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[Thunder Monkey]

I will admit that UC2 does look phenomenal.

But it looks like it's straddling the line between realism and surrealism.

I can respect that when it's done right. They really need to work on their human faces though.

They don't fit that well. The hair, skin, and clothes do, something off about the faces though.

 

[Feindflug]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVTHwwCjKLk

Halo Reach looks quite spectacular as well. The background is just epic.

I can't wait to see more of Reach's campaign, the game looks great especially considering the amount of particles and enemies/vehicles on screen...I'm sure Bungie has some pleasant surprises for us visual-wise that we will find out in 3 months.

 

[imthemaid]

BTW - Shadow of the Colossus looks fucking terrible these days. Needs a fucking remastering ASAP!

Recenty I played it for the first time, and it looks as good as--or better than--anything that I've seen or played from this generation.

Doesn't mean that I wouldn't love a remastered version though.

 

[indigo-cyclops]

The draw distance when you reach the top of the hotel is fucking bonkers. Impressed the shit out of me when I watched Sony's E3 conference last year, and once again when I got my hands on the game.

GoW3's opening titan level is probably the best set piece thus far this gen, though.

Fuck yes, loved that part. Made the Nepal level feel alive. I personally believe we still haven't seen what the current consoles can really do. We'll see though!

 

[zoukka]

I agree that the scenes in GoWIII weren't all up to the hype. I guess they looked just better in short videoclips. The reality was indeed impressive, but nothing special for me. Maybe I've played the series to the bone or something.

 

[Trickster]

The draw distance when you reach the top of the hotel is fucking bonkers. Impressed the shit out of me when I watched Sony's E3 conference last year, and once again when I got my hands on the game.

GoW3's opening titan level is probably the best set piece thus far this gen, though.

It impressed the hell out of me as well when I saw it on a SD livestream, I was like "daaaaaaamn". But when I saw it on my 40" HD screen, I don't know man, just didn't look as good as I imagined it would look in HD.

 

[Augemitbutter]

And am I the only one impressed by MGS4?

nope, it's brilliant.

 

[JaseC]

Fuck yes, loved that part. Made the Nepal level feel alive. I personally believe we still haven't seen what the current consoles can really do. We'll see though!

Well, we should have Uncharted 3 next year! Assuming the game is in development and it's to follow a similar unveiling pattern to its predecessor, we should get something in December. Given how sublimely-optimised Uncharted 2 was, it's going to be very interesting to see just what else Naughty Dog have managed to squeeze out of the PS3.

As far as the 360 is concerned, Epic's updated UE3 looks amazing in Gears 3. Can't wait to see how the game looks by the time it launches. Going from the PC port of the original Gears to Gears 2 on the 360 was a surprisingly small leap.

It impressed the hell out of me as well when I saw it on a SD livestream, I was like "daaaaaaamn". But when I saw it on my 40" HD screen, I don't know man, just didn't look as good as I imagined it would look in HD.

I suppose having seen that part of the game prior to playing it yourself would lessen the impact of the moment.

 

[onken]

Crysis (duh)
Gears 2
Uncharted 2
God of War 3
MGS4 still has some of the best models around
Alan Wake has some incredible fog/lighting effects

 

[wouwie]

As a ps3 only owner, i can only comment on the games for that console.

For me, the best looking game is still Uncharted 2.

Other games that left me speechless:
- Uncharted 1
- Flower
- Metal gear solid 4
- R&C Tools of destruction
- Read Dead Redemption
- God of War 3

Other impressive looking games:
- Motorstorm 2
- Assassin's creed
- A couple of levels from R&C Quest for Booty and Crack in Time
- Killzone 2
- Mirror's Edge
- Prince of Persia

I'm sure i forgot some but all in all, i've been more than impressed by this generation's visuals on console.

 

[Jb]

Though not necessarily impressive from a technical standpoint, Prince of Persia (2008) was such gorgeous game that its visuals made me forget how flawed and simplistic it was design wise. I really really hope that they do with the next PoP what they did with AC2.

 

[wind_steaker]

Though not necessarily impressive from a technical standpoint, Prince of Persia (2008) was such gorgeous game that its visuals made me forget how flawed and simplistic it was design wise. I really really hope that they do with the next PoP what they did with AC2.

This makes me so sad, such a fantastic style, but every time I go back to it I just can make myself play it.


one that people haven't mentioned much is R&C A Crack in Time, some amazing animations in that game.

 

[Always-honest]

God god, this look gorgeous.

F anyone saying Kameo has even a hint of bad art. It's still by far the best looking 3D world for a non-realistic like style.
Banjo Nuts & Bolts, the Mario Galaxy games & Ratchet & Clank all games come short to this.

i respectfully disagree.

 

[Foliorum Viridum]

Recenty I played it for the first time, and it looks as good as--or better than--anything that I've seen or played from this generation.

What? It was ugly on release, and now it looks even worse.

Nice art direction, but it was trying to do too much with the hardware. I can understand appreciating what it was trying to do, but as good as anything this gen? Really?

 

[RefigeKru]

Those are the worst SoTC screenshots ever.

 

[Foliorum Viridum]

I just picked two random ones from Gamespot. It looks like an accurate representation of my experience with the game.

Which is why I'm so excited over the prospect of a remastered collection for PS3 ala God of War and Sly Raccoon.

 

[Majmun]

Uncharted 2
Killzone 2
God of War 3

Seriously.

 

[Host Samurai]

:lol I still think that 90% of the games last generation still look good. I am easy to please in terms of graphics. I was playing Onimusha 1 and The Bouncer last week and they both still look good. So pretty much every game this generation looks good to me.

 

[SolidSnakex]

I just picked two random ones from Gamespot. It looks like an accurate representation of my experience with the game.

Which is why I'm so excited over the prospect of a remastered collection for PS3 ala God of War and Sly Raccoon.

SoTC's biggest problem was that it had a lot of slowdown due to just how technically demanding it was for the PS2. Team ICO was doing a lot of shit with the hardware that it just wasn't supposed to be able to pull off. And still SoTC animates better than most current gen games. TLG will be no different. They understand animation like no one else in gaming.

 

[Castle Doctrine]

I will admit that UC2 does look phenomenal.

But it looks like it's straddling the line between realism and surrealism.

I can respect that when it's done right. They really need to work on their human faces though.

They don't fit that well. The hair, skin, and clothes do, something off about the faces though.

I think it was the eyes. They had this weird glassy look.

 

[Gilby]

I think it was the eyes. They had this weird glassy look.

I've never really been a fan of ND's character design. Every time I see uncharted I think "why the hell is he wearing that?", but I really like the way the environments look.

 

[nelsonroyale]

God god, this look gorgeous.

F anyone saying Kameo has even a hint of bad art. It's still by far the best looking 3D world for a non-realistic like style.
Banjo Nuts & Bolts, the Mario Galaxy games & Ratchet & Clank all games come short to this.

bah, Brutal Legend looks much better than Kameo to...that game is underrated when it comes to open world games...it had a beautiful overworld

Uncharted 2's characters, even with the eye problem, are still some of the best out there....probably only FFXIII and MGS4 have done better....and Kratos of course

 

[Kittonwy]

The draw distance when you reach the top of the hotel is fucking bonkers. Impressed the shit out of me when I watched Sony's E3 conference last year, and once again when I got my hands on the game.

GoW3's opening titan level is probably the best set piece thus far this gen, though.

The thing I found most impressive is when you do get to fight on the roof-tops, when you shoot down the missile pods from the helicopter, and they land on the roof, or the level below, it's real geometry interacting with one another, if you get one of the pods to land on a roof that you can later reach, you can actually stand on it and interact with it, it's amazing how much collision-mapped geometry is in the game.

 

[Kittonwy]

What? It was ugly on release, and now it looks even worse.

http://image.gamespotcdn.net/gamespot/images/2005/286/reviews/924364_20051014_790screen016.jpg
http://image.gamespotcdn.net/gamespot/images/2005/223/reviews/924364_20050812_790screen009.jpg

Nice art direction, but it was trying to do too much with the hardware. I can understand appreciating what it was trying to do, but as good as anything this gen? Really?

It was probably doing more than any other game on the PS2, performance-wise it took a big hit but feature-wise I thought in terms of both the complex collision and everything from self-shadowing to water reflection/refraction, no other game on the PS2 was really at the same level. It was doing what GOW3 tried to do but better in terms of giving the player much more freedom to interact with the colossi.

 

[ULTROS!]

If you want last gen, I'd say FFX and Silent Hill 2 were eye candy (plus they're nearly launch games):

 

[VNZ]

If you want last gen, I'd say FFX and Silent Hill 2 were eye candy (plus they're launch games)

Not even close.

 

[adamsapple]

If you want last gen, I'd say FFX and Silent Hill 2 were eye candy (plus they're launch games):

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g305/k_core/FFX%20Bday/Ffxfieldmapexample.jpg[img]

[img]http://cdn.complex.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/silenthill2.jpg[img][/QUOTE]


Cue SH3 pictures.

 

[ULTROS!]

Cue SH3 pictures.

Also that.

 

[Felix Lighter]

I'd say Resident Evil 4, all the Splinter Cells, the Rogue Squadron games, God of War 2, Windwaker, Ridick and Halo were console standouts last generation.

 

[hikarutilmitt]

Valkyrie Profile 2 was quite a looker on PS2, as well. I really, really wish they hadn't removed the 1080i support from the US version.

 

[les papillons sexuels]

Gears of War looks like crap compared to these games. Art direction + blur do not help either!

It's not about games looking better then gears it's about which games set trends and standards. Gears pretty much defined what this generation looks like.

If I go through my back catalog of games, gears of war stands out as the game that set the bar graphics wise, and it's the game that showcases this generation the best, and the game which gets parodied the most, bloom+brown.

Maybe we have a different idea as to what a showcase is.

 

[owlbeak]

Red Dead Redemption.

 

[Anton Sugar]

Recenty I played it for the first time, and it looks as good as--or better than--anything that I've seen or played from this generation.

Doesn't mean that I wouldn't love a remastered version though.

:lol :lol :lol

What have you been playing?

 

[LiquidMetal14]

:lol :lol :lol

What have you been playing?

Probably mainy 360 games

 

[Koralsky]

PS3

Uncharted 2 - everything (Gow III ins't in the same league)

Killzone 2 (and maybe Killzone 3) - for some amazing particles and animations

Flowers - artistically and 1080p

WipEout HD - 1080P (1920/1240) and 60 FPS

A Crack in Time - amazing looking game running with very high frame-rate , despite low overall resolution.

Xbox 360

Red Dead Redemption - miles better than PS3 version. I can't believe how this game works so well on 360.

GOW2 (and maybe third part) - solid game all around. From models, to textures and stable 30 FPS in real 720p. The only issue that i have with Epics game is flat lighting model they use.

Bajno - Why Microsoft, why? On of the most technically capable developers make mostly avatar's stuff and Kinect bullshit?

Resident Evil 5 - again, PS3 version pales in comparison - textures, lighting, missing effect, low frame rate. For me 360 version is small technological marvel.


Also, i want to see what can Naughty Dog do after amazing optimization for UC2.
Halo Reach is also quite interesting from a technical perspective.

New Insomniac game for EA. Crysis 2 from Crytec, along with this exclusive game they announce for 360 at E3.

But my personal winner for optimization and overall tech achievements is Uncharted 2.

Cheers from Bulgaria

 

[Classic24]

I still fail to see why idiots keep saying god of war 3 isnt in the same league as uncharted 2.........I would say Kratos is the most detailed character in gaming history but Uncharted 2 is more visually consistent. I would say that GoW3 has "HIGHER HIGHS" than Uncharted 2, but uncharted 2's overall package takes the cake by a little margin

 

[Sapiens]

Recenty I played it for the first time, and it looks as good as--or better than--anything that I've seen or played from this generation.

Doesn't mean that I wouldn't love a remastered version though.

Are we playing the same game? I've just begun a new playthrough on a BC PS3 through HDMI on a 40" screen, at 480p widescreen, and this game has serious graphical issues.

Technically, it simply does not approach anything of equal effort, graphically on any next gen machine.

Like someone said, it's a very ambitious game, graphically, but after being spoiled on next gen shit, it falls short.


Even for a PS2 game, it's weak.

I'm surprised it wasn't pushed back a year and released on the PS3 as a launch title.

 

[corrosivefrost]

I still fail to see why idiots keep saying god of war 3 isnt in the same league as uncharted 2.........I would say Kratos is the most detailed character in gaming history but Uncharted 2 is more visually consistent. I would say that GoW3 has "HIGHER HIGHS" than Uncharted 2, but uncharted 2's overall package takes the cake by a little margin

I wouldn't consider Uncharted 2 to be in quite the same league as GoW3, but hey, different people with different opinions man.

I don't remember the last game on 360 that wowed me. Probably Gears 2. Definitely NOT Alan Wake.

 

[theignoramus]

PS3

Uncharted 2 - everything (Gow III ins't in the same league)

Killzone 2 (and maybe Killzone 3) - for some amazing particles and animations

Flowers - artistically and 1080p

WipEout HD - 1080P (1920/1240) and 60 FPS

A Crack in Time - amazing looking game running with very high frame-rate , despite low overall resolution.

Xbox 360

Red Dead Redemption - miles better than PS3 version. I can't believe how this game works so well on 360.

GOW2 (and maybe third part) - solid game all around. From models, to textures and stable 30 FPS in real 720p. The only issue that i have with Epics game is flat lighting model they use.

Bajno - Why Microsoft, why? On of the most technically capable developers make mostly avatar's stuff and Kinect bullshit?

Resident Evil 5 - again, PS3 version pales in comparison - textures, lighting, missing effect, low frame rate. For me 360 version is small technological marvel.


Also, i want to see what can Naughty Dog do after amazing optimization for UC2.
Halo Reach is also quite interesting from a technical perspective.

New Insomniac game for EA. Crysis 2 from Crytec, along with this exclusive game they announce for 360 at E3.

But my personal winner for optimization and overall tech achievements is Uncharted 2.

Cheers from Bulgaria

what a joke.:lol
Uncharted 2 has screen space ambient occlusion and slightly more consistent art. GOW3 is superior in nearly every other respect.

 

[nelsonroyale]

I still fail to see why idiots keep saying god of war 3 isnt in the same league as uncharted 2.........I would say Kratos is the most detailed character in gaming history but Uncharted 2 is more visually consistent. I would say that GoW3 has "HIGHER HIGHS" than Uncharted 2, but uncharted 2's overall package takes the cake by a little margin

Absolutely agreed...U2 looks incredible, but the most impressive sections of GoW3 impressed me more than any game I have played in recent years....

 

[alr1ght]

I still fail to see why idiots keep saying god of war 3 isnt in the same league as uncharted 2.........I would say Kratos is the most detailed character in gaming history but Uncharted 2 is more visually consistent. I would say that GoW3 has "HIGHER HIGHS" than Uncharted 2, but uncharted 2's overall package takes the cake by a little margin

Kratos' model is drop dead amazing. Some other characters are downright ugly in comparison (Hera). UC2 is more consistent, but it can't really touch that first boss.

 

[reKon]

The draw distance when you reach the top of the hotel is fucking bonkers. Impressed the shit out of me when I watched Sony's E3 conference last year, and once again when I got my hands on the game.

GoW3's opening titan level is probably the best set piece thus far this gen, though.

Once I was just messing around (after the building collapse part, when you're on the rooftop before the helicopter boss again) and wanted to test how far the draw distance extended so I put everything on low gravity and started shooting the same floating target with the sniper rifle. Any object I did it with went so far away to the point that it became a tiny dot that you could barely make out in the distance. Yeah, Naughty Dog definitely provided a great technical design to this game..

 

[RelentlessRolento]

I wonder how El Shaddai will hold up....

 

[Cels]

my god, Naomi....

i'd do her.

 

[JaseC]

The thing I found most impressive is when you do get to fight on the roof-tops, when you shoot down the missile pods from the helicopter, and they land on the roof, or the level below, it's real geometry interacting with one another, if you get one of the pods to land on a roof that you can later reach, you can actually stand on it and interact with it, it's amazing how much collision-mapped geometry is in the game.

Can't say I had any idea of that. Definitely something I'll make a point to experience myself when I play through the game again.

Once I was just messing around (after the building collapse part, when you're on the rooftop before the helicopter boss again) and wanted to test how far the draw distance extended so I put everything on low gravity and started shooting the same floating target with the sniper rifle. Any object I did it with went so far away to the point that it became a tiny dot that you could barely make out in the distance. Yeah, Naughty Dog definitely provided a great technical design to this game..

Yeah, absolutely. I specifically remember one of ND's dogs saying that objects in the distance are rendered in 3D as opposed to 2D trickery.

 

[imthemaid]

Are we playing the same game? I've just begun a new playthrough on a BC PS3 through HDMI on a 40" screen, at 480p widescreen, and this game has serious graphical issues.

Technically, it simply does not approach anything of equal effort, graphically on any next gen machine.

Like someone said, it's a very ambitious game, graphically, but after being spoiled on next gen shit, it falls short.


Even for a PS2 game, it's weak.

I'm surprised it wasn't pushed back a year and released on the PS3 as a launch title.

I wasn't talking about technology; I was talking about how amazing that game looks.

The screen can make a difference. I played through some of it on an SD CRT, but mostly I've been using a 24 inch 1080p LCD through component cables and still the look of it is so striking.

The lighting and animation--especially as they relate to things like the horse; the sun that streams through the window and hits the girl on the altar and the birds; the way that the colossi move; and the main character--give the game this beautiful, uniquely surreal look.

Although it doesn't do the mechanics any favours, I think that even the bad frame rate contributes to its otherworldly aesthetic.

Even if all that happened in that game was that you were dropped into the beginning castle area; you walked up to sleeping beauty; birds scattered as you approached; you met that horse outside, and rode it across the field; I'd still be impressed.


But I wouldn't say that it has the most lifelike dirt or brick textures I've ever laid eyes on. Good thing a lot of other games do that with such panache.

 

[imthemaid]

:lol :lol :lol

What have you been playing?

Probably mainy 360 games

what? laugh face laugh face

 

[Relix]

Damn off-screen pics look awesome

 

[dimb]

If you want last gen, I'd say FFX and Silent Hill 2 were eye candy (plus they're nearly launch games):

Not even worth bringing up the PS2 if you're talking about the best looking games of last gen. Halo 2, Ninja Gaiden, Gamecube version of RE4, and Splinter Cell were so far ahead of anything the PS2 had to offer.

 

[LiquidMetal14]

what? laugh face laugh face

I'm too tired. Name some games.