StartGame: Graphics: Are They All That Matter

Opinion piece on graphics within today's gaming world.

[HydraxFFx]

Definitely not ALL that matter, but they DO matter.

[vsr]

They can only play other than top PC & Playstation1,2,3 games

[rockleex]

The obvious answer is that BOTH gameplay and graphics matter.

You can make your graphics look like whatever you want to fit the feel of the game, make it more immersive.

Imagine playing GT5 with Mario Kart graphics, it just detracts too much from the gameplay and physics.

Valkyria Chronicles with FFXIII graphics would not make sense.

[nickjkl]

kinda this generation developers went from kinda cartoon type characters and are now starting to aim for real life type look and when you aim for something you better go overboard

like come on heavy rain if it didnt have graphics it would still be good but the graphics add to the immersion it gives you an added feel an illusion that the characters are real

[HolyOrangeCows]

Yes.

/s

[darkziosj]

yeah graphics matter but not all the time take a look at some exclusives for 360 and ps3 yeah they look good but what about the multiplat games? people do only play exclusives just for the graphics? no, else they whould have just like what 3-6 games to play all the time

[ImmortalLegend]

For example, fable 2 didn't have the best graphics in the world, but the gameplay was great imo, so the graphics had no effect on how I thought about the game. Another example, MAG, it was one of the funnest games I've played in a while and the graphics aren't that great at all. The gameplay was excellent though so I didn't care about the graphics. It does seem like everyone cares about graphics more than anything, but what's surprising is that most people that go on and on about graphics don't even own a PC that's capable of giving you the best graphics lol. Really, if you care about graphics so damn much build a PC that's capable of pleasing your obsession with graphics.

[DigitalAnalog]

"Take PS1 classics as a for instance: there are some brilliant games on the platform (G-Police, Final Fantasy VII through IX, Oddworld: Abe’s Oddyssee and Oddworld: Abe’s Exodus, Crash Bandicoot, Crash Team Racing, MediEvil 1 & 2), but a common complaint is that they look comparatively poor when compared to some of the other PSN titles, because the graphics haven’t been upscaled or improved in any way."

One of the most ill informed statement I have EVER seen in a gaming blog this generation.

"Heavy Rain was heavily criticised because of its graphics: it was deemed unpolished and therefore unfinished."

WRONG. It was was heavily criticzed because of it's gameplay mechanic. Unfortunately for the haters, this bode well being a completely unique and engaging experience.

The rest of the article is all jibba-jabba we've heard before. All graphics and poor gameplay such and such. Honestly, we never had this debate last generation. WHY? Because it was quite clear the Xbox had a hardware advantage over the PS2.

-End statement

[Poseidon]

nope, but aren't we spolied rotten we have both with uncharted 2 ;)

[alphakennybody]

and MLB10 the show,GOW3,HR,KZ2,R&C:ACIT soon GT5, LBP2,inFamous 2,KZ3.

[wazzim]

Which sucks for all the smaller developers/games because they can't compete with those things.
Doesn't mean that I hate great graphics tho :D

[Poseidon]

ay! correct eddy

[alphakennybody]

indeed, we are spoiled ;)

[raztad]

I hate to be spoiled but when gameplay is good enough it takes just a few minutes to forget about lacking visuals.

Still nice graphics is something that definitely add to the experience, and help to make a great gameplay much better and pleasing to the eyes.

Consistently good framerate and no screen tearing are important as well.

[yewles1]

This question should be asked to the right people (Crysis fans). ZING!!!

[theonlylolking]

Everything makes a game great. Just gameplay wont make a game awesome. It will certainly help but it is not everything.

Graphics are very important too. It makes the game more immersive. Would Uncharted 2 feel as immersive if it had Super Mario 64 graphics?

[xino]

graphics will not matter to you.

I'm off to play God of War 3:)

[Dnied]

Definately not all that matter but they're pretty important imo. I'm willing to bet graphics are right up there with the development team as a pretty high priority...

Obviously it's a bit more complicated than "lets make the graphics good" as there are countless "styles" or techniques involved..

They work extremely hard to get games looking the way they do (some obviously better than others) so I would say yes, they're important... as more of a sign of respect towards the developer and their hard work to achieve better graphics each time they release something more than... that game is shitty cuz it looks bad type of thing.

I bet hearing the words "wow that game is THE best looking game I've ever seen" makes em so fkin happy lol and why not? in the end it's all down to the presentation and when you're someone viewing a game for the first time, you can really only judge it by what you see on screen at that moment

Basically what I'm tryin to say is... Naughty Dog is the shit

[Alos88]

Do they matter? To a degree. But they are not all that matters, not by a long way.

[Honest_gamer]

one of the best games of all time and yes we all know it is pac man XD has sh1t graphics but the gameplay is simple and fun a thing most gamer designers seam to over look for multiplayer and graphics

[ZombieNinjaPanda]

But Pacman doesn't cost 60 dollars

[Honest_gamer]

ask someone who bought the pc man consoles then convert the price into today’s money and it was possiblly more or someone who spent 2/4K on an arcade machine

[IRetrouk]

of course they matter, if not then why upgrade consoles? what would be the point in buying a shiny new console if it has the same graphics as the last one? this is one of the reasons i got rid of my wii.

[tdrules]

Is it all that matters?

[3sq]

No, it doesn't matter. Let's just play Pong. /s

[KiLLz]

If I'm coughing up 60 bucks I want both graphics and gamplay..is that to much to ask for????

[webeblazing]

rite they raised the price i raised my expectations. i want it all for 60 especially in these hard times

[Dylantalon1]

When looking for a girlfriend or wife, is it just her beautiful appearance that matters? Not really but it has a lot to do with a persons decision. Graphics matters a lot and its also a guide I use to gauge if developers put a lot of time and effort into making a game. If people don't like graphics then they don't need a console that was released after the first atari.

[corroios]

Do you buy a ugly car?, because a prefer Porche. Im paying a lot of money for a game with a shitty engine and graphics. Hell No, i want the best in every aspect.

[MexicanAppleThief]

Bubbles for logic. Thats why I stay away from poor multiplatform titles.

If they can't do the time, they won't get my dimes.

[Redrum059]

apple theif

[ZombieNinjaPanda]

Graphics matter a lot. I'm pretty sure if a developer came out with a 60 dollar came that had graphics equivalent to ps1 games, we'd have a riot on our hands. Gameplay can only do so much, you need graphics to add to the experience.

[rumplstilts]

I have a thing for PS1 graphics lol. I would probably buy it.

[Kingdom Come]

But the answer is no, a game could have the greatest graphics of all time but still fall short due to bland gameplay. However, Graphics do assist a game in becoming an incredible title. I would say 75% Gameplay importance, 25% Graphics...

[telekineticmantis]

Almost everybody here said basically the same thing

[rulakir]

Yes, graphics matter, hence the constant introduction of next generation consoles.

[Alos88]

The best games don't age graphically in a way that gets in the way of me having fun with them. Take the Mario games- old looking, but I could spend a weekend playing them back to back and have easily as much fun as I could with a newer title.

[MGRogue2017]

Well... The game has to look good, you know.. otherwise you'll just get bored of it as it looks too bland & whatnot.

Yes, Story & gameplay is also important but.. Graphics are the cherry on top of the cake.. And without the cherry, the cake will crumble.

[Aphe]

Surely the cherry would make the cake crumble, depending on the size of it of course. It would have to be a pretty big cherry, but the cake might crumble because of the added weight. If the cake was holding its weight without the cherry I think you could safely say the cake wouldn't crumble without the cherry being added, and the danger of the cake crumbling would most likely be due to adding the cherry. And if the cake did crumble regardless of adding the cherry I'd say the cake was poorly made to begin with.

Now where was I? Umm....cake.....

[gillri]

UC2 shows graphics matter, a truly stunning game

[J-Smith]

everything about uncharted 2 was amazing i.e graphics & GAMEPLAY. well a lot of ps3 exclusives have the graphics & gameplay

[Sprudling]

I know I'm in the minority here, but the music matter more to me than the graphics. Gameplay tops them both by far though.

[Why o why]

has crakdown prompted this??

Of course its not ALL about the graphics but they are definitely up there in terms of importance for many games. We upgraded our consoles because of it. Ask anybody why they upgraded from any gen and one of, if not the first answer they'll give is graphical improvement. Its almost like we're not meant to love technical excellence any more....whys that, i know its taboo for some to the point where they resort to calling on crysis lol. Its obvious that great graphics alone dont make a great game so why ask silly question

[Nihilism]

You might not think graphics matter now, but in a few years when games look so dated you don't want to touch them it will, if a game has better graphics then it can retain it's immersion in years when the visual bar of what is considered realistic in games is higher.

I thought Mario 64 was space age tech when it came out...and compared to other games out at the time...it was.

A lot of fad effects are in games at the moment though which don't do anything for them graphically or for immersion.

Motion blur...when would anyone want to make a 30 frame game look like it's running at 15...or a 60 frame game look like it's running at 60...pandamobile said he loved motionblur and cranked it up in his gtx295....I just said that he could sell it for a cheap card and get the same effect...

depth of field...um....yeah when I look around in real life, everything is in focus and things that are not in the centre of my vision are certainly not blurred in the way games make out, because your eyes scan back and forth and you retain memory of the outside of your vision when it was in focus from your eye glancing at it. People don't just stare straight ahead and never turn their eyes...blurring the outside of their vision. Our eyes are in sockets for a reason...they move. Motion blur and depth of field would be two thing only someone with severe eyesight problems would experience.

I honestly think graphics are 50% of the entire gaming experience. If fallout 3 was a PS1 game I wouldn't touch it, the beauty of that game is the open environments that you can empathise with being there. If you are looking at a blocky blurry aliased mess...then you are very much aware that you are playing a game, as hard as you might try to be immersed, and tedium sets in as you realise you are pushing buttons on a plastic control in a non tangible experience. Graphics add the immersion that aid great stories...

A big part of those graphics is art design though...bioshock 2, amazing art design, average visuals.

@MorganX

But you are not giving credit where it is due, credit does not go to the game...but to nostalgia. You could show some of the better games graphically this gen to someone in 5 years who has not played them and them enjoy it. But if you give them one of the games that had good gameplay but poor graphics, they will not connect with it at all because the graphics break the experience.

[MorganX]

To this day I get immersed into Castlevania: SOTN with its pixelated graphics and the best asteroids is still the old vector outline original.

[rumplstilts]

"You might not think graphics matter now, but in a few years when games look so dated you don't want to touch them it will,"

This is a non-issue for me. The only cases where this is a real issue is Atari 2600 and NES first person dungeon crawlers.

[TheFaggot_]

Many people don't care about gameplay anymore and all they talk about is graphics..
Far Cry 2 is an example of a game that had awesome graphics yet his gameplay was too poor I had to return it and get a refund..
If you do make nice graphics at least make it on par with the gameplay cause graphics without gameplay is like shitting without a toilet paper.

[Nihilism]

I loved Farcry 2...

*puts on minority name tag*

[MorganX]

Graphics do matter. But beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Shank is 2D and looks fantastic. Geometry wars look great. And of course, Uncharted 2 sets the standard for an entire genre and maybe generation. Yes, still, the single most graphically impressive video game experience would have to be Gears 1 for me.

But I wouldn't say one looks better than the other. Great graphics immerse you into "that" game. So yeah, they're important. Maybe a better quesion would be are they comparable?

[Dnied]

Awesome post. You took everything i had in my head and put it into words that make sense. I could not do this. LOL

bubbles

[xKakashi209x]

I find all nice looking ps3 exclusive games have both gameplay and graphics.

[rumplstilts]

Except LAIR haha.

[noobsRus]

gameplay matters more.

this generation is trash because that's all that matters now.

games today only have good graphics..but the gameplay is shallow and sucks

[Cajun Chicken]

No. What is more important is the animation and the narrative mixed within the believable graphics and that is quite simply why Naughty Dog is at the top of their game.

[baodeus]

Better Graphic is expected as tech improved. Graphic do matter in that sense. However, if you just play game for the fun factor, i wouldn't say graphics matter. For example:

1. A game with best graphics but gameplay is like trash vs a game where graphics aren't great but the game play is top notch?

If you think in that way, i mean game play is what really matter. Of course you can have both, but even a game with lesser graphics would be view as great regardless of its graphics.

[Spenok]

No, no they are not. This article is... nevermind.

[yamzilla]

or EVERYONE would own a beast of a gaming PC and only use consoles for exclusives....thats what I do...but... I'm a graphics pimp.....graphics whores let their graphics boss them around....graphics pimps....we make our graphics get out on the street and work for us....btw.....Graphics Pimp is now a trademark of yamzilla llc.