Normalize not giving a fuck about graphics They’re nice to have, certainly, but they’re by no means a make or break on whether a game is good or not - ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

alycore.bsky.social • 209 days ago

Normalize not giving a fuck about graphics

They’re nice to have, certainly, but they’re by no means a make or break on whether a game is good or not

Comments

rezerkity.bsky.social•208 days ago

Graphics are important to a game's design because they can tie both gameplay mechanics and the world together, aesthetic matters.

I find it more productive to denounce the plague of making games look like real life, or realistic in general. It's always bland as shit and boring to look at

chocogames.org•208 days ago

the rise of basic, one color 2d polygons is near...

heresalittlefaith.bsky.social•207 days ago

My make or break with games is the soundtrack usually, that's for more like story based games though. I don't expect like.... Call of Duty to blow me away with music but some of those new Minecraft songs are freakin BUMPIN!

spoonshiro.com•209 days ago

And hell some of the best games of all time are just about the ugliest 3D games ever made.

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runiemint.bsky.social•208 days ago

I actually think System Shock 2's art direction and environmental design are top notch. It's just the character models that fall short 😅

spoonshiro.com•208 days ago

They do manage to give an uncanny feeling with their low-poly look and awkward stiff movements though so in a way it works in the games favor.

ansiedadedeamanha.bsky.social•208 days ago

Art is.

bigmac1625.bsky.social•207 days ago

There’s a good reason why the best selling game of all time is Minecraft, and it isn’t the graphics

lewdwicksaga776.bsky.social•207 days ago

It is what you do with those graphics that matters. You can probably count the polygons on Sybil Pseudoregalia's model, but Pseudoregalia still looks great.

nexpro.bsky.social•208 days ago

I'm good with this mentality with video games. Boardgames on the other hand, I really struggle. Sticking aesthetics just draw me in so much.

This is actually a shame, because I know for sure I was nether need no how twilight struggle looked and then when I came to play it, I loved it!

octopodig.bsky.social•207 days ago

Aesthetics is so much of boardgame design. It's the first thing people see of a game.

foxlyticalxd.bsky.social•208 days ago

Disagree to an extent. when you throw out a trailer for your game, graphics will be the very first thing everyone notices. If you have shitty graphics, it doesn't matter how good the game itself is if it's just an eyesore.

However, graphics should come after gameplay ALWAYS.

foxlyticalxd.bsky.social•208 days ago

It's not about making your game look good necessarily, it's about making your game's artstyle and direction look stylized, and native to just that game, even if it's not necessarily the best thing you've ever laid eyes on.

akeyboard.bsky.social•206 days ago

I’d rather a game full of hidden secrets, fluid motions, and many things to interact with, than a game that can only boast graphics.

marxcobalt.bsky.social•208 days ago

I think "not giving a fuck" is a bit far. Graphics convey information to the player and certainly impact the experience. As players we expect a level of cohesion between the visuals and gameplay, and this can definitely make or break games.

marxcobalt.bsky.social•208 days ago

An easy example is hyper fighters. They can have simpler visual styles, sure, but they have to inform the player on a variety of different factors at a quick glance and provide frame-perfect feedback using those graphics.

pigeonpostgames.bsky.social•208 days ago

Graphics are like the decoration on the main pillars of a game. It's there to make the foundations of the game look a certain way, but it's not going to make the game crumble if they're absent or "ugly". Take text based games with literally no graphics as an example.

krunks.bsky.social•209 days ago

TIRED : jraphics
WIRED : artistic direction

thincreator3483.bsky.social•208 days ago

True, but I as a Game, Cardgame, and Mod Dev do care about graphics alot :P

kain-moriquendi.bsky.social•208 days ago

Of course! There are are many a soul who enjoy a good 2D pixel side scroller! Story and character can go a long way! 😊

qumman.bsky.social•208 days ago

Fallout 1 & 2

daytenrose.bsky.social•208 days ago

Studios discovering that shoveling money into ray tracing or whatever the fuck won’t make a game look good if lacks actual visual identity 😱😱😱

coolpowers.com•208 days ago

Art direction and vibes win over tech every time.

memechara.bsky.social•208 days ago

Honestly i agree (games like mother 1 are a great example to me) but i still love it when games have good graphics :)

3demarco.bsky.social•208 days ago

fuck beautiful games with shit gameplay

centeroflife.bsky.social•208 days ago

Yeah, cuz all upping graphics is doing is making it harder to keep up with the latest games.

I don't wanna upgrade my machine every time a new gen game comes out.

igniseternus.bsky.social•208 days ago

Having a cohesive style is often times a lot more compelling than just high fidelity graphics

partnano.bsky.social•208 days ago

I think a good visual art style does enhance the experience ... but "good" usually boils down to consistency and subjectivity, imo.

drunemeton.bsky.social•208 days ago

My first game was Pong.

I've played a lot of game since, and rock solid game play will always beat graphics. ALWAYS!

kevandrecactus.bsky.social•209 days ago

I think it can matter. Some games I JUST don't like looking at at all, especially the dull browns/grays/greens from the height of 360/PS3 days. But in general I agree with your opinion

brokemage.bsky.social•208 days ago

I lot of my favorite games go for an art style instead of realism which I enjoy. It adds a lot of personality to the game.

volja.bsky.social•207 days ago

it's really more about having a cohesive art style than having fancy graphics

altheavalara.bsky.social•209 days ago

Yes. Being an RPG fan, I care much more about story and characterization over graphics.

draculafuckmansion.bsky.social•208 days ago

Say it louder for the people in the back!!! Art design always trumps graphical fidelity!!!

authorshaunhorton.bsky.social•208 days ago

The circle of people who can tell the difference between 4KHD and 8KHD overlaps completely with snipers.

robotsconcern.bsky.social•208 days ago

I definitely agree. While graphics can make a game look better, I think the gameplay is much better for entertainment value.

I feel like games with a smaller budget for graphics create a more unique style as they have to be more creative on how it's used.

But that's just my take.

ru-dev-official.itch.io•208 days ago

True, but if you want to make a living you'll have to know that in game marketing the way your game looks is a determining factor.

Obviously you can still archieve that with a strong art direction in all levels.

gooey-gui.bsky.social•208 days ago

i’m more in the camp of: i don’t need high fidelity graphics for a game to be considered good but it should have a strong artistic direction that enhances the story. even if it’s just ten pixels, a self produced bandcamp theme song, and a dream.

gooey-gui.bsky.social•208 days ago

it’s an adjacent position bc sometimes i get turned off by games that have no sense of identity in the art style. no idea if the writing is good or not, i get put off enough to not play it. i feel this way with many AA games who just clone what’s popular.

miabiy.bsky.social•208 days ago

Setuju ga setuju sih, kadang bisa oke dengan grafik yg ngotak² atau grafik yg mulus banget. Tapi bener kata mbaknya, grafik tu ga selalu menjadi hal yg kuat di gaming, diatas grafik harus ada konsep yg kuat dari game itu sendiri. kalau enggak ya jadinya Starfield 🥱

bartlebey.bsky.social•208 days ago

I'll never forget the showcase where David Cage was all "we finally have the graphics technology to tell stories with emotion" and Media Molecule followed it by showing something with 1000x more heart and significantly less photorealism.

adrianswalker.bsky.social•207 days ago

I try to. It's usually the first thing players pick on if there is something to pick on.

ns93.bsky.social•208 days ago

Make atmosphere correlate to design

romainmacre.bsky.social•208 days ago

I'm not an artist, and fully aware that the game can work the same without great art. Yet I care a lot about art, but what I care most about is coherence, ugly is fine as long as the artist/dev went for something they felt, put some thought behind it, not something random.

nailsthetabaxi.bsky.social•201 days ago

Art direction >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> graphic fidelity, 100% of the time.

deege.com•207 days ago

As someone who struggles with graphics…

fletchsin.bsky.social•207 days ago

Agreed I feel like story takes a massive hit in games that are graphics heavy. I feel it’s like that all the eggs in one basket kind of situation. All my favs are indie games. Good story and fun.

phusion.bsky.social•209 days ago

I suffered through DOS, NES graphics for too many years to not care about graphics. Ultimately, the gameplay is what matters most, but I can't play many indie games-- save for Gori: Cuddly Carnage which looks amazing. 8-bit looking games seem really popular with people who were never stuck with them

vicwolk.bsky.social•208 days ago

A thought in another direction: I've endured the same and had my moments of being dazzled by graphics (who never shouted "YO! LOOK AT THAT WATER!"?).

But I've tried out old looking games and some of them are definetely fun to play.

Also: Elden Ring and Dragon's Dogma. "Shit" graphics, great games.

phusion.bsky.social•208 days ago

Yeah fair, I just can't go too far back, I'm ruined. If Fromsoft ever adds difficulty sliders to their games I'll try them out.