Are we near the end of diminishing returns for Video Game "graphics"

[Justified]

I was wasting time on the internet here at work and came across this Next Generation cover.

Amazed looking back at how we thought "It can get better than this" Of course (the generic) We were wrong.

Fast forward to today, how right will we be making that statement? With Games like Ratchet and Clank, and Detroit:Become Human how far are we away from "cant get better?"

Or will there be some tech to advance us further like 3D acceleration (Voodoo, TNT) of that time

Side point I wonder how many of those 21 myths were answered

 

[Soapbox Killer]

I am there now. Better has been relative since last gen for me.

 

[GorillaJu]

My interpretation is more that we're at the point where development costs are so prohibitive that most studios can't afford to take huge leaps forward, graphically.

 

[bjork]

uncanny valley hasn't been reached yet, and even when it is, when will it be reached at 60.

 

[strafer]

graphics are on the bottom of the list when i decide to buy a game

i stopped caring a long time ago

 

[Muzicfreq]

The moment with real-time ray tracing and all around true tesselation on every surface along with real-time shadows and dynamic lighting with best in class AA solutions and draw distances that carry super far.

All this without killing your frame rates

 

[Killyoh]

Veeeeeeeeeery far. Still a lot to improve on lights, textures, particles, fluids etc.

 

[DownGrader]

I feel like graphics - if we are talking about still frames - haven't noticeably advanced since... I dunno, 2012? That's why I genuinely want developers to focus on achieving high fps count. And, with VR and high refresh rate displays, it seems a lot of them do just that.

 

[horkrux]

My interpretation is more that we're at the point where development costs are so prohibitive that most studios can't afford to take huge leaps forward, graphically.

This. I wouldn't worry about the possibility of large jumps, but rather the feasibility of it.

 

[Mcdohl]

Veeeeeeeeeery far. Still a lot to improve on lights, textures, particles, fluids etc.

I think OP doesn't mean that there's no room for improvement, but more like the difference between generations is looking less obvious.

 

[DNAbro]

Yes the tech can always get better and improve but I don't think there is a huge need for it.(Besides making things more efficient and easier to handle) I'm curious what artistic vision someone currently has that can't be done with today's current tech that isn't a ridiculous pipe dream.

 

[inpHilltr8r]

simulation fidelity has a long long way to go yet

 

[slash000]

It's neat.

There's some games from 2007, 2008 that look pretty great today, still. Especially on PC. And it's been like 8 or 9 years!

The jump in graphics is still happening but the 8 year gap between games and graphics in previous console gens is far more substantial. I mean, heck we're getting "HD remakes" of games today from previous gens and they still look pretty good with a little touching up.

 

[family_guy]

I'd be fine if we didn't advance any further, but lots of work needs to be done to get everyone up to the same level of quality. I'm playing the new Deus Ex, and feel like I'm looking at a late PS3 game.

 

[Salmonbottle]

I just built a gaming PC and played Rise of the Tomb Raider on highest settings and was blown away. This was after owning a PS4 since launch.

I think there is still plenty of room for improvement. Lighting makes a huge difference, as does texture resolution. And of course, regular resolution! 4K is around the corner and it's going to be sweet.

Plus, if VR takes off, there's going to be a whole new cycle of graphical refinement there.

The leaps are no longer about adding more polygons, but we still have a long way to go before we reach realism.

I think there's plenty of fun left to come.

 

[Aaron D.]

Nope.

It will never be reached.

As soon as we "perfect" images on a 2D screen, we'll be moving on to full 3D space and the tech climb will start once again. Etc. Etc.

Reminds me of all those "End of Times" cults. Every generation thinks they're a special snowflake and the Rapture is coming on their watch.

Graphics technology will be continually evolving long after we're all gone.

 

[Muzicfreq]

uncanny valley hasn't been reached yet, and even when it is, when will it be reached at 60.

 

[Rotch Crot]

My interpretation is more that we're at the point where development costs are so prohibitive that most studios can't afford to take huge leaps forward, graphically.

This sounds accurate

 

[BRocknRolla]

Of course not.

The reality is, we don't know how good something can look until we've seen it. We don't know what that next jump will be until we're there.

You can find plenty of people right now saying, "I don't see the point of 4k" or something like that, when realistically, they have no idea how much fidelity it adds. And I'm sure plenty of those same people were saying, "720p is fine," prior to 1080 becoming more standardized. Standards change, and so too does what we think of as impressive graphics, as your post points out.

"Diminishing returns" is only a relevant thing to say when placed in the context of a single moment. I'm relatively certain that we'll look back on many of the games of today and think they look pretty grim in 5 years time, even if right now it feels like we're getting diminishing returns from improved hardware (Which I personally think isn't even true right now given that even high end PC hardware is struggling to hit the 4k mark).

My interpretation is more that we're at the point where development costs are so prohibitive that most studios can't afford to take huge leaps forward, graphically.

I think this just means there's going to be a need for better tools that help to streamline this process. In the same way building bigger buildings necessitated new technologies to make that process easier, so too do the tools in the games industry evolve. This is the natural progression of industries. Perhaps things will stagnate for a time, but things never stop evolving.

 

[pottuvoi]

There is still a lot of work to be done before we hit the wall.

 

[ubercheez]

I'm much more concerned with art style than I am with raw graphics these days.

 

[petran79]

We still havent gotten a Disney quality hand drawn animated 2D video game, so no.

 

[DownGrader]

Yes the tech can always get better and improve but I don't think there is a huge need for it.(Besides making things more efficient and easier to handle) I'm curious what artistic vision someone currently has that can't be done with today's current tech that isn't a ridiculous pipe dream.

I am still waiting for the game of my childhood dreams - a first-person sandbox where you can do everything with everything, from ripping clothes to ducktaping objects together.

 

[Gator86]

My interpretation is more that we're at the point where development costs are so prohibitive that most studios can't afford to take huge leaps forward, graphically.

Yup, people are constantly complaining that games graphics aren't improving enough but then proceed to complain about delays, unfinished games, consolidation, lack of B-tier titles, annualized franchises, etc. Demanding so much of graphics is crushing the rest of development.

 

[Coreda]

It's the forehead/hair that creeps me out.

 

[L Thammy]

Diminishing returns doesn't mean diminished returns. It doesn't mean that there's nowhere to go, it just means that we see smaller gains. I don't think that's going anywhere; the jump between from PS4 to the Neo will not be as drastic and noticeable as the NES to the SNES, for example.

 

[Bolivar687]

We just had Deus Ex release which looks gorgeous maxed out but has a number of features that give even enthusiast graphics cards trouble.

VR extends this quite a bit since you need very high resolutions and framerates for immersion and comfort.

In the end it's up to you when it's good enough. Personally I'd be happy if every game was at the standard of MGSV and Call of Duty at native display resolutions and refresh rates. But PC ports are going to continue pushing the visual envelope.

 

[Killyoh]

I think OP doesn't mean that there's no room for improvement, but more like the difference between generations is looking less obvious.

Oh. In thay case yeah I guess but generations are becoming more and more abstract now so it's hard to tell.

 

[gelf]

This depends on the individual. It's already been diminishing returns for me since the best of the Dreamcast. I could have lived with no visual improvement since then.

 

[Kamina]

It's the forehead/hair that creeps me out.

Probably havok physics

 

[collige]

Maybe for still life screenshots in very select conditions, but not even close overall. Artists have gotten very good at hiding the deficiencies of modern graphics tech, but that doesn't mean that we actually have photorealistic graphics.

 

[Timu]

That looks so real!!!

 

[wapplew]

More like we reach no return investment if games cost more and more money to make.

 

[DNAbro]

I am still waiting for the game of my childhood dreams - a first-person sandbox where you can do everything with everything, from ripping clothes to ducktaping objects together.

There is tons to be done with physics and simulations but I meant purely from a "looks" standpoint.

 

[Wray]

Most of the "graphical" advancements are going to be more Physics stuff. So games will vastly improve in that department over the next 10-15 years.

 

[Piggus]

Not even close. Anyone who has played Deus Ex and watched the story recap video should have been reminded of this, as should anyone who's seen any recent high-end CG. Real time lighting at the moment is a joke compared to where it will be in 5 years.

 

[BRocknRolla]

I am still waiting for the game of my childhood dreams - a first-person sandbox where you can do everything with everything, from ripping clothes to ducktaping objects together.

Ah... Ripping clothes and duct-taping things together?

Do I need to call the police?

 

[Justified]

Most of the "graphical" advancements are going to be more Physics stuff. So games will vastly improve in that department over the next 10-15 years.

Yea this is how I feel. I fell like the "looks" will not have ginat leaps like in the past, but Physics will

 

[Havel]

Is this not just someone loaded with Botox?

 

[Muzicfreq]

Is this not just someone loaded with Botox?

Medal of honor

Also the guy who referred to Deus ex... Never compare that to graphics tech. Might look nice but still dated

 

[RockTurtle]

graphics has somehow taken a backseat in my mind to trying to maintain "60 fps 1080p" fidelity as much as possible.

as for the actual aspects of graphics, i think these last couple of gens have sorta melded for me and i'm at a point where photorealism isn't as big or necessary and artistic style is more of an impact.

i guess i'm reaching a point of "good enough"

 

[Servbot24]

Detroit:

A movie:

Ratchet and Clank:

Pixar:

Still plenty of room to improve.

 

[Rexatality]

graphics has somehow taken a backseat in my mind to trying to maintain "60 fps 1080p" fidelity as much as possible.

as for the actual aspects of graphics, i think these last couple of gens have sorta melded for me and i'm at a point where photorealism isn't as big or necessary and artistic style is more of an impact.

i guess i'm reaching a point of "good enough"

I must say, I feel that way too.

As long as the art style of a game looks good to me, I don't care enough if said game is not impressive on technical aspects

 

[mtodavk]

Improvements are being made in areas that are a lot less obvious than just poly count, so I think we've got a way to go until graphical progress is significantly slowed.

But I pretty much only play CSGO at 1024x768 on low settings so why do I care I suppose. Graphics are rarely a thing I'm concerned with in games these days.

 

[cooldawn]

I'm not going to rant in here because I'm really peeved off with certain aspects of development cycles/decisions in this generation.

Suffice to say, though, I don't think we are anywhere near the point of diminishing returns. It's going to take many generations to get there because, for some stupidly insane reason, we find other ways of impeding pure visual fidelity...like 1080p, 4k, 60fps, 120fps (VR), dual High-Definition displays (VR)...the list will never stop.

There's always something new to chase, and it sucks.

 

[Freeman]

What happened with diminishing returns deniers? Just the other day it didn't exist and now its already over.

 

[Manmademan]

Graphics are good enough that I don't really see myself caring much anymore.

 

[dracula_x]

More like we reach no return investment if games cost more and more money to make.

Agreed.

 

[Huge Succeeded]

oh my god this thread again lmao

No. Just no.

We're barely at the 'beginning' of diminishing returns. Or, I should say, diminishing returns is barely even a factor right now. Graphics have such a long way to go that I'm frankly surprised that anyone in their right minds could write that shit with a straight face.

 

[EatinOlives]

We haven't yet hit real-time ray tracing, which won't happen for a good long while but it'll revolutionize visuals