9 replies to this topic

[rouncer]

The best most inspiring game ive played recently is gears of war, with it all looking brand spanking new, packing the best of the best of the modellers for some really shiny models.

the new unreal engine is the greatest thing out past doom3, maybe unreal wasnt as cool as doom3 was for me but its engine is superior, you could tell.

With direct x 11 coming out soonish and directx10 being the norm, games are gonna come out displacement mapped, still - its not quite out yet, only normal mapping is still being used, but when it does it should make for some really awesome games.

Thats why all my efforts now are going straight for sculpting, its the future.

[Mihail121]

I hate all the new games. Dunno when was the last time I played a really good game. I think Red Orchestra, Red Alert 2, X3, X-Plane are pretty fun, but I'm definetely not in for new gen. graphics.

[rouncer]

I love old games too, i collect old arcade games and emulate them and I have fun every now and again playing them when ive got nothing else to do.

I had my girlfriend around once, and she doesnt appreciate them, the low resolution makes her think its "lego land" and it doesnt thrill her at all.

She needs games that look "real" or shes not impressed. But making these next gen games is really hard, im struggling through it trying to get my first next gen engine together...

[starstutter]

Mihail121 said:

I hate all the new games. Dunno when was the last time I played a really good game. I think Red Orchestra, Red Alert 2, X3, X-Plane are pretty fun, but I'm definetely not in for new gen. graphics.

case in point: fallout 3.
Just bought it. Already lacking in graphics department and you have to turn down the settings to medium to avoid crashes, so it ends up looking pretty bad.
But why do I not care? Because its the best game I've played in a very long time (possibly besides Zelda: TP, another case in point).

Perhaps on the opposite end of that, I havent played Killzone 2 so I couldn't tell you first-hand whether its really good or not, but there was sooooooo much hype over the visuals alone. Then comes the release date, people actually play it, and are many people talking about KZ anymore? No... not really. In fact I've never seen a game drop off the map so fast.

Gears of War (the 2006 one) was very pretty in its time, but it was so mindless I almost fell asleep halfway through, and yes I realize I'm in the vast minority for saying that I hate shutting my brain off in a game. The only game that ever made me forget about craptastic gameplay because of its visuals was crysis, and after a while the entertainment value was mediocre at best. This of course isn't to say games with good graphics have crappy gameplay (the old tired argument that work on graphics takes away from all work on gameplay). Bioshock and half-life are shining examples of this.

EDIT: as a sidenote... I don't think I've ever heard of a girl that was a graphics critic... In fact most I know perfer them not to be cutting edge (mario kart, zelda, nes (or super nes) games). I think it has something to do with them being percieved as less complicated, idk, that just seems strange to me.

[alphadog]

Of course "best" is a loaded word.

Fallout 3 is overall awesome. Good engine, good plot with dynamic and non-obvious choices, great mechanics, good pacing. Reinforces that big studios can actually make good, slightly off-center franchise repeat games if they try. (Watchmen, I'm looking at you!)

World Of Goo is wacky and a great way to have fun with a physics engine. The corny cut-scenes are fun. My kids play it endlessly which is a testament to its age-range playability.

Empire Total War I just started. Some good AI in there.

Defense Grid Awakening for the plot/narrative. Limited playability, and you have to like the game type, but there's some highlights there.

Hope this ruins a weekend or two!

[petersky]

The best ever game i have played is maxpayne 1 & 2, followed by wolfenstein return to castle, counterstrike, these games make you involved in the game story however now a days i am not finding any games having a good story line.

[Rubicon]

+1 for red alert 2

I'm well into graphics programming, but I'd never describe one game as being better than another because it has a better bump-mapping method!

I think quake 3 is better than all the above as it plays better in multiplayer. Looks lame these days ? Yep, looked fairly mediocre when it was new imo. But it looks good enough and plays brilliantly. Q4 looked better but was a steaming pile.

[rouncer]

Hey rubicon, textures arent shit, they can look real good if your packing a professional artist.

But sculpting is a new way thats on its way out, in a way its EASIER than texturing cause you dont have to draw colour.

[Rubicon]

Quote

Hey rubicon, textures arent shit, they can look real good if your packing a professional artist.

Wha? Not only did I not say textures are shit, I also employ several professional artists.

Twighlight zone error at line 1

[rouncer]

Oh sorry, you misinterpreted my slang.

I meant "i agree with you that textures are good"

Truly.