Do you care about graphics?

[Drummie666]

Graphics are undoubtedly a plus, but they should never EVER be anywhere NEAR as important as gameplay.

 

[L4WLI3T]

Eye candy is good, but gameplay is better.

 

[soulsabr]

Gameplay before graphics. Some of my favs are still 8-bits.

 

[xMelior]

Well, of course graphics are important, but still, gameplay > graphics

 

[Jason Danger Keyes]

I like games to look nice, so I always try to set the graphics as high as my computer will run smoothly. Of course gameplay is more important, but the gameplay is what I'm there for. I buy a game so I can play it, looking great is a bonus that I always enjoy. I'm not a snob who will scoff at anything that looks shinier than pong.

I'm really sick of these gameplay vs graphics arguments. The consensus seems to be that games that look shitty are inherently better because gameplay is more important. But who ever said that good looking games can't have good gameplay, or that ugly games are automatically more fun? An analogy would be in finding a partner. Her/His personality (gameplay) is obviously the most important factor, and their looks (graphics) are bonuses on top of that. Some people are just into people for their looks, yes, and they're shallow. That's not to say that good-looking people are inherently bad people or any less interesting than ugly people.

Anyway, blah blah blah long story short: Stop bitching about good graphics. They're pointless when tacked on to a shitty game and a godsend when part of a great game.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

I like pretty graphics, but I'm not going to turn a game away because it's ugly, nor am I likely to buy one just because it's pretty. About the only game that I've played with graphics so bad that they negatively impacted my experience was Final Fantasy IV, which literally hurt my eyes if I played the desert scenes in a darkened room. Also, PC games old enough to have CGA be the only graphics mode possible don't get much play from me, although if I find one that's a good enough game, and that the graphics don't make it impossible to play, I'll still play it. Hercules modes, and anything from EGA on, tend to be playable for me.

I think the best anecdote about my approach to graphics is Half Life. I'm playing it with the original models, instead of the HD pack, but I'm also forcing Anti Aliasing, Ansitropic Filtering, and Vsync through my graphics card drivers. I'd still play it if I couldn't do that, but since I have the tools to make it look better, I'll use them. (I'm not using the HD models because they change some of the weapons, and also break compatibility with some mods.)

 

[demoman_chaos]

Considering I prefer the older 2D games to most modern HD games, I'd say graphics are of no importance. 8-Bit graphics are better in my opinion. While not as detailed, they have a charm that no gritty brown and grey modern game could ever have. What game stands the test of time better, Call of Duty or Contra? Duck Hunt or Halo Reach? Tecmo Super Bowl or Madden 2010? Pong or Sega All-Star Tennis? Duck Tales, or Banjo: Nuts & Bolts? Doom or Dead Space?

And has anyone else noticed that a lot of games are heading back to the 2nd dimension? Sonic, Mortal Kombat, and others are going back to 2D (gameplay wise at least, animating a 3D model is easier than making sprites, notice how almost all modern animated movies are 3D models instead of hand-drawn).

 

[Reaper195]

Well, until game companies realise that we actually want decent and unique gameplay and story and characters....we'll have to stick with shiny crap (Crysis).

 

[Spoon E11]

Yes. I would like graphics but it doesn't need to be technically brilliant. They can be intresting or fun (TF2) just not ZOMG i can see my refection in their eye, ect. But thought and effort needs to go into graphics.

 

[MikailCaboose]

Gameplay over graphics, except when it just looks pure lazy, but then it usually comes down to the fact that the graphics weren't the only thing that suffered. Except for survival horror, where graphical quality (note, not "realism") matters a bit more, like with Resident Evil on the Gamecube. It played the same as the original, but it was the graphics that made it what it was.

 

[theguitarhero6]

I don't pre-judge games because of what it looks like because it doesn't mean right away that its bad.
HOWEVER, absolutely nothing takes me out of the experiance more than talking with a character with a poorly made structure or getting a good look at an item and seeing really crumby definition. This is a reason why I can't take Fallout seriously.

 

[DanyoSouth]

I played Ps2 games, but that's as far as I'm willing to go back graphics wise. Unless the art style was unique, then some games on the dream-cast are alright, but being spoiled by next gen. Last gen graphics usually strain my eyes -.-

 

[A random person]

I do care about the graphics and how they play into the aesthetic experience of a game, yes. Of course, I mostly look for simple competency technology-wise and focus more on art direction.

 

[FernandoV]

Yes, love graphics, love love love them.

 

[brownie212]

I'd love to be able to say graphics make no difference but to be honest i've had games ruined by the graphics. it wasn't that the graphics if you looked at it technically were bad they just made it so, i at least, couldn't play the game. whether it was the inability to see someone shooting at you or just being unable to tell stuff apart, graphics can kill a game.
They can't make a game however if the graphics are amazing, to a point were i feel like I'm watching a movie i am just as likely or even more to put it down if the gameplay isn't up to scratch, FF XIII jumps to mind. stunning graphics, have seen animated films with worse graphics but still the lack of gameplay bugged me and i lasted the 20 hour recommended period got to disc 3 and decided screw it I'm bored.
Gameplay 1st then graphics that suit the gameplay, as long as the graphics work for the game and i don't feel like the game has been changed to allow for "stunning graphics" i don't care about them anymore

 

[Kingjackl]

I have never cared about graphics simply because I've never owned any form of gaming hardware that could be considered 'top-tier' for graphics. PS2, Gameboy Colour, NDS, Wii, PC with out-of-date graphics card and finally Xbox 360 without an HD TV. This has taught me to lower my standards incredibly for video game graphics to the point that I just don't care.

More to the point I tend to be hatefully envious of people who are big on having the best graphics and that type of thing.

 

[The Lunatic]

Yes, they matter a lot.

 

[ninjajoeman]

I care about graphics because any improvements to them will tell me that were still advancing. Anytime I See a game that was made to look worse then the original I shake my head in shame.

If the game has a valid reason to cut graphic like minecraft then I wont mind. The thing I loved seeing was how silent hill and resident evil used things like fog to improve the capability of the ps1 so they could improve graphics.

 

[pulse2]

I like games to look nice, so I always try to set the graphics as high as my computer will run smoothly. Of course gameplay is more important, but the gameplay is what I'm there for. I buy a game so I can play it, looking great is a bonus that I always enjoy. I'm not a snob who will scoff at anything that looks shinier than pong.

I'm really sick of these gameplay vs graphics arguments. The consensus seems to be that games that look shitty are inherently better because gameplay is more important. But who ever said that good looking games can't have good gameplay, or that ugly games are automatically more fun? An analogy would be in finding a partner. Her/His personality (gameplay) is obviously the most important factor, and their looks (graphics) are bonuses on top of that. Some people are just into people for their looks, yes, and they're shallow. That's not to say that good-looking people are inherently bad people or any less interesting than ugly people.

Anyway, blah blah blah long story short: Stop bitching about good graphics. They're pointless when tacked on to a shitty game and a godsend when part of a great game.

This actually made me laugh because it's so true, the relationship between how we depict games and how we depict our partners is almost similar.

One might say that they prefer a stunning partner, but would they be happy with that partner simply for being good looking or because that partner just clicks with them in everything they love and enjoy, the same could be said for gaming, much of the reason why I keep on returning to old games I loved as a kid is because while they may not hold a torchlight to the beauty that is Uncharted for example, they are fun.

Take one of my favourites for example, Abe's Oddysee still looks beautiful to me, it was my first PS1 game and I'll still be enjoying it when PS5 comes out, will I still enjoy Crysis which was a graphical masterpiece? No, but that's probably because of my own personal preference, I just feel like certain games clicked with me, stayed in my mind and will forever be timeless classics, otherwise Tetris, Pacman and Alien Invaders are concepts that would have died out years ago.

I'm not directly comparing the graphical quality of Pacman to Gears because that would be an unfair advantage to Gears obviously, but I'm comparing the appreciation you, I, we had for a classic like pacman which can be played over and over and graphical marvels released today that are only sometimes worth 1 playthrough before they are sold off and never really thought of again.

This is what I mean by gameplay vs graphics, I'm not exactly pointing towards games with bad graphics as I don't expect anyone to like games with bad graphics because it makes gameplay annoying as well, there are several forms of good graphics in gaming, they don't all have to be about 3D photorealism, but the question I was getting at is to put it more precisely 'Would you be able to appreciate something that doesn't focus on polygon count and 3D immersion and would you be able to play and old game and not only enjoy it, but appreciate it as much as you would a new game'.

Don't simply see it as me saying for example, hot people are for one night stands, people with amazing personalities are forever.

 

[Jamous]

It's something that's always nice to have, but don't matter overly much. That's why I can still have fun when I play old games.