Graphics barely count. I see graphics as a plus, but that is way after gameplay. I would rather play an NES game with good gameplay than a pretty new HD game.
Not sure what this discussion is about or where you want it to go, but I agree, simply because games nowadays don't look bad, some might look artistically bad, but no half decent game looks less than good.
Not sure what this discussion is about or where you want it to go, but I agree, simply because games nowadays don't look bad, some might look artistically bad, but no half decent game looks less than good.DanielDust
True in some respects, but if graphics look too bad it definitely puts me off. Having said that, i think a lot of people just judge by graphics and not gameplay. cs 1.6 for example-awful graphics (its old after all), but really good gameplay.
For me - the graphics in Gothic 2 are more than good enough. I also think games like Legend of Dragoon or Dragon Quest VIII are beautiful.
However - I still go back and play old games like Chrono Trigger, and FF V - and there are parts of those games where you can't tell a box from a staircase. I hope we never go back to those days.
I disagree, graphics ARE important as they can make the world/level you are in so much more immersing. Having bad graphics doesent break a game but it can certainly contribute a LOT to making it a good one!
I disagree, graphics ARE important as they can make the world/level you are in so much more immersing. Having bad graphics doesent break a game but it can certainly contribute a LOT to making it a good one!
Daytona_178
^
Exactly. An excellent game will balance both the graphics and gameplay but the gameplay will tend to get more attention. Now days, it is very important to attain some sort of basic visual and artistic concept. It's basically half the reason why people buy the game. I think those who play Stalker will definitely agree that graphics make the atmosphere more appealing. I really can't imagine Stalker being atmospheric on pixels :S
I disagree, graphics ARE important as they can make the world/level you are in so much more immersing. Having bad graphics doesent break a game but it can certainly contribute a LOT to making it a good one!
Daytona_178
That's sums it up very well. Bad graphics doesn't necessarily make a game worse, but good graphics that fit the game's mood and setting can add a lot to the experience. Survival Horror has been mentioned already as a genre where the visual impression is important to the overall feel (humans rely on sight more than anything else to navigate and get by in the world, hence why it scares us so much when it gets messed up), but RPGs also in a sense need good graphics these days. In ChronoTrigger you can barely see the NPCs faces, and that combined with the lack of voices means it's up to the players imagination how the characters sound and their features express emotion. With today's graphics being so detailed and more realistic, poor graphics can ruin the immersion and any possible emotional reactions especially to NPCs. One of the things that made Oblivion boring for me was just that... the facial animations and limited character models made it seem wooden and rushed together. Games where story and character interaction is important need good graphics in that sense at least. Better to be without voice acting than to have bad voice acting, better to not even try to render facial expressions, than to try and completely fail.
I disagree completely. Graphic styles help give games an identity, and the better a game looks, the more immersed you'll be. More detail, the right amount of lighting, all these little touches add to the experience.
TBH, if a game doesn't have a unique look, it's behind by today's standards. Thankfully, all games have their own unique looks. I haven't put down a single game for the past two generations for flat graphics. I'm no graphics whore, either.
I disagree, graphics ARE important as they can make the world/level you are in so much more immersing. Having bad graphics doesent break a game but it can certainly contribute a LOT to making it a good one!
Daytona_178
This good GFX can immerse the player into the game which is very important to me.
Graphics barely count. I see graphics as a plus, but that is way after gameplay. I would rather play an NES game with good gameplay than a pretty new HD game.acbader
Graphics are more than shinies, without advances in graphics gameplay cant evolve.
Try playing a game with good gameplay, but horrlbe clipping, textues, models, animations etc.
Doesnt matter how good the gameplay is if it doesnt look even remotely good, not to mention even some of the worst gameplay around right now is better than most nes games gameplay, and thats all because of graphics.
From what I've experienced in pc gaming there aren't very many games out there that have amazing graphics but horrible gameplay. Most of the games I play that have mediocre gameplay have mediocre graphics.
It's a valid point though. If we're going to discuss whether graphics matter or not, maybe we do need to specify if we mean graphics as a representation of game-play, or if we're talking about the "shiny-pretty-sparkly" factor of graphics?
It's a valid point though. If we're going to discuss whether graphics matter or not, maybe we do need to specify if we mean graphics as a representation of game-play, or if we're talking about the "shiny-pretty-sparkly" factor of graphics?ChiliDragon
That's a good point. Let's take Doom 3 for example (because mentioning Crysis would start a flame war), which was an absolutely gorgeous game, but was really a pretty average FPS and not all that interesting. Compare that to a game like Deus Ex, which wasn't even all that impressive in its time graphics-wise, and yet still has what would qualify as a remarkably detailed world. Personally, I think people who even bother discussing polygon counts and texture quality are missing the whole damn point.
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