By: James Yu and Sarju Shah - Posted on Wednesday, December 6, 2006.

We expected the PlayStation 3 to ship with several games that first appeared on the Xbox 360, similar to how the Xbox 360 had a lot of Xbox ports at launch. And the PS3 did indeed arrive with a good number of games that originally shipped for the Xbox 360. This gave us the perfect opportunity to compare the graphics on both systems with several cross-platform games. You'd think that the PS3 versions would be exactly the same or slightly superior to the Xbox 360 versions, since many of these games appeared on the 360 months ago, but it seems like developers didn't use the extra time to polish up the graphics for the PS3. We found that the Xbox 360 actually had better graphics in the majority of the games we compared.

Need for Speed Carbon

Both systems have fairly similar graphics in Need for Speed Carbon, but the Xbox 360 has better lighting while the PS3 has sharper textures. The 360 has better high dynamic range lighting in the Camaro image. We're not sure if the PS3 version blurs the background tree leaves on purpose, but it's another noticeable difference. The lighting in the street shot appears more realistic on the 360, but the building textures are sharper on the PS3. We also seem to be missing some lighting and a few landmarks in the rearview mirror of the PS3 version.

Mouse over the default Xbox 360 image to see the PlayStation 3 comparison shot.





17561 Comments

  • boricuasnake04

    Posted Jul 17, 2010 12:17 pm PT

    GT5 makes Forza 3 and i bet 4 look like Mario Cart lmao

  • boricuasnake04

    Posted Jul 17, 2010 12:16 pm PT

    if an xbox ever creates a game thats even close to gt5 or uncharted 2 then we can talk

  • saxatron58

    Posted Jul 13, 2010 3:16 pm PT

    I'd like to see 360 pull off a game that's even half the magnitude of Uncharted 2.

  • harrykid1

    Posted Jul 3, 2010 8:40 pm PT

    OMG I thought I made a bad decision on buying a 360 boy was I wrong

  • Serentor

    Posted Jun 28, 2010 10:56 am PT

    wow so many fanboys thumbing down people just because of facts! go xbox lol. gonna get a billion thumb downs now from fanboys. watch the count.

  • snes_vs_ps1

    Posted Jun 20, 2010 11:57 am PT

    atari2600>>>xbox360 & ps3=)))

  • QuamirW posted May 28, 2010 8:54 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    QuamirW

    Posted May 28, 2010 8:54 pm PT (hide)

    xbox hands down i like the ps3 but the ps3 has its different from the game

  • Kolonel_koRn posted Apr 14, 2010 2:55 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Kolonel_koRn

    Posted Apr 14, 2010 2:55 pm PT (hide)

    http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Does_the_Xbox_360_have_better_graphics_than_the_Playstation_3

    360 > PS3
    The graphics will only depend on the developers as to which is better for each of the systems.
    Chillax, like ssaid there 360 has a better card. That doesn't mean all games are better than 360.

  • Purely_Awesome posted Apr 13, 2010 4:07 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Purely_Awesome

    Posted Apr 13, 2010 4:07 pm PT (hide)

    Of course, PC owns consoles. But I personally think Xbox 360's graphics is still better than PS3.

  • metr0id21 posted Apr 4, 2010 3:12 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    metr0id21

    Posted Apr 4, 2010 3:12 pm PT (hide)

    i have both consoles :p, i win XD, plus i have a mega awesome custom gaming pc (which i built), so i can play any game thats exclusive to any :p

  • FacetiousFace posted Apr 2, 2010 10:40 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    FacetiousFace

    Posted Apr 2, 2010 10:40 am PT (hide)

    @ wiskeytango25

    Exactly. That's exactly what I said two comments down This dude knows what he's talkin about!

  • wiskeytango25 posted Mar 28, 2010 9:06 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    wiskeytango25

    Posted Mar 28, 2010 9:06 am PT (hide)

    First off PC Gaming is still awesome and far surpasses any console, with that said back to subject. The real truth is the only time Playstation 3 is at its most is when your playing a game designed for PS3 only, besides that, all other video games are design for the Xbox and then burned to a build for PS3, which always leaves the PS3 lacking in the graphics field by a little. This is how it works in the industry at least at Activision.

  • texasjgc posted Mar 26, 2010 3:47 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    texasjgc

    Posted Mar 26, 2010 3:47 pm PT (hide)

    I think no one system wins of loses when it comes to graphics. The 360 and ps3 have close to the same graphics. I noticed the biggest difference between the 2 systems was the way each console handled lighting in all the games. Some games looked foggy on the 360 while some games were too bright (tony hawk) on ps3. Each system has its perks. It really depends on the game itself. Some games look better on ps3 others look better on 360. Its a local issue, that is to say, per game.

  • FacetiousFace posted Mar 26, 2010 12:20 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    FacetiousFace

    Posted Mar 26, 2010 12:20 pm PT (hide)

    @KeithMacNeil

    It's all about the conversion.

    Here's what happened. The 360 came out before the PS3, giving them the edge. Because the 360 was the standard for game developers when the PS3 came out, that's where they based their developing around for awhile - because that's where the most profit was coming from at the time. They then took the 360-based game, and converted it to PS3. When you convert a lower-quality game, onto a superior machine - you get something that's not even worth the machine's time. PS3 will always rule out 360 all around - and that's becoming more eminent of late

  • karasuma-kun posted Mar 22, 2010 5:43 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    karasuma-kun

    Posted Mar 22, 2010 5:43 am PT (hide)

    @KeithMacNeill

    Tell that to naughtydog and santa monica studios
    Are you even sure what you are saying. xbox 360 couldn't even handle uncharted 2 and god of war 3, that's a fact.

  • KeithMacNeill posted Feb 13, 2010 7:55 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    KeithMacNeill

    Posted Feb 13, 2010 7:55 am PT (hide)

    Well here's the truth, the XBOX 360 came out around 8 years before the PS3 or something like that, so before the PS3 came out everybody expected everything including the graphics to be better than the 360's, but in fact there not.

  • SiferXII posted Feb 1, 2010 12:24 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    SiferXII

    Posted Feb 1, 2010 12:24 pm PT (hide)

    There is VERY little (if any) difference between the two consoles graphically, in these examples anyway. You probably forgot to enable "full colour range" in the PS3's settings. I have no idea why it's disabled by default, but enabling it gets rid of the washout effect present in these picture.

    If you want to prove that the difference is only a matter of contrast and saturation, try taking any one of those PS3 pictures, import it into Photoshop, and turn the contrast and saturation up a bit. Seriousley. They're identical. The majority of PS3 vs Xbox360 comparisons I've seen involve a misconfigured playstation. If there's ONE issue I can say that the PS3 has, it's the anti-aliasing being weak.

    If you want to see a pre-tweaked image, follow this URL:
    http://i47.tinypic.com/2i1f2fb.jpg

  • Juniorpower posted Jan 20, 2010 3:07 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Juniorpower

    Posted Jan 20, 2010 3:07 pm PT (hide)

    These 2 consoles are very good if I had them I say they don't look different for graphics to me

  • DanielHatesYou posted Jan 19, 2010 8:11 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    DanielHatesYou

    Posted Jan 19, 2010 8:11 am PT (hide)

    Don't even think about giving me a thumbs down! EVERYBODY down there has... Any idiot can see that the xbox, in this case, has sharper, more crisp, higher detail graphics - set aside the fact that you're a PS3 lover and just be honest....

  • westy2536 posted Jan 12, 2010 9:54 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    westy2536

    Posted Jan 12, 2010 9:54 am PT (hide)

    PS3 is better than xbox because it has free online game play, all of the new games are coming out on ps3, it has better graphics because it uses blue ray discs and because all of the cool people play on ps3

  • ss4brolyupth posted Nov 29, 2009 7:48 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    ss4brolyupth

    Posted Nov 29, 2009 7:48 am PT (hide)

    there is no dfference

  • InquisitorCrox posted Nov 28, 2009 2:41 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    InquisitorCrox

    Posted Nov 28, 2009 2:41 pm PT (hide)

    One cant help but notice the difference on the textures of the leaves, asphalt and tyres. The PS3 has a huge advantage in this game.
    Although i ve played this game in both consoles in full HD, i barely noticed the difference those pix prove.

    Its about time that games start looking better for the ps3, because it really has better potential. On the other hand 360 will always be more affordable and most of the companies wont bother by optimizing a game for the ps3, due to costs. So the debate is somewhat useless.

    360 is affordable, used to have more titles, but now this wont be an issue anymore and the PS3 has way much better exclusives, that never reach PC and free online gaming!

    For the one buying a next gen console now, the obvious choice, is the blue ray player, but the ones who already have the 360 wont really have anything more to lose than the Sony exclusives and the monthly live fee...
    The console wars are really overrated!

  • martinez1023 posted Nov 19, 2009 3:05 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    martinez1023

    Posted Nov 19, 2009 3:05 pm PT (hide)

    playstation is way better!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • Daputti posted Nov 15, 2009 7:32 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Daputti

    Posted Nov 15, 2009 7:32 am PT (hide)

    The pixel processing power of the Xbox 360's Xenos GPU really shows here. The lighting effects in every PS3 shot just... suck.

  • Vikasgames94 posted Nov 14, 2009 3:41 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Vikasgames94

    Posted Nov 14, 2009 3:41 am PT (hide)

    X Box 360 is better than PS3. I have seen the whole and conclude that only NFS and Tiger woods are good on ps3 but is just like X box 360. But tiger woods is better on ps3.

  • masterchiefx3 posted Nov 10, 2009 5:02 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    masterchiefx3

    Posted Nov 10, 2009 5:02 pm PT (hide)

    ps3 is the best!!! thats all

  • Snake3232 posted Nov 2, 2009 12:53 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Snake3232

    Posted Nov 2, 2009 12:53 am PT (hide)

    Wow Devs dont giv a crap about PS3 gamers, giving low quality especially Madden and Tony Hawks

  • eczklf posted Oct 24, 2009 1:31 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    eczklf

    Posted Oct 24, 2009 1:31 pm PT (hide)

    orjinal grafik

  • eczklf posted Oct 24, 2009 1:31 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    eczklf

    Posted Oct 24, 2009 1:31 pm PT (hide)

    cxddcd

  • penguins227 posted Oct 15, 2009 2:25 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    penguins227

    Posted Oct 15, 2009 2:25 pm PT (hide)

    Lol, compare in something that requires good graphics, like Assassin's Creed or Battlefield: Bad Company.

  • penguins227 posted Oct 15, 2009 2:09 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    penguins227

    Posted Oct 15, 2009 2:09 pm PT (hide)

    NFS CARBON: In the Menu, the 360 looks noticeably better, but in-game, the Ps3 seems to reign, and in my opinion, with a large margin too. Notice in the first in-game shot the reflections on the bumper of the car on the Ps3.

  • Bog101 posted Oct 12, 2009 3:21 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Bog101

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 3:21 pm PT (hide)

    ps3 textures are bright and washed out

  • Bog101 posted Oct 12, 2009 3:20 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Bog101

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 3:20 pm PT (hide)

    xbox has better graphics. its more crisp

  • Ryan5000M posted Oct 12, 2009 7:36 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Ryan5000M

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 7:36 am PT (hide)

    In my oppinion i think ps3 is a better system all together, its built well and doesnt overheat, and mine now has a 500GB hard drive i picked up for $120 CDN and i love it, my brother has xbox 360 and a ps3, he says the ps3 online is better and has cool features, he also says he has to pay for xbox live wich sux, but whatever one is better now wont matter in half a year their both going to change like crazy and it will be a back and forth battle forever. so your better off just picking one that you think you would enjoy more, personally i hate xbox controllers, but i like their xbox live headsets better than ps3, ill only buy an xbox if the price is dropped on the elite, plus killzone is better than halo anyday

  • AaEd123 posted Oct 12, 2009 7:11 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    AaEd123

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 7:11 am PT (hide)

    man they are making the xbox 360 look better but always PS3 will take Xbox 360 Down

  • sharvan001 posted Oct 10, 2009 9:06 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    sharvan001

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 9:06 am PT (hide)

    i need some advise sure i can find my answer on the web checking the specs but you guys are experts right what do i buy the xbox 360 or ps3

  • MTMind2 posted Sep 22, 2009 3:57 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    MTMind2

    Posted Sep 22, 2009 3:57 am PT (hide)

    yes and no, Burning_Sun. yes some devs put less effort than others, but it is a fact that the PS3 is more difficult to program than the 360, and that's the biggest factor here rather than 'lazy' devs.

  • Burning_Sun posted Sep 20, 2009 9:06 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Burning_Sun

    Posted Sep 20, 2009 9:06 pm PT (hide)

    this is more of the developers fault then the ps3 at the time

  • dirx09 posted Sep 17, 2009 8:35 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    dirx09

    Posted Sep 17, 2009 8:35 pm PT (hide)

    Kinda Off Topic, But The 2nd CoD3 Image, behind the Jeep in the Background, if you quickly go over the image with your mouse a lot, it looks like the guys tea Bagging someone.

  • dpc posted Sep 15, 2009 10:23 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    dpc

    Posted Sep 15, 2009 10:23 am PT (hide)

    I like 360 Graphics better, and I have both systems. I just got a PS3 and expected a much better picture, but was taken back a little by how the 360 picture is actually better and more vibrant. I downloaded COD 5 demo, to check out using HDMI cables for both on my 34" Sony HDTV. Now I am a little dissapointed with PS3, it will become my Blu-Ray player, I am glad I got it for $200.00 and not the high prices that others have paid. I think the contollers on PS3 are cheezey compared to 360, especially for shooter games. It feels like the PS1 controller, at least I do not have to pay for online, that is good, but you also get what you pay for, and the 360 online is very, very good.

  • heas14 posted Sep 13, 2009 2:04 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    heas14

    Posted Sep 13, 2009 2:04 pm PT (hide)

    i disagree with fight night all the lightning makes it unrealistic on the 360

  • heas14 posted Sep 13, 2009 1:43 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    heas14

    Posted Sep 13, 2009 1:43 pm PT (hide)

    ps3 looks more realistic because its not to bright the one who made the comparison is biased towards the 360

  • SaintsPlaya posted Aug 30, 2009 12:41 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    SaintsPlaya

    Posted Aug 30, 2009 12:41 pm PT (hide)

    Too hard for me to decide. I do not want to get involved with the war, anyways I am buying the PS3 Slim when it comes out. Best of both worlds, B's.

  • Panda6666 posted Aug 29, 2009 3:00 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Panda6666

    Posted Aug 29, 2009 3:00 pm PT (hide)

    XBOX 360 now dont get three red riings of death i play it for non stopping 7hours for 7months

  • Panda6666 posted Aug 29, 2009 2:56 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Panda6666

    Posted Aug 29, 2009 2:56 pm PT (hide)

    YOU will be disapionated if u bring a ps3 trust me

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Xbox 360 Versus PlayStation 3 Graphics Comparison

Forget spec comparisons. Let's advance the Xbox 360 versus PlayStation 3 graphics debate to screenshots now that the games are here.

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