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Originally conceived as a last-gen game, Until Dawn's revival on PlayStation 4 brings it to the very cutting edge of today's rendering and motion capture technologies. The Killzone Shadow Fall engine is at the heart of its delivery, and UK developer Supermassive Games doesn't hold back on using its strong feature-set to produce an atmospheric, beautifully-lit horror tale of many tangents. With some eye-catching facial capture tech in play too, the only caveat is Until Dawn's high visual standard is paid for - it's fair to say - in performance.The move to the latest Killzone engine works out well for Until Dawn. Image quality is sharp at a native 1920x1080, backed by a custom post-process anti-aliasing technique, leaving little trace of jagged edges. Many of the rendering methods found in Guerrilla Games' first PS4 effort are also found here. For one, we have its superb physically-based lighting, allowing materials across the woodlands and cabin to react according to real-world values. From the woolly jumpers of the eight imperiled teenagers, to the snowy paths of the Blackwood Pines, each surface reflects light based on roughness, opacity and reflectance.
The results look superb, particularly as light plays across each character's face in heavily shaded areas, bringing out the accuracy of their skin shading. Supermassive Games' art direction for the environment is also crucial - and included in Guerilla's engine are a number of lighting tricks to help this along. Among them is volumetric lighting, giving us the long, streaming shafts that pass across woodland fog and falling snow. With strong bounce lighting, plus the engine's distinctive lens flares effect, the moments we step out of the shadows call to mind Shadow Fall's prowess in this area.
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