Bethesda: People Who Say Graphics "Don't Matter" Are Usually Lying

[Living Contradiction]

"There´s a lot of people who make sweeping and somewhat insulting generalisations about other peoples viewpoints and arguments." I said in a recent thread "To them I usually say ´you´re a prick´."

Bravo. Just bravo.

Most people make their first judgements of things based on how they look. It's shallow, but there it is. I'm of the opinion that graphics are lovely, but when everything else stinks, a pretty picture will not save you. Yes, Mortal Kombat, I'm looking at you.

 

[crop52]

jeez, some people here are making it sound like they think a game can only be good if it has bad graphics.

 

[MetallicaRulez0]

Graphics absolutely matter, but they're 4th down on my list of importance.

1. Gameplay
2. Replayability
3. Story
4. Graphics
5. Sound Design
6. Community (official forums, online community, etc.)

 

[Drake_Dercon]

Graphics are superficial, though. They aren't any more immersive (in fact, since so much money has been spent on graphics recently, many games that had that are losing it) than games of less graphical quality. I think that graphics are good at drawing people in, but shouldn't be the main focus of development (I'm really not lying, presented with a choice between DA2, a genuinely good game and Crysis 2, a fun but largely uninventive game, I picked DA2 and am very pleased with my choice). That's not to say you shouldn't pay attention to graphics, they help sell a game, but there's a difference between graphics, quality and immersion, and I'd much sooner buy a game that lacked the first but had the latter two in spades.

Case and point: Halo 2 was the high point of the series (debatably against its PREDECESSOR) even though subsequent games were much prettier. Staying in the same series, ODST was better than Halo 3 because it had a more dynamic cast and was more immersive. At least, that's my opinion.

And noting the previous post, a my personal importance list is a good idea:

1. Immersion
2. Gameplay
3. Characterization
4. Style/charm
5. World-building (physical game-world)
6. Storytelling
7. Soundtrack
8. Plot
9. World-building (fluff)
10. Replay value
11. Graphics

Yup, it is right there. Because it should be a side note, a sales boost to what should already be a high-quality, robust game.

Length is also good, but probably apart from this list.

 

[2xDouble]

Of course graphics matter. What they don't do is make or break a game on their own. If the game itself is fun, the level of graphical fidelity is irrelevant. Just look at Minecraft.

On the other hand, there is a point where graphics are so unintelligible the game is unplayable. But that hasn't been an issue in a long time, barring some highly questionable (read: gray and/or brown) design choices *cough*Mindjack*cough*.

 

[fierydemise]

Bethesda talks about immersion. I have to admit I lol'd a bit.

You absolutely read my mind. Bethesda's problem with their most recent games is that they have been the least immersive games possible despite trying to ridiculously hard.

Remember Oblivion the game that for the time was the primary graphical benchmark yet somehow was many orders of magnitude less immersive then its predecessor Morrowind. Do graphics matter? Of course they do but this "graphics uber alles" nonsense that certain sections of the game industry have been pushing for the past 6 or so years is getting silly. For my money its nothing more then an excuse to not innovate gameplay (hello most of the FPS genre) or do everything else required for immersion like writing and voice acting and general game design, I'm looking at you Oblivion.

 

[BanthaFodder]

graphics shouldn't matter. in select cases, where graphics are the forefront of the games appeal, they do (think of these games as the game eqivalent of Transformers 2; the visuals are the real show). there are SOME exceptions (L.A. Noire just wouldnt work if the motionscan wasnt so AMAZING.), but saying that graphics are "integral" is very ignorant.

 

[Ravek]

Interface matters enormously, and graphics are a part of that. Good graphics will add to the interface by presenting objects of interest in a level of detail that supports the player reasoning about them. (Of course not all pretty graphics will necessarily be good in this respect.)

But that does not make graphics itself the important factor. As long as the interface is good, I'll be content with the graphics. And sure, I suppose Bethesda is right that looking at pretty things is fun, but that's hardly why we play games.

 

[JediMB]

Graphics matter. They're extremely important, since they're mainly how we know what is going on in the game.

But that doesn't mean the same thing as "graphics have to be as realistic and advanced as possible". They simply have to serve their purpose, which is both to provide (accurate) information to the player and to be aesthetically pleasing.

CAPTCHA: Gärdenfors udopp

 

[ImprovizoR]

He is right. The experience playing Crysis for example is so much better when you have a capable machine to run everything on highest. It doesn't just look amazing, it adds a lot to the gameplay. It is important. There are new games that work well without good graphics too but they are quite rare (Borderlines and other cell shaded games). I don't think I'd have a lot of fun in Just Cause 2 if the graphics weren't that pretty. It makes the island of Panau so much better. You gotta love the sunsets in that game.

If people really believed in that "graphics don't matter" argument we'd all still be playing Doom or space invaders. So shit up about it already.

You know when graphics don't matter? When you're playing an old game. If you played a game 10 years ago and it was fun, you won't care about the graphics AT ALL if you feel like replaying it.

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

Good graphics are nice, but you know whats better Bethesda? A stable game engine.

 

[MindBullets]

Have to be some damn good graphics to make up for Fallout 3 in the immersiveness department.

 

[Jumplion]

Graphics and Visuals are two distinct things.

Graphics refers to the technical side of what you're seeing. How many frames per second, anti-aliasing, photo-realism, and all that technical jargon that comes with that kind of stuff.

Visuals is how the game is presented, whether it be in black and white, sepia, painterly style, a dystopian wasteland, or a colorful and cartoony race track.

Of course, if a game's graphics look like total shit, and it's not intentional (like 8-bit style, or something like with Kane and Lynch 2: Dog Days or whatever), then it's going to get some points taken off by me. In this generation we expect a certain degree of graphical, and visual, standards and if a game looks like shit we naturally assume that the gameplay and/or story is shit aswell because if they can't even make a city look like a city, their gameplay can't benefit from that.

 

[DubMan]

Of course! This must explain why developers have been able to make immersive games before the status quo!

Honestly, what a dolt. Newsflash: Morrowind was more beautiful than Oblivion on a number of levels, and was more immersive. I really hope you're not actually genuinely missing the boat on this and are resorting to hyperbole, because if you subdue the other unambiguously more important elements of the game for graphics, then prepare to lose a customer.

 

[unwesen]

I say Pete Hines is lying. There, one man's word against another's. Such statements serve no purpose, though, whoever makes them.

More seriously, though, graphics matter. What doesn't necessarily matter is high polygon count, hi-res textures, the latest shader effects, etc. If you can make do with pushing the tech less via good art direction, that's fine... preferred by me, even. Unfortunately not everyone is capable of keeping those things apart, which is why most arguments about whether or not graphics matter end up being pretty pointless.

 

[Phoenix14]

Mud Crabs are the heart and soul of an Elder Scrolls game... I wish you to withdraw your disingenuous accusations about Mud Crabs, post haste!

You know...I would actually say cliff racers are at the heart of the TES...

 

[Altanese]

I like graphics. When a game is absolutely beautiful on the highest graphic quality, I feel dirty playing it on lower settings.

That said, I also find immense enjoyment from text-based games. I just think you should focus on the gameplay, story, and character development and interaction. Once that's done, THEN polish it to a mirror sheen with your Look-Good-O-Matron-6000