Jimquisition: The Best Looking Game of This Generation

[Callate]

I think that's part of the story, but only part.

Certain games of every generation do a much better job of making the limitations of their hardware into part of the aesthetic style. Certainly color can be part of that. But I think if games like Borderlands or Jet Set Radio are still remembered for their graphics later, it isn't necessarily going to be so much about color or cel-shading as about the fact that the designers set their sights on a certain kind of visual style or tone and achieved it, rather than just aiming for what Jim notes is the ever-rising bar of "photo realism".

I think if we look back on the grim-and-gray shooters' graphics with disdain later, it's going to be less about lack of color and more about highly detailed faces on bodies with only slightly more complexity and articulation than stick figures (unless they're female, in which case they will also have jiggle-physics-endowed boobs.)

 

[Vault Citizen]

It's not like I entered into some Phineas Fogg style wager with Extra Credits

That would be fun to watch. Ignoring the you vs them thing for a moment I've never compared you to Extra Credits myself, you remind me a lot more of MovieBob when he does Game Overthinker.

 

[Flames66]

What a fabulous manicure you have.

 

[Starik20X6]

I'd also like to submit LittleBIGPlanet for the 'games that look fantastic with more than 3 colours' group. Admittedly part of what makes it so good is the fantastic texturing job, which might need to be updated as the years go by, but it's still an absolutely gorgeous game.

And Viva Piñata is just about the only XBox exclusive I'd buy if I wanted to get one.

 

[Rinshan Kaihou]

I have to agree. Also, hell yes for the wind waker music in the background.

 

[OldNewNewOld]

I agree with the point, but not with the choice of the game.

I would say either Okami or Skyward Sword are the best looking. Okami looks really nice, but Zelda has some more details. Both look amazing.

Also, this proves my point when I was saying that some of the best looking games in the generation are (ironically?) some Wii games. Lots of them use cel-shading to compensate for the inability of having high detailed textures.

 

[CaptainOctopus]

One of the best mix of aesthetics and tech I've seen lately are from Trine 2 and The Witcher 2.

Spoiler

 

[teh_Canape]

I personally believe the best looking "realistic" game nowadays is Crysis 2, simply because of the damn colors
like, despite the whole aliens and shit, the city environment of it is what I see when I leave my house, I see various colors of the trees, the houses, the cars, all that
not a gradient combination of gunmetal gray and turd brown

 

[lord.jeff]

People already got you for not mentioning Okami, which is probably the prettiest game of all time I really did decide to buy it after only seeing a video of Amaterasu run, but also no mention of Viewitful Joe either for shame. I wonder if well ever get to a point with the market getting over saturated with bright colorful imagery and we all start complaining about how we need more grit in are graphics.

 

[Spud of Doom]

"And it's a pretty good game especially the sequel because crabs are in it"

That quote is pure gold. Loved it.

 

[Elyxard]

I'd like to give an honorable mention to Valkyria Chronicles. Again, it's stylistically cell-shaded, so it will actually still look good twenty years from now. It's one of the rare examples from this gen, and it does it so well.

Though how could you forget Okami from last gen?! Definitely the most gorgeous game I have ever played.

 

[MyNameIsNowNotMyName]

Why the fuck is there a political bullshit add for wisconsin on here? I would guess that most of the fanbase on this site is spread out and not concentrated there, I HATE POLITICS

Kinda wanna play windwaker now :S

As being a local Wiscnosinite, I can tell you that it's due to a recall election, due to our current governor being a complete dipshit. And everyone's putting ads everywhere due to it.

 

[PunkRex]

Gawd I love Viva, seeing that bastardos Dastardos finish off my stricken Pinatas always made me weep... although appeasing Roario with sacrafical Zimbugs and Doenuts did get abit annoying... fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!!!

Man, cartoonish aesthetics rock the shizz, Game Cube and Wii games like Wind Waker and Battlion Wars had awesome style and I love seeing stuff like Valkyria Chronicles do well.

No mention of Timesplitters though Jim? Son, im dissappiont, especially coincidering 4's a no go... im going to go cry for abit...

 

[Spud of Doom]

Screw this, I'm going to go play Windwaker on my Wii this weekend.

 

[Shoggoth2588]

Thank GOD for Jim...seriously; who else would have the balls to give Viva Pinata even the thinnest sliver of praise this far past the aughts? I have to agree too: It was a lot easier for me to get into Okami than to try getting into Shadow of the Colossus when I started going back and trying some PS2 classics. What about Darkness 2 Jim, isn't that one cell-shaded? It's dark but isn't it also cell-shaded.

 

[Fearzone]

I want to chime in for Super Stardust HD. It is one of the first games I got on the PS3, and about the only one I play anymore. Honorable mention to Outland, though its arcade mode drags before you get to the fun boss fights so I haven't got back to that one hardly at all.

 

[Kapol]

Viva Piñata, filled with fun! Viva Piñata!

Man, I really liked those games... and I think I still have the first for my PC. I might have to boot it up again and play it. Maybe with my niece around. She'd love the bright colors. It's funny there are quite a few 'kiddie-looking' games that actually hold up on their own.

Also, another example that wasn't mentioned besides the beautiful Okami was Ilomilo. There's a game with it's own sense of visual style, which is only helped by it's quirky soundtrack. The game itself was... pretty good. But I really enjoyed the style of it as well.

 

[Aardvaarkman]

No mention of Flower? That's a great-looking current-gen game.

Ultimately, I think Jim is confusing two separate issues. HDTV is about showing more detail. Both SDTV and HDTV have fairly similar color reproduction capabilities. Even that's over-simplifying thing, because SDTV vs. HDTV avoids the real issue of LCD vs. CRT, which is where the real differences in color reproduction are most noticeable.

There actually exist HDTV CRTs and SDTV LCDs, but most people don;t know enough about these nuances to understand the differences, therefore HDTV gets lumped in with LCD, and SDTV with CRT (with Plasma being closer to CRT, while also being HDTV).

 

[THE_NAMSU]

Never played viva pinata, but I think Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 1 had the best graphics I have ever seen, and it had many bright colours.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kdZqvwON-g&feature=related
(sorry I don't know how to embed the link into the post)

 

[Knuckles]

I think it's much easier on the eyes going back to play Genesis games rather then Saturn or PS1, for the reasons Jim made in the video. I have to agree with many here that Okami is
one of the best looking games ever, due to fantastic art style. As for shooters, I think is more likely that people will be playing TF2 for longer then COD or BF, because TF2 doesn't strive for being realistic and therefore avoids the whole uncanny valley thing.