Speaking to CVG in a new feature on id Software's new post-apocalyptic game, Rage, John Carmack has confirmed that the PlayStation 3 version of the game will run noticeably slower that on the Xbox 360 or PC.The game, which is projected for a 2010 release on all platforms, will be a free-roaming RPG and FPS hybrid with a heavy focus where players are able to compete in races through the wasteland in order to unlock car and weapon upgrades.
According to Edge magazine the game runs at a smooth and brisk 60 FPS on the Xbox 360 and comparable PCs, but struggles to keep things at 20 - 30 FPS on the PlayStation 3. In a series of candid comments about the capability of the PlayStation 3 hardware, Carmack squarely places the blame on the GPU.
"The PS3 lags a little bit behind in terms of getting the performance out of it,[i]" Carmack admits. "[i]The rasteriser is just a little bit slower - no two ways about that. The RSX is slower than what we have in the 360."
Carmack also says that the architecture of the CPU is a bit of a hassle to design for too and, while the PS3 processor is "about the same" as that in the Xbox 360, the Xbox 360 is just simpler to work with.
"The 360 makes it easier to split things off, and that's what a lot of the work has been, splitting it all into jobs on the PS3," Carmack says.
This isn't the first time that developers have said the PlayStation 3 is difficult to work with either - a number of developers in the past have made such claims, though Sony hasn't issued a formal reply that we know of.
Carmack promising that the PlayStation 3 version of Rage will be up to scratch before the game is released.
"Everything is designed as a 60 hertz game. We expect this to be 60 hertz on every supported platform," said Carmack.