In lieu of rebuilding Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas from scratch for its recent Xbox 360 re-release, Rockstar Games simply ported the existing Android version of San Andreas to Microsoft’s console, according to the tech sleuths at Digital Foundry.
In a test comparing numerous versions of San Andreas, Digital Foundry noticed numerous similarities between the Xbox 360 and Android releases. “Viewed side by side, Xbox 360 and [Android-powered] Shield Tablet games appear to be a close match – the higher-resolution 2D artwork and the new front end are much the same, though the new console release appears to possess enhanced draw distance over the Android version (even when it’s set to 100 per cent on the mobile version),” the report states. “Unfortunately, aside from the inclusion of Achievements, there’s very little love given to this new edition. Just like the Android release, there’s absolutely no anti-aliasing available, whereas even the original PC version supports this, while the vast majority of Xbox Originals on the 360 emulator supported 2x or 4x MSAA depending on the title.”
Further, Digital Foundry notes that the game’s mobile roots have left its framerate capped at 30 frames per second, a decision that results in frequent hitching and stuttering. “What could have been an opportunity to produce the ultimate, definitive version of GTA: San Andreas comes across as something of a missed opportunity,” the group concludes.
