This is a comparison page for Wipeout 2097 and Wipeout XL for the Saturn and Playstation 1. All written comparisons, movies, and JPGs were made while playing the games on the actual console and taken from the actual console through an S-Video connection.

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Comparison Comments

Like the original Wipeout, Wipeout XL on the PS1 can seem smoother and easier on the eyes because it consistently runs at 30 frames per second (FPS). The Saturn game seems to be faster on average even though the framerate is locked into 20FPS. With that said, the games are virtually identical in graphical detail, controls, and audio. Significant differences in load times, and minor differences in graphical display and resolution are the only areas where the Saturn and PS1 version differ.

Graphics

Wipeout XL/2097 runs at a similar low resolution on both systems. Like most other early titles the PS1 game runs at 320x240 and the Saturn version is at 320x224. Similar texture mapping quality is used in both titles. While Wipeout XL on the Playstation is is much darker and uses the common workaround of full screen dithering, the Saturn version has dithered transparency. Perhaps most significantly, the Saturn version has a noticeably longer draw distance than the PS1 original. This can be seen plainly in the mouse over comparison screenshots. It is a very difficult call to say which one is technically doing more, as the PS1 version is running at a slightly higher framerate but at lower color counts due to the dithering and the Saturn game has a longer draw distance but ten less frames of animation per second.

Sound

Both games use digital voice samples and CD Audio.

Gameplay

Both games feature very similar gameplay, physics and AI. Wipeout XL/2097 on both systems control identically with standard control pads. The Saturn takes the slight edge in gameplay overall because of its implementation of analog control using the Saturn 3D pad. The PS1 game does not use the later released Dual Analog/Shock controller's analog stick. Similarly, the Saturn game takes 10 seconds to load from the menu screen to the track while Wipeout on the Playstation features a 15 seconds wait from the same.

Conclusion

What this comparison demonstrates is how the Saturn handles a port from the Playstation when developers had more than enough time to learn both platforms. In that comparison, there is no support for the portrayal game magazines have given the Saturn. The Saturn game is doing everything that the PS1 was doing but at a slightly lower framerate and far less dithering on screen. With the exception of transparency in the special effects, the two games are so close one could easily be mistaken for the other. The Saturn game has the edge in gameplay because of the short load times and solid analog controls with the standard 3D Pad.

The disparity between what could be seen on either the Saturn or PS1 in gameplay, and what magazines, and subsequently their subscribers, were touting about the comparison is easily demonstrated. Since the Saturn game came out one full year after the PS1 version the conclusiveness of this comparison might be questioned. The other comparisons on this site also compare as roughly equal. With top PS1 games having comparable counterparts on the Saturn through 1998, it is difficult to find clear evidence of one system clearly out powering the other.