A huge graphical evolution or a small detail ?

It's really cloudy weather over here which means it's a good time to catch up on some games.

But it got me thinking. Looking up, seeing all the differently shaped and colored clouds. Seeing the sun try and creep through some cracks in the clouds. Boy, games have really come a long way in emulating this.

We went from a single texture for displaying the sky, to dynamic weather and volumetric clouds. Can we even call it a skybox anymore ? it's not just in a fixed position anymore. The sky is all around you in games now. And it affects your game: dynamic weather can have gameplay influences. And lately we've seen stuff like sandstorm and lightning storms in Mad Max and Radiation storms in Fallout 4. Which look really cool, I might add.

Skyboxes have come a really long way, they aren't just a texture anymore now. They are an extension of your game world.

So this is a thread about skyboxes, you don't see those a lot. But it's 2015 now, move along foliage, we got some amazing skyboxes now.

Nothing beats Destiny's:

Yeah, looking up into outer space can show some pretty sights.

That reminds me, Halo stood out as having a great skybox, along with its remaster.

Nothing beats space sims universe.

@kozio:I have a few Mad Max screens myself, but those are way better ! :D

Are you playing any space sims ? If so post some screens.

It's gotta be Driveclub..

Red Dead Redemption had great skyboxes too.

Far Cry 4

Far Cry 3

Skyrim

Dear Esther

RAGE

@nyadc: Yeah that rage skybox is amazing.

Here's another pic

Right now this thread is good sky boxes translate into game doesn't play all that well.

Bungie's skyboxes were always legit though, even when their games weren't their visually, the skyboxes absolutely were there. Battlefront with its battles in the background adds a lot to the atmosphere of a match, helps the whole "feel of Star Wars" thing everyone likes typing about that game, even though we've had so many games capture the feel of Star Wars.

Did Just Cause 2 have volumetric clouds? I always thought it looked great.

@nyadc: Yes, some great examples.

I definitely remember games like Rage and RDR for having great skies to look at.

You make some good points.

In the move from 2D to 3D graphics and 3D graphics onward I think a lot of resources were put into making a believable and/or enticing world. And we've seen more and more resources being put into that.

A believable day/night cycle and weather system can add a whole lot to your experience and drawing you in.

Where does a skybox end exactly ? Like you say: Star Wars is a great example, showing you a piece of the larger war going on.

Like some other have said: games like Rage, RDR or The Witcher make me stop and look around... at the world. at the skies. I think games have done an amazing job at creating fictional but believable worlds. Believable in a way that you find yourself in the game. If you find yourself on another planet you'll see other planets, other moons. Bungie shows that really well, and all the player has to do is look up.

So skyboxes might be a detail, yet they are a big part in making everything seem believable to you as a player.

STALKER

Yeah as we move along further and further with the graphical cards it will be no longer good enough to have great close up graphics with decent draw distance graphics, but now the little and fine details will be mandatory to look just as good. Personally there are lots of just cool like draw distances in games like Mass Effects when you look out on the Assari's home city and even in the Illusive man's office and how he has a giant sun in the background loved looking at those thing.

Mass effect

Metro

A good effort from indie.

What a good thread. Busy enjoying the shots ...can't think of anything else right now..damn i love skyboxes !

I love that the water is ray traced with real time reflections from even the sky in Metro Exodus.

And the storms are just awesome.

@DragonfireXZ95: When did you take up necromancy?

What the ef. I saw NyaDC's post and I was like was he unbanned? And it was just another thread necromancy.

@GarGx1: Bah. My bad.

@DragonfireXZ95: Metro Exodus does not use ray tracing for reflections. Those are screen space reflections.

Mostly a small detail but interesting point honestly haven't really picked up on it and you might be onto something also....

I would also say rage is the best its just looks so real.