapping
01:04:49 Conclusion

[mohamadbakr]

Hi, I took a lot of your courses and I liked them. thanks for these amazing courses and for you efforts.

I would like to suggest to make a course the teaches make a 3D gameEngine including (physics system, graphics rendered, file management, materials, collision system, and whatever a game engine can have).

I would really like to enroll in a course like that. I searched the whole internet and I didn't find something like this.

[TheAlbech]

aaah, good old PS1 coding memories… the PS1 was definitively the most exciting platform in my game dev career - cheers for bringing those memories back, great video!

I hope many, many (aspiring and even already in the job) game coders take your course, since PS1 programming was and is so special and unique - it was one of the last platforms you can really push to extremes by using (sometimes weird) optimization techniques and tricks you do not find elsewhere, and helps to improve your general programming skills big time

[CuttingNight]

Packed with such valuable and interesting information and so incredibly well taught!
Thank you very much for sharing!

[VoyivodaFTW]

you have easily become one of my favorite programming content creators. Super informative, creative, and entertaining. Thank you for what you do.

[parinamais]

Didn't know I wanted to make a PS1 game until I saw this video 😆 your work is always top-notch, Gustavo!!

[philippejean]

That's a great great video Gustavo !! 🎉🎉🎉🎉👌👌 - Learnt so much in just 1h

[kenappleman]

Gustavo, thank you for another great video. I have learned so much from all your courses. Thank you for all that you do

[mateusarruda]

Esse cara é diferenciado! Awesome video dude!

[ricardoalvarezruch]

Amazing video! Thanks for sharing all that detailed knowledge with us! Gracias, Gustavo!

[arachromatics]

I watched the part of your course where you went over that fixed point notation just few days ago. I immediately thought that if we assume the 1.0 being equal to 1 meter, 4096 parts means ~0.24mm fractional precision. No way that was the reason for the jitter. Great in-detail explanation!

[davidavidavidavidavi]

Thanks for the really good video! This is a minor complaint, but I wish you had a better camera and green screen - everything else is perfect, though. 🥳

[diegocrusius]

"I dont vstr how long this vidoe takes this is super fun" <3

[Ehal]

Great video! One way of explaining perspective correct texture mapping that was particularly effective for me is as follows:

Consider two quads of the same screen-space shape. For a given set of 2D coordinates, you could have either a small object up close, or a very large object far away, mapping to the same exact screen-space position. The close up object will have fine details visible, and the details of the far away object will be harder, or impossible to see, but a 2D rasterizer will have no way to differentiate between these two objects. This is because of depth. Vertexes are affected by depth, the further away they are from the camera, the closer in 2D coordinates they will become, and of course the same must apply to the details of the object (texels). Texels that are further away must be shrunk according to depth.

[njerurichard]

I rarely subscribe to a channel after watching just one video. That was amazing

[eKoush]

thanks for the explanation and wipeout was one of my favorite games!

[sarundayo]

Love these deep dive videos. Could you perhaps make a series about coding a PS1 game? Also, what languages are needed to learn to become a game dev, etc? 😎🙌

[TheALEXMOTO]

Gustavo, we need a course on raytracing from you.

[silviuwdrk]

Very cool clip! Maybe one day a clip with PS2?:)

[johanfredin]

Thanks for your great videos. I was trying to access your website and get the ps1 course but it just times out when i click the link

[razorblade]

Awesome video! If you could do the same for the nintenfo 64 it would be awesome x 2!

I always wanted someone who make a n64 programming tutorial, but there is none easily understandable to find.