poor 'conversion'
I have an XBOX360, PS3 and PC (Yes, I am rich) and bought Call of Duty Black Ops for all 3 platforms, therefore I have no bias towards any particular or given platform. Having now had ample opportunity to play each version of the game extensively, I can say, unequivocally, that the PC version is hands down the worst of the 3 versions, closely followed by the PS3 version. Its obvious to anyone (bar the most fervent fanboy blinded with bias…no doubt many of you reading this will fit that very category) that the XBOX360 was again the host platform of choice when this game was being developed, hence the superior frame-rate on the XBOX360. Even thought the PS3 is supposedly the more powerful of the two consoles, undoubtedly it is a powerful beast indeed, nevertheless its clear to me, as a games developer myself , that developers are still genuinely having trouble utilising the complex architecture of the PS3 hardware. I also have the best PC money can buy (naturally), therefore I was disappointed to see that the PC ‘conversion’ of Black Ops runs like pants; indeed, what’s remarkable on the PC version is that there is no difference between Lowest or Highest settings in terms of frame-rate - its a stuttering slideshow, as opposed to the silky smooth frame-rates seen in previous instalments. You will note that I have used the term ‘conversion’, well, for the uninitiated among you, let me explain why. This is because essentially that is what the PC game is, as is the PS3 game, they are ‘conversions’, and poor ones at that, of the lead development platform, in this case the XBOX 360 game. I was hoping that a patch would have been released by now to address the PC's dreadful hitching and frame-rate issues; and to a slightly lesser extent for the PS3 as well, however all we keep getting are frivolous updates which do not bring any noticeable improvements to the inherent performance issues aforementioned. It’s a shame therefore that the 60 frames per second ethos on which the COD series has flourished, is now gradually becoming a thing of the past (on the PS3 and PC platforms in any case!). All quibbles aside, Black Ops truly is a monumental piece of software, a fantastic game, and is a worthy successor to previous instalments, its just a shame that more care was not taken with the PC and PS3 versions, as they could, (and should) have been so much better. In summation, of the 3 platforms, the XBOX360 version is therefore by far the more polished version of the game.
