343?
I don't see it. 343 just doesn't have the goods to be the best looking game for consoles. I think they will turn in a great looking Halo game, sure. They are pushing 60fps....it's not going to happen. I was in the Halo 5 Beta, I was not impressed with the competent but admittedly decent Xbone graphics. They were good, but it's Halo. I was never impressed with Halo 5's graphics (720p 60fps)...NOR was I looking to be impressed with the graphics. It's Halo. 343 is trying to raise the resolution of Halo 5 from the beta's 720p to 900p or even 1080p. They are also going for 60fps. It's not in the cards for Halo 5.
Halo 4 was decent, but not the best looking console game by a huge margin. It was nice for Halo, but taking off the Halo goggles and really looking at it, even GeoW2-3 bests Halo 4.
It's still Halo in the end, with all of Halo's limitations with the funky character models, textures, and geometry. Halo has a lot of empty space the gamer walks around in shooting and walking. A Halo fan can go nuts thinking it's so great, but they aren't being objective because they see the best looking game of a series they adore. It will be the best looking Halo game, that's something at least.
Only the die-hards Halo fanatics that don't care who develops Halo, they just care about the fact the games exist every year are going to think this. Hell, ignorance is bliss. Nothing will sway their Halo Master Chief!%$@!! fanaticism, but I don't see 343 able to do make a true graphics console wonder that will also hit 60fps. It will be a good looking, 1st generation, 60fps Halo game, that what I expect. I expect Halo 6 to look better, but it will be Halo.
Not to mention The Last of Us, Gears of War 2, Uncharted 2, Gears of War 3, Uncharted 3, God of War 3, God of War Ascension, etc all looked way better looking on consoles last gen over Halo 4, but Halo 4 was good looking for Halo no doubt, but it was still Halo.
My worry is 343 needs to make Halo great again, and right now they are playing to the COD crowds and just not able to hit the highs that Bungie did on previous outings.
The Order will probably be better looking that Halo 5, BUT will people care? Same for RYSE. No, because Halo 5 will be the better game....even if right now I'm disappointed with 343's Halo 4 and Master Chief Collection, I will still play those over The Order any day of the week.
Funky character models, textures, and geometry? Hmm, not things that ever seemed issues to me. I think Halo looks good for what it is but it's just always had an artstyle that keeps it outside of best graphics debates. It's cartoony and like I was saying before there's a sterility and emptiness to everything. The artstyle is clinical with no debris around and everything appears shiny and brand new and recently scrubbed. Halo environments don't look lived in to me.
They aren't issues to me, but in a thread making radical claims about best looking console game, it's time to talk about that cartoony and very CLEAN artstyle. It's a world of sterile and very squarish environments. It all feels artificial. The world doesn't seem populated, it's like you are in a holodeck/danger room world or something. It's fine for what Halo is, but it's still Halo in the end. Again, I'm not knocking Halo for what is. It is what it is. 60fps and 900p/1080p is a goal. 343 are using the Halo engine. I know what to expect, and a graphical showpiece is not on my agenda. Especially with titles like RYSE or THE ORDER on deck. The TC just like any hardcore fan of some series, got entranced by the Halo world and artstyle overlooking the graphics to a fault because yes, Halo gets better looking with each game and this will be a 1st generation next gen Halo title, but ultimately 343 are using that Halo graphics engine we all know and love, tweaked it for next gen, shooting for 60fps, and 1080p...it's still Halo.
Damn, you got that in before I finished my edit. But yeah, I agree: It does look artificial and does seem like something out of a holodeck simulation rather than a real, breathing world. But I still love the games despite that.
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