computer games affecting your view of reality...

this may all seem a little crazy, but it's a thought i've been playing with for the last few years

i've been playing games for quite a long while now, so i've seen them develop an awful lot, come a long way

as an example, games have gone from conveying light and dark by having either a lightly or darkly coloured backdrop, to real time lighting and dynamic shadows

and the more i see these things in games, the more amazed i am by them, like the first time i ever saw those cool light reflections off of surfaces like metal and glass (don't know the technical terms) that move with you as you move

and, well, it's starting to affect my opinions of reality

those ordinary, everyday things, like light reflecting off a puddle of water, or shadows dancing through a tree blowing gently in the wind, are just astounding me in real life - just the beauty of it all, things i didn't give a second thought to just a couple years ago

i've seen them in computer games, and been able to compare them with games that didn't have them, and have been amazed by how awesome these effects are

and now, it's bizzare i guess, but i'm equally amazed when i see them in real life - there's a church i walk past on my way home from work that has its uppermost steeple illuminated at night, and i was just transfixed by the lighting effects - or on a particularly sunny day, the way blinding light reflects off of cars as they drive past... i couldn't stop staring at the cars as they drove by - you know? just ordinary, everyday this-is-real-life stuff - i'm astounded by... just the beauty of it all - because of computer games

so i was wondering, has anyone else ever experinced this? do any of you feel that technologically advanced games have altered your perception of real life in any way? i never used to stare at shadows and smile like a crazy person a few years ago, i know that much for sure

Hahaha wow, not what I was expecting when I first read the title of the post: I was expecting something along the lines of "Games are distorting reality and desensitizing us to be more accepting of violence."

Fortunately, I was wrong, and your optimistic outlook is very nice.  I dont quite look at a sunset or a flat surface of water reflecting a mountain backdrop as "lighting effects," but I do appreciate them for what they are.  Games truly are becoming more and more realistic looking.  Just look at Crysis: now, I am not talking about how nice the textures are and stuff like that, but I am referring to the other, smaller things.  Depth of field, motion blur...crap like that, all very interesting and if I were younger, I would problably run really fast to see if my vision got blurred from a fast motion.

On a side note, am I the only one who does not want photorealism or near-photorealism in my games?  I mean, realistic lighting and shadows are nice, but [like someone above said] these games are imitating real life, and I dont like that to a certain degree.  I play games to have fun, yes, but I also do it to appreciate the creativity of the developers.  Instead of a developer saying "Hey, how trippy of an alien environment can I make?" they will be bound to say "How accurate an envrionment can I make of a jungle."  Not a lot of creativity or true artwork in the latter, just mostly duplication of a real thing.

this may all seem a little crazy, but it's a thought i've been playing with for the last few years

i've been playing games for quite a long while now, so i've seen them develop an awful lot, come a long way

as an example, games have gone from conveying light and dark by having either a lightly or darkly coloured backdrop, to real time lighting and dynamic shadows

and the more i see these things in games, the more amazed i am by them, like the first time i ever saw those cool light reflections off of surfaces like metal and glass (don't know the technical terms) that move with you as you move

and, well, it's starting to affect my opinions of reality

those ordinary, everyday things, like light reflecting off a puddle of water, or shadows dancing through a tree blowing gently in the wind, are just astounding me in real life - just the beauty of it all, things i didn't give a second thought to just a couple years ago

i've seen them in computer games, and been able to compare them with games that didn't have them, and have been amazed by how awesome these effects are

and now, it's bizzare i guess, but i'm equally amazed when i see them in real life - there's a church i walk past on my way home from work that has its uppermost steeple illuminated at night, and i was just transfixed by the lighting effects - or on a particularly sunny day, the way blinding light reflects off of cars as they drive past... i couldn't stop staring at the cars as they drove by - you know? just ordinary, everyday this-is-real-life stuff - i'm astounded by... just the beauty of it all - because of computer games

so i was wondering, has anyone else ever experinced this? do any of you feel that technologically advanced games have altered your perception of real life in any way? i never used to stare at shadows and smile like a crazy person a few years ago, i know that much for sure

A-S_FM

Hello Neo, in this hand I have a red pill ,, in this hand I have a blue pill .(pause) good you chose the red pill. get rdy for the

REAL WORLD.

I dont know how old you are, so maybe its age catching up to and now your finally appreciating all the things you took for granted growing up... trust me , the younglins dont notice these things.

Or maybe you finally woke up and smelled the roses to a point.. maybe now you'll take some to look at the stars and a sunrise or sunset in a different way.. take the time to smell the chilly cold air in the forest away from the city. or on a warm spring day.

dont wake up in the mouring thinking , today is just another day, its not , its a new day and what you make of it , is up to you. 

When mum opens my blinds in the morning i scream AHH FLASHBANG!!Samulies

LOL , thx you made my point for me .

funny too. 

This is a very interesting topic.

As someone mentioned, people tend to take these sorts of 'ordinary' things (light reflecting on water, etc.) for granted after they get used to them during childhood, but begin to appreciate them more as they get older.  Certainly people who study nature for a living (physicists, applied mathematicians, biologists, and so on) usually appreciate how absolutely crazy and strange the world is, and are less likely to take things like this for granted.  I guess I fall into this category, so I have always been rather amazed by the most 'commonplace' things in the world.

It is very fascinating to me that experiencing the simulated world of a computer game has a similar power to make us more aware of the 'real world'.  I am not sure if gaming has had this sort of impact on my perception of the world, but now that I have begun to think along these lines, it probably will.  

By the way, I think that when graphics programmers and artists talk about photo-realism, they don't necessarily mean that the environments, characters, or objects in the game need to be 'real' per se.  They just mean that they want to simulate certain core aspects of reality in a way that is more believable-- for instance, the behavior of light, fluid mechanics, realistic gravity and collision simulation, and so on.  It is entirely possible to create a game in a completely alien world, with alien characters and even modified rules of physics which is still better because it has these 'core' elements of realism.  

Man, I can't wait to see where graphics and game design in general are headed in the next 10-20 years.     

I can relate to the idea of "waking up" to reality. It's all about how you perceive the world around you. Nowadays it can be really hard to separate your preconceptions from what you actually "see".

In other words, your brain has a tendency to associate certain objects and people with certain ideas and concepts. Instead of simply "seeing" what it is you're looking at, your brain is going through the process of first identifying the object or person, then associating that image with any memories attached to it, and then combining it all together in your actual conscious thoughts. Being able to break down that whole thought process makes it possible to actually SEE the world as it is, instead of having your brain try to figure it all out and categorize it.

It's one of the things that a lot of artists have to learn before they can really create work of their own. It's friggin hard to do, not something that comes easily, that's for sure (although the use of certain drugs does create a bit of a shortcut). This is mainly because all the things we surround ourselves with (TV, Movies, Websites, Magazines...) are constantly trying to manipulate our concept of what is real, what is important. We have to break that cycle of indoctrination on our own.

At least with games, we are given the ablility to interact with and change what we witness on the screen. In many ways, playing a beautiful game can put us in touch with that "pure visual splendor" because in most cases we are left on our own to interpret the images.

When mum opens my blinds in the morning i scream AHH FLASHBANG!!Samulies

I can relate to the idea of "waking up" to reality. It's all about how you perceive the world around you. Nowadays it can be really hard to separate your preconceptions from what you actually "see". In other words, your brain has a tendency to associate certain objects and people with certain ideas and concepts. Instead of simply "seeing" what it is you're looking at, your brain is going through the process of first identifying the object or person, then associating that image with any memories attached to it, and then combining it all together in your actual conscious thoughts. Being able to break down that whole thought process makes it possible to actually SEE the world as it is, instead of having your brain try to figure it all out and categorize it. It's one of the things that a lot of artists have to learn before they can really create work of their own. It's friggin hard to do, not something that comes easily, that's for sure (although the use of certain drugs does create a bit of a shortcut). This is mainly because all the things we surround ourselves with (TV, Movies, Websites, Magazines...) are constantly trying to manipulate our concept of what is real, what is important. We have to break that cycle of indoctrination on our own.SageFrenchkiss

--Very good points.

I can relate to the idea of "waking up" to reality. It's all about how you perceive the world around you. Nowadays it can be really hard to separate your preconceptions from what you actually "see".

In other words, your brain has a tendency to associate certain objects and people with certain ideas and concepts. Instead of simply "seeing" what it is you're looking at, your brain is going through the process of first identifying the object or person, then associating that image with any memories attached to it, and then combining it all together in your actual conscious thoughts. Being able to break down that whole thought process makes it possible to actually SEE the world as it is, instead of having your brain try to figure it all out and categorize it.

It's one of the things that a lot of artists have to learn before they can really create work of their own. It's friggin hard to do, not something that comes easily, that's for sure (although the use of certain drugs does create a bit of a shortcut). This is mainly because all the things we surround ourselves with (TV, Movies, Websites, Magazines...) are constantly trying to manipulate our concept of what is real, what is important. We have to break that cycle of indoctrination on our own.

At least with games, we are given the ablility to interact with and change what we witness on the screen. In many ways, playing a beautiful game can put us in touch with that "pure visual splendor" because in most cases we are left on our own to interpret the images.

SageFrenchkiss

Of course not don't be silly.

Man I'm jonsin for some skooma bad 

No thats just silly.

Man I'm jonesin for some skooma bad 

I know that after a long mapping session I begin to notice little architectural details, and various objects when I'm walking outside, in a building, or in some other public space. It's somewhat to be expected, though, considering that you're working with all these little details in the gameworld.

Other than that, I sometimes see a visual phenomenon, and think to myself, "hey, that's how they came up with effect foo." Often you don't really think about how the graphics are made to correspond to the real world until you look more closely.

Awesome thread. One of the first real positive things I have seen here in a thread discussing games in general. I think it's true for the most part (not always) that we appreciate life and things around us as the incredible and beautiful things they are when we get older.

I've always appreciated nature (except bugs, I don't get why God created bugs. :P ) but I remember one of the first times I saw sun streaming through trees in a game, then saw it in real life and it took my breath away anew. What a great benefit from playing a game.

This very topic reminds me of something God said:

"They know the truth about God because He has made it obvious to them. For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see His invisible qualities-His eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God." (Rom 1:19-20)

Not trying to preach there, just this thread reminded me of that and thought I'd share it. :)

Very cool thread TC. Way to go. :)

When mum opens my blinds in the morning i scream AHH FLASHBANG!!Samulies

Fantastic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:D 

[QUOTE="Samulies"]When mum opens my blinds in the morning i scream AHH FLASHBANG!!Scatsofrango

Fantastic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:D

I know that after a long mapping session I begin to notice little architectural details, and various objects when I'm walking outside, in a building, or in some other public space. It's somewhat to be expected, though, considering that you're working with all these little details in the gameworld.

Other than that, I sometimes see a visual phenomenon, and think to myself, "hey, that's how they came up with effect foo." Often you don't really think about how the graphics are made to correspond to the real world until you look more closely.

dar_

 Hello Neo, in this hand I have a red pill ,, in this hand I have a blue pill .(pause) good you chose the red pill. get rdy for the

REAL WORLD.

 

I dont know how old you are, so maybe its age catching up to and now your finally appreciating all the things you took for granted growing up... trust me , the younglins dont notice these things.

Or maybe you finally woke up and smelled the roses to a point.. maybe now you'll take some to look at the stars and a sunrise or sunset in a different way.. take the time to smell the chilly cold air in the forest away from the city. or on a warm spring day.

dont wake up in the mouring thinking , today is just another day, its not , its a new day and what you make of it , is up to you.

 

briggsxxx

quite patronising and elitist for someone who struggles with basic spelling - curiously aggressive as well, had a bad day?

some interesting replies and opinions, though - it's nice to know i'm not the only person who has developed a greater appreciation of the natural world because of computer games, or at least acknowledges the coolness of the concept

living in a largely rural area, i've grown up with a pretty powerful appreciation of the beauty of natural world (i'm not a hippie though!!), but yeah, i did take a great deal of it for granted - i'd never sat and just looked at a tree, at the astounding complexity of it, at the hundreds of leaves and their individual complexities, or the intricate, time-worn texture of the stones making up a wall that's i-don't-know-how-many decades old

it's easy to say maybe i just grew up, but it's more than that - i've discussed the topic with people ranging from 40 to 70 and... well... they all think i'm pretty nutty.. to them, a tree is a tree is a tree - i've also spoken with my peers about the topic and they generally throw back words like b*llocks - it was nice to be able to come here and find some people who at least find it an interesting topic

at the very least, i enjoy taking a greater appreciation in little things that - apparently - everyone or no one else cares to notice, and am pleased that one of my greatest passions could have affected my life in such a positive way 

those ordinary, everyday things, like light reflecting off a puddle of water, or shadows dancing through a tree blowing gently in the wind, are just astounding me in real life - just the beauty of it all, things i didn't give a second thought to just a couple years ago

i've seen them in computer games, and been able to compare them with games that didn't have them, and have been amazed by how awesome these effects are

and now, it's bizzare i guess, but i'm equally amazed when i see them in real life - there's a church i walk past on my way home from work that has its uppermost steeple illuminated at night, and i was just transfixed by the lighting effects - or on a particularly sunny day, the way blinding light reflects off of cars as they drive past... i couldn't stop staring at the cars as they drove by - you know? just ordinary, everyday this-is-real-life stuff - i'm astounded by... just the beauty of it all - because of computer games

A-S_FM

I feel the exact same way.  Sometimes I'll notice sun breams darting around the leaves of a tall palm tree on a beautiful day with a pure blue sky as backdrop and I just stop and admire it.  I rarely "stopped to smell the roses" like that until I played modern PC games like Far Cry - somehow seeing games evolve from Doom II graphics to today's graphics has made me appreciate the real world's beauty.

If you love this stuff, you should check out the screenies for Alan Wake - the newest six on GameSpot are GORGEOUS. 

at the very least, i enjoy taking a greater appreciation in little things that - apparently - everyone or no one else cares to notice

A-S_FM

I think they have a word that describes people who notice things about the world that no one else does-- genius.

When mum opens my blinds in the morning i scream AHH FLASHBANG!!Samulies

[QUOTE="A-S_FM"]

at the very least, i enjoy taking a greater appreciation in little things that - apparently - everyone or no one else cares to notice

PCgamerX

I think they have a word that describes people who notice things about the world that no one else does-- genius.

this may all seem a little crazy, but it's a thought i've been playing with for the last few years

i've been playing games for quite a long while now, so i've seen them develop an awful lot, come a long way

as an example, games have gone from conveying light and dark by having either a lightly or darkly coloured backdrop, to real time lighting and dynamic shadows

and the more i see these things in games, the more amazed i am by them, like the first time i ever saw those cool light reflections off of surfaces like metal and glass (don't know the technical terms) that move with you as you move

and, well, it's starting to affect my opinions of reality

those ordinary, everyday things, like light reflecting off a puddle of water, or shadows dancing through a tree blowing gently in the wind, are just astounding me in real life - just the beauty of it all, things i didn't give a second thought to just a couple years ago

i've seen them in computer games, and been able to compare them with games that didn't have them, and have been amazed by how awesome these effects are

and now, it's bizzare i guess, but i'm equally amazed when i see them in real life - there's a church i walk past on my way home from work that has its uppermost steeple illuminated at night, and i was just transfixed by the lighting effects - or on a particularly sunny day, the way blinding light reflects off of cars as they drive past... i couldn't stop staring at the cars as they drove by - you know? just ordinary, everyday this-is-real-life stuff - i'm astounded by... just the beauty of it all - because of computer games

so i was wondering, has anyone else ever experinced this? do any of you feel that technologically advanced games have altered your perception of real life in any way? i never used to stare at shadows and smile like a crazy person a few years ago, i know that much for sure

A-S_FM

this may all seem a little crazy, but it's a thought i've been playing with for the last few years

i've been playing games for quite a long while now, so i've seen them develop an awful lot, come a long way

as an example, games have gone from conveying light and dark by having either a lightly or darkly coloured backdrop, to real time lighting and dynamic shadows

and the more i see these things in games, the more amazed i am by them, like the first time i ever saw those cool light reflections off of surfaces like metal and glass (don't know the technical terms) that move with you as you move

and, well, it's starting to affect my opinions of reality

those ordinary, everyday things, like light reflecting off a puddle of water, or shadows dancing through a tree blowing gently in the wind, are just astounding me in real life - just the beauty of it all, things i didn't give a second thought to just a couple years ago

i've seen them in computer games, and been able to compare them with games that didn't have them, and have been amazed by how awesome these effects are

and now, it's bizzare i guess, but i'm equally amazed when i see them in real life - there's a church i walk past on my way home from work that has its uppermost steeple illuminated at night, and i was just transfixed by the lighting effects - or on a particularly sunny day, the way blinding light reflects off of cars as they drive past... i couldn't stop staring at the cars as they drove by - you know? just ordinary, everyday this-is-real-life stuff - i'm astounded by... just the beauty of it all - because of computer games

so i was wondering, has anyone else ever experinced this? do any of you feel that technologically advanced games have altered your perception of real life in any way? i never used to stare at shadows and smile like a crazy person a few years ago, i know that much for sure

A-S_FM