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Best PC Graphics of 2016

NeoRaider

Member
^ Thank you!

For me it's Rise of the Tomb Raider. The lighting and texture work are amazing. I had to stop many times just to take in the environment.

Texture work (On Ultra) is really amazing. They are so HQ, and one of the best i ever saw.
CD and Nixxes both did great job.
 
D

Deleted member 17706

Unconfirmed Member
Didn't play Battlefield 1, but I bet it takes the crown this year. Looks incredible.

For what I did play, easily Rise of the Tomb Raider and The Witcher 3 Blood and Wine. Those two consistently wowed me more than anything else on PC this year. I would probably give a slight edge to The Witcher 3 just because of how well it performs.

Dishonored 2 had a great art style, too.
 

AEdouard

Member
Interesting that the two games that come up the most, Battlefield 1 and DOOM, don't need monster PCs to run really well. I'm looking at you, Dishonored 2 and Hitman.
 

Stevey

Member
DOOM.
A few of my screens.

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Battlefield 1 looks more realistic for sure, but DOOM looks amazing
 
Really hard to choose. Gears 4 is REALLY impressive for a linear game. Same for DOOM and BF1. Rise of The Tomb Raider also looks fantastic and there is NOTHING on consoles that even comes close to some of these on PC. hmm

DOOM or Gears. Can't decide
 
Doom 2016 is a masterclass in how to make all the right choices to maximize how good a game runs and looks.

Maybe some games push more polygons or have fancier lighting or do other individual things better, but Doom 2016 is crazy impressive because it's so fast and smooth and also has great visuals.

It also has the best ever implementation of motion blur, it was the first time I've ever played a game with motion blur and didn't want to turn it off.
 

Espada

Member
The 1070! Very powerful, not insanely priced.

Yeah, I'd second this and say the 1070. It's phenomenal at 1080p for current games, and can even run many of them on High/Very High preset at 1440p with good performance.


Anyway, my choice here would either be Doom or Rise of the Tomb Raider. The former runs like a goddamn dream even with maxed out everything while still like a delicious feast for the eyes. The latter has an art style I prefer with really nice lighting, shadows, and textures. Oh lord, those high quality textures have spoiled me.

I'd give it to Rise of the Tomb Raider, but Doom is right behind it.
 

AEdouard

Member
Doom 2016 is a masterclass in how to make all the right choices to maximize how good a game runs and looks.

Maybe some games push more polygons or have fancier lighting or do other individual things better, but Doom 2016 is crazy impressive because it's so fast and smooth and also has great visuals.

It also has the best ever implementation of motion blur, it was the first time I've ever played a game with motion blur and didn't want to turn it off.

Yeah. Doom is really a technical marvel.
 

ghibli99

Member
Doom's insane, although I don't really love the actual character/monster models. Environments, textures, performance, post-processing, etc., are excellent though.
 
Battlefield 1, Gears of War 4, DOOM, and Rise of the Tom Raider are at the top of the leaderboard, I'd say. Oh wait, can't for get about Witcher 3: Blood and Wine.

But you can find some pretty good looking stuff in Watch Dogs, Mirror's Edge Catalyst, and Abzu. Quantum Break should absolutely NOT be slept on in a graphics discussion. DeuSEX:MK is also very good looking at times.

Is this the reason Juniors get the rep that they do around here?

It's exactly why
 

Sullichin

Member
I'll give it up for DOOM. But I don't have Battlefield 1 and that would probably take it if I did, game looks insane.
 
Doom and Blood and Wine.

Doom is an absolute technical marvel, but have you seen the dresses in blood and wine?

plus bf1. another marvel of looks x performance.

2016 was a terrific year for pc gaming, tbqh
 

Dice

Pokémon Parentage Conspiracy Theorist
Battlefield 1, Gears of War 4, DOOM, and Rise of the Tom Raider are at the top of the leaderboard, I'd say.
That's my list. All such astonishingly beautiful games. You could look at detail of Battlefield 1 and think it the best, but compare to the lighting and reflections of Doom or the sheer aesthetic beauty of RotTR and realize they all just have their own priorities and stylistic choices. However, each one is a clear step beyond past accomplishments, just on a new level of production, even past Witcher 3 even though it has such phenomenal art to mask the tech gap.
 
Bf one for sure. Doom and anno 2205 would be runners up. Nothing else is even close. Wasnt really a great year for visuals compared to the previous 2
 
I wish Ori & the Blind Forest DE counted, but the graphics didn't really change since last year.

I think this might actually be a year where I'd vote for technical graphics instead of great art style/direction, which is saying something because I hate voting that way.
 
Gotta be BF1 for me as well. It looks nice but when I finally got RotTR I was not nearly as blown away as some people seemed to be.
 

Wedzi

Banned
Uncharted 4 and Doom and phenomenal but I'll have to go with Battlefield 1. Just absolutely astounding of what they were able to accomplish in large scale multiplayer, at 60 FPS.
 

kikonawa

Member
Somehow quantum break looks ok in screenshots only. I have the game and im sorry it doesnt look that great
 

laxu

Member
I don't see DOOM. It runs great and plays great but it isn't a super stunning game visually. I don't think I had any "wow" moments playing it. By comparison Rise of the Tomb Raider has far more impressive set pieces and W3 Blood&Wine is just overall gorgeous.

Hitman should be somewhere in there too even if it's maybe not the best. Especially the Sapienza episode looks really nice.
 

BraXzy

Member
I'd have to agree with BF1 for technical achievement / visuals. Absolutely gob smacking at times. Doom is incredibly impressive for the performance though.

Artistically.. INSIDE, The Witness and Firewatch are up there for me.

I don't get the Gears praise though. For a linear game, the only thing that really impressed me was the particles/weather. Overall the IQ felt like it has been covered in Vaseline. Even on ultra.
 

Zemm

Member
One of the best years, everyone could have a different answer and they'd all have good reasons why.

Personally Doom and Blood and Wine were my favourites. Doom is a masterclass in technical prowess.
 
Not having played Rise of The Tomb Raider on PC this year (but on Xbox last year), I nominate:

ABZU
Gears of War 4
Forza Horizon 3
Inside
Street Fighter V
 
I'm not quite sure I understand Doom here.

It looks and plays great, but I'd put that down more to a consistent artstyle and use of light. I think when you get up on some of the enemies, they don't actually look that great. I certainly liked the look, but I don't think I'd say "best graphics" for it.

-Rise of the Tomb Raider certainly looked damn impressive. (Even if my interest is super low in that title.)
-I think Abzu is pretty impressive, though more from an art-style perspective than anything.
-From a scope perspective, I think Hitman looks fantastic, but few things look good up close.
 
The Witness is stunning. That's my vote



Rise of the Tomb Raider has its moments but it's also very inconsistent. Some of the geometry definitely looks cross gen
 

eot

Banned
I'd take Doom over BF1.

I mean, BF1 is "best technical graphics" for sure, but it's slightly more nuanced than that.
 

Vol5

Member
The devs aimed for the best graphics out there at 1080p / 60fps and they achieved it, so my vote goes to DOOM.
 
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