you know what?...fuck it....graphics ARE important

[Luftwaffles]

Can somewhat relate.

I didnt finish Deus Ex coz it looked like arse (and the tranq crossbow was totally anticlimactic)
Tried playing the old Half Life and the expansions, couldnt be arsed coz i finished them multiple times before and the weird blockiness kinda stood out.

on the other hand

FarCry 2 i didnt finish even though it looked awesome (can stare at fire all day) but missions were a drag
Penumbra series had semi decent graphics but i didnt care coz i was too busy running away from zombie dogs


Point is, i am not sure what the discussion is anymore and something something my opinion.

 

[Clearing the Eye]

modding is a long process...

I like that one much better! I still prefer the original--I think it's the face--but that last one there is awesome.

Yeah, modding is a slow process. I consider myself fairly well above average when it comes to hardware, less so with software, but even I find modding work, especially frames and textures, just way too tiresome. I always make sure the people behind the mods I use get a big thank you ^^

 

[Elemental]

Seriously,
Graphics are important, but story is important too.
Half Life 2 is simultaneously the worst and best game ever.
Women shouldn't be subjected to sexism.
I am now my avatar.
CoD is brown.
and Mass Effect 3 destroyed your faith in God.

We get it.

I love you, have a cookie.

 

[Starik20X6]

The surprising thing is that a game can stand on good graphics as well.

Naughty Dog pretty much admitted they started with the set pieces and then build the games around them when it comes to the Uncharted series.

That ofc doesn't make graphics more important than say music or gameplay. They all supplement each other. A 3d platformer wouldn't be possible without the 3d in the same way LA Noir wouldn't have been possible a few years ago. And none of the games would have been as good with a shitty soundtrack. Games are a combined experience with different element unifying to make the complete exp.

That's a fair point, though one could argue Naughty Dog design by "wouldn't it be cool to play through this set piece" rather than "wouldn't this set piece look awesome".

Again, while I do think graphics play a vital role in bringing a game world to life, the interactivity is what makes games stand apart from other mediums, which is why I'd argue that the gameplay is a more important part.

For example, take the DS vs PSP. They've sold over 150 million DS units, and the games look like this...

... while the PSP has sold 71 million and has games that look like this...

When you compare the two, it seems like the superior gameplay offered by the DS trumps the superior graphics of the PSP. Obviously it's not an entirely accurate comparison and both systems have their merits and yada yada yada, but I can't help but feel based on the numbers a fun and unique experience is more important than it looking pretty.

 

[Vegosiux]

Graphics are important you say?

Let's get one thing clear here. It's important how the game looks. It is. But that accounts to more than just the raw polygon count.

 

[Buizel91]

Am i the only one who can play a game simply because it's fun, and look past the graphics and story? Sure they help, but if i don't find a game fun, then there is no point.

For example, Oblivion. It's gorgeous, and i've heard it has a really good story, however, i can never get more than a few quests past getting out of the jail until i turn it off and go on something else. I just don't find it fun.

However, games like Transformers War for Cybertron, Red Faction Guerilla, and Assassins Creed 2, Sure the Graphics aren't amazing anymore, and the story may seem repetitive in these games. However i can play them for hours on end, because they are so fun, WFC i ahve completed about 5 times over, it's a story i simply cannot get bored of and in my opinion, has a quite a bit of replayability.

Obviously everyone has different opinions on what is fun and if you want to play games with amazing graphics, then fine, but in my opinion they don't matter, as long as the game draws me in and keeps me playing.

 

[Kungfu_Teddybear]

I wouldn't say they're not important, but for me graphics are like the decorations on an already delicious cake. Sure good graphics help the immersion and help you to enjoy the game more. But, to me personally, a good story and good gameplay are far more important.

 

[Lt._nefarious]

Graphics certainly add to my overall experience of a game but I don't think they make or break a game... I like good graphics but I can easily get immersed in a game that has bad graphics. Unlike "Vault101" I can play a game like Doom and still enjoy it... Urg... What I'm trying to convey, despite doing a very poor job, is that good graphics are very nice and lovely and matter a bit but they don't make a game good or bad...

 

[Griffolion]

I think graphics are important. But I just consider it one part of a bigger meal. Sunday lunch is made up of a good joint of meat, many types of veg, potatoes and other things. Focussing on the broccoli misses the point of the whole meal. This is a bad analogy.

 

[Amaror]

Oh i just hope your not one of those people who answer the question:
Is the game good?
With:
It looks good.

 

[Cid Silverwing]

They have to be serviceable, but you can't build a game around them.

This.

It's the Sightseeing Tour Syndrome.

 

[The Last Nomad]

Anyone who tries to say graphics arn't important are usually just trying to jump on the bandwagon and have no concrete reasons to back up their arguement

Of course graphics are important. If you can't tell whats going on then how can you play the game?
Not only that but the style of graphics really can make or break the game.

 

[The Last Nomad]

Graphics are important.

Story is important.




Animations and frame rates are more important than the first two put together. (well, maybe equaling story)

It's doesn't matter if you have photo-realistic graphics if the game sputters and NPCs move like puppets.

Wouldn't animation and frame rates fall under graphics? at least in my mind they would, I don't see graphics as just being the shapes and textures of objects in the game.

Is it just me?

 

[Skratt]

I enjoy games more if they have pretty graphics. Each new generation of graphics enthralls me. I can remember the Morrowind, Oblivion, Skyrim progression. Each was awesome visually in it's own right, but each time the next one came out, I was surprised I was so enthralled with the one previous to it.

That being said, there are still some games that I don't mind that the visual aesthetics are not up to par, but as a general rule, graphics really detract from the game for me to the point I probably won't go back and play them.

 

[Monsterfurby]

Yes, graphics are important - BUT

Graphics DO NOT EQUAL Technology

You can have better graphics with inferior technology. The best engines and games don't offer just a list of technically impressive features, but they employ them through great graphics design in creative creative (and sparing!) ways.

Too often, reviews mix up technology and graphics and praise features that might be ill-used in the final product or criticize the lack of tech demo-esque eye candy where clearly design has been more important in the game's development.

 

[TheLazyGeek]

There was this guy, he's a pretty well-known kinda guy because he made this thing of films called...what was it, Star Trek?

I can't remember, anyway, he once said "A special effect is a tool, a means of telling a story. A special effect without a story is a pretty boring thing." and I think that applies to video games with how the graphics of a game are a tool for the rest of the game. That's not to say they're not important, because they are, but it's not how many pixels you can fit into a cut-scene that's important, but rather the style of the game that bends around the other elements of a game.

 

[vashthblackseed]

graphics are important, but not to the exclusion of EVERYTHING else

 

[MammothBlade]

Vault101: Renegade + 5

I think it depends on the sort of game... and its complexity. You don't need bleeding edge graphics for a small-scale game. Though if the goal is maximum immersion, then a basic standard of graphics (say well-polished sixth-generation graphics) is essential. I love Shin Megami Tensei which tends to use anime-style graphics, so I'm not that fussed as long as it doesn't hurt my eyes.

Examples of what I mean:

I'm not fussy. It's not hard to produce graphics at that level. Although I'd prefer them to be at least as good as Persona 3's animations, it doesn't matter too much as long as they're at that entry level.

There's no problem with games which were made before such graphics became standard, but anything after should not slack on graphics if a player is expected to play all the way through for many hours.

 

[Treblaine]

If video games are an artistic medium, then you cannot say that they must be limited.

Deus Ex worked for the story... but it truly lacked in one-to-one interaction. The animations were stiff and simple with such basic expressions. This didn't hold the game back from


Metal Gear Solid, a very graphically basic game had to depend on tricks to avoid this, like how often important conversations were held in Codec where you had manga style drawn portraits rather than be limited by 3D faces as could be depicted in the early 90's.

Faces.

They are most important in a game that is trying to tell of any sort of human interaction. You need to be able to accurately show all the expressions or doomed to highly impersonal storytelling, or lean on a crutch like being heavily text based or with pre-animated sequences.

But where do we go from here? Where the likes of Alyx Vance has since 2004 been able to show a wide range of subtle emotions from facial expressions? I think right now we are staring into the precipice of the uncanny valley and we are not yet ready to vault it, but when we do, on the other side will be truly photo-realistic graphics, at least for faces.

That is the limit we are facing with the uncanny valley, but it will not be a permanent barrier.

 

[mrhappy1489]

I don't think most people who argue graphics aren't important believe that graphics aren't important, I think the main argument which is spouted over and over is that all it really needs is a good aesthetic. I've seen games that are photo realist and games that employ cell shading and both can be considered beautiful and both can be considered immersive. I don't mind that you need pretty graphics to feel immersed, that is perfectly fine in my opinion, you go for broke, but I think a lot of what you say comes down to a good aesthetic. I've never played Deus Ex and don't know what the quality of the Aesthetic is, but I've played games with similar graphics and been completely immersed in the experience, simply because the world was built well and employed the aesthetics to the fullest extent. All in all in comes down to personal preference, but I still don't think graphics are important, in the sense that I need them for immersion, Aesthetic is.