Support NeoGAF

[kurahador]

Rushing to the conduit sequence in Mass Effect 3.

I was like HOLY SHIT!!!

Spoiler

followed by rage and massive disappointment

 

[Klaymator14]

Kid Icarus: Uprising and Journey comes to mind...

would post a kid icarus screen, but i feel that it doesn't do it justice, seeing the game in motion and in 3D is necessary

 

[jerry113]

Flying into the Dyson Sphere at the end of Freelancer.

 

[BadAss2961]

Why the hell don't I own Uncharted 3? That looks amazing! Gonna snag it for $20 tomorrow. The negativity around it's release scared me off, but I think I am missing out on something cool.

It's really just slightly less as good as U2 was for '09.

 

[epmode]

F Zero G/X. The sense of speed in this game is beyond amazing.

God I miss Sega.

 

[I H8 Memes]

Yup. Most people here will post vast landscapes, and they are all impressive, but this was the best sequence in any game I've ever played. Probably the single best moment in the Half Life series.

 

[Sheroking]

[FFIX images]

And a HD render of it

FF9 is still my most favourite world, including all aspects like bosses, FMV, 2D art etc

The art of FF9 is truly under-appreciated, and IMO, the best in the entire series.

Treno in particular is beautiful.

 

[Man-is-Obsolete]

Journey and Uncharted deserve all the praise they get, but how bout some love for Gravity Rush?

Also going back to Monolith Soft's roots with Xenogears

 

[Vulcano's assistant]

this too:

 

[Callibretto]

No zone of enders 2 vector cannon? Shame on you gaf, we didn't deserve zoe3 :-(

 

[Instro]

I don't get why there's an orange filter plastered over the visuals. Does is look better in game, cause honestly in gif form I can't even tell whats going on and its a pretty ugly look with the lighting. Digging the architecture though.

Anyway, when it comes to scenery and visual beauty, real world stuff generally doesn't do it for me. Outside of Nepal, I find Uncharted is at its best when it gets inside some ruins with all the intricate little details that make it seem like another world. Red Dead does nothing for me, big desert zzz, and the post-apocalyptic worlds of Fallout+NV are neat but ultimately ugly to look at, particularly with the color filters used. In general open world games don't usually impress me, big stretches of land are cool and all but its really not all that interesting look at when it lacks the detail and design of a smaller area.

With that in mind probably the games that have impressed me the most when it comes to environments this gen would be XenoBlade, FFXIII, and Mirrors Edge. XenoBlade has some perfectly designed environments and vistas that really take advantage of the art for some amazing moments throughout the game even though its on such limited hardware. The fact that they can impress the hell out of me with Wii level graphics is outstanding. FFXIII is just eye candy all around, the mix of colors and sci-fi/fantasy stylings in many areas really left me amazed. There's a lot of neat architecture throughout the city levels and beyond that is pretty awesome to look at. Mirrors Edge is also pretty brilliant in this regard, the stark white buildings with patches of color makes for some beautiful sections of the game as you move through it.

Further back, stepping out in Phendrana Drifts in Metroid Prime always sticks in my mind. The music, combined with the beauty of the initial snowy areas always gets me. Getting out onto the open sea in Wind Waker, and seeing Hyrule Field for the first time in OoT really made me say wow as well during their respective eras.

 

[cramoss]

F Zero GX. The sense of speed in this game is beyond amazing.

Every F-Zero GX player:

 

[evilromero]

Hyrule Field in OoT. Several locations in Metroid Prime. Mario Sunshine Ricco Harbo and Bianco Hills. Amazing how you can see the entire level. Hmmm. Probably some Dark Souls stuff. I love the scope of that game's environments.

 

[inner-G]

Basically all of Skyrim on PC with mods.

So huge. Such far draw distance. Being able to just pick a direction and wander feels so free, even compared to other WRPGs and Elder Scrolls titles.

 

[B.O.O.M]

Most of my favorite ones are already posted..good job gaf!

Some others


UC Golden Abyss

SOTC

 

[CronoShot]

Like others have said, Xenoblade is basically Jaw Dropping Scenery: The Game.

Still need to get around to playing Journey though.

 

[Crazyorloco]

Im old fashioned...Majora's mask at the end when you reach that tree... I was amazed.

Old 2d Sonic the hedgehog bonus stages.


More recently:

Super mario galaxy (and 2) had my jaw drop plenty of times. Some amazing gameplay sequences.

COD Modern warfare 2...The Nuke dropping

Bioshock when you start playing.

Sidenote...I gotta play Xenoblade, it looks great from the photos i've seen here.

 

[The Technomancer]

Since I have SpaceChem on the brain I'll post the world 7 boss. Its not jaw-dropping sequence in a visual sense. When you get to it you will say, out loud, "what the fuck" as you try to comprehend what the game is asking you to do.

 

[Verano]

Borderlands 2 at night in the 1st level

 

[Smiles and Cries]

It's utterly stunning. Though, words and screenshots do not do it real justice; it must be played and experienced.



There aren't enough hhhhnnngs in the world. Whatever the environment designers/artists are getting paid, it's not enough.

I have no idea how some of these screens could be taken without using dolphin but that game is still blowing me away as I play it

 

[Rorschach]

I couldn't find screens that do it justice, but just about all of Saga Frontier 2. :\

 

[dreamfall]

GAF, I salute thee. Some truly beautiful games here- Red Dead, Xenoblade, Witcher 2, all amazingness. I'll never get over Flower, such a serene moment of bliss.

Freely meandering in Morocco with Zoe Castillo.

Coming home after the war, with "Let It Snow" drifting in Empire Bay.

Sky diving with Luis by the glimmering Liberty City lights.

Smoking in noir on Paris rooftops.

 

[Radec]

Uncharted 2, God of War 3, and some MGS4 scenes.

 

[Run-M-Run]

Almost whole of D3 was jawdropping to me with the mods. It felt like I was actually there, it looked so incredible and beautiful.

A recent one was this in BF3

There's lot's more from earlier of this gen but I have to think a bit to remember them.

 

[squidyj]

Yes.

dat forest.

 

[Forsaken82]

Bioshocks first descent into Rapture... unspoiled, for the first time is just an utterly amazing moment.

 

[MrBig]

Bioshocks first descent into Rapture... unspoiled, for the first time is just an utterly amazing moment.

Played this for the first time since 2007 tonight. Took a bunch of pics with fraps only to find out that it doesn't work and just spits out black images

 

[ASTROID2]

Just Cause 2

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjorPlA7st0&feature=related
See all of that. Yeah you can go to all of it, not just a background. Still amazes me.

 

[rubius01]

Valkyrie Profile 2

Muramasa

Skyrim

Final Fantasy XII

 

[krimsoncharge]

 

[Frankenstrat]

Incredible.

F Zero GX. The sense of speed in this game is beyond amazing.

This too.

 

[Hazelhurst]

Uncharted 3 has the best set pieces I've ever seen in a game.

 

[Norml]

All the parts with Gaia.

 

[Esque7]

Super Mario Galaxy 2, slimy spring galaxy I think it was called. Only time a game has literally left me speechless and just staring like a deer at headlights.

 

[disappeared]

Portal 2 ending i.e. the whole sequence from final battle to the end.

I hope most of you who have seen portal 2's ending will someday stand in a prairie wheat field and really feel what it does to you.

As a kid from prairie-Canada that scene really struck me.

 

[squall23]

I have no idea how some of these screens could be taken without using dolphin but that game is still blowing me away as I play it

Well yeah, a lot of them ARE taken in dolphin, which I have to say does make the scenery even better.

 

[RaffAO]

The opening to Lost Odyssey pre-rendered to real time transition is great. Needs video:

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

 

[AbandonedTrolley]

The size of the world in Elite 2 left me gob smacked. I remember opening the box to be presented with THIS world /galaxy map and realising I would never get to see it all

 

[Strawman]

Definitely the sand skiing part of Journey, the sun setting and shining off the golden sand followed by the jaw dropping side on sequence. Amazing game.

 

[not_so_special]

It's one thing when you're walking in a field for an hour, but it's another when they're tied together in realtime battles and cutscenes with tons of action going on. Xenoblade does this without gigantic loadtimes or severe frame stuttering.

There are HD games that would still rather have FMV or higher-res models just for cutscenes, but Xenoblade has the guts to use the 'low-quality' models to tell its story.

Here's something that really blew my mind: whenever Xenoblade has a flashback in the story, it remembers what gear your characters were wearing at those points in the game, even if they're no longer in your inventory.

It may only be an SD game, but Xenoblade keeps up with the best this industry has to offer. The Last Story does as well, but it sacrifes some scope for finer details and often larger parties.

Rockstar's games and Assassin's Creed are other excellent notables.

wait..these backdrops are actually 3d? u can reach there,im looking some videos and i expected another japanese rpg and it looks very good for a wii game.

 

[nelsonroyale]

This gen only

1. U3 - desert sequence and Ending sequence
2. GoW3 Chronos and Gaia sequencs
3. FFXIII Eden
4- Uncharted 2 - Train, Cavern, and Shamabala
4- Witcher 2 - Eternal Battlefield
5. Castlevania: LOS - The Castle
6. MGS4 - last gameplay sequences



Older games

Outcast
FFVII-FFXII
Jak games

 

[EatChildren]

Eternal Battle, The Witcher 2.

One of the most memorable visual set pieces of this generation, for me at least. It's so hauntingly otherworldly and a brilliantly instant, powerful hook for that chapter's story.

 

[piotr47]

GAF, I salute thee. Some truly beautiful games here- Red Dead, Xenoblade, Witcher 2, all amazingness. I'll never get over Flower, such a serene moment of bliss.


Freely meandering in Morocco with Zoe Castillo.

Is it from Dreamfall?

 

[Diffense]

wait..these backdrops are actually 3d? u can reach there,im looking some videos and i expected another japanese rpg and it looks very good for a wii game.

Yup, just about everything in the screenshots are places you can go and look back at where you came from. That's why screenshots don't do it justice.

 

[fabricated backlash]

wait..these backdrops are actually 3d? u can reach there,im looking some videos and i expected another japanese rpg and it looks very good for a wii game.

When I tell you that the explorable gameworld is enormous, you have no idea just how huge it is. Some of the areas are gigantic, and just walking from Colony9 to Eryth Sea by foot will probably take upward of 20 minutes if not more (asuming the road is clear and you don't get sidetracked by the miryad of side quests)

I loved the game for it's world and scope, too bad I absolutely hated the one dimensional characters and the ridiculously cheesy story. Still would recommend the game to anyone, if only to experience the amazing world that the developers crafted. If only they had designed the characters (both visually and in behaviour) with as much quality.

 

[Dwight Schrute]

I couldn't find screens that do it justice, but just about all of Saga Frontier 2. :\

Agreed !

 

[pottuvoi]

Is it from Dreamfall?

Yes, it's quite gorgeous at times.

The size of the world in Elite 2 left me gob smacked. I remember opening the box to be presented with THIS world /galaxy map and realising I would never get to see it all

Frontier is simply incredible.. the map doesn't even show a fraction of the stars.. (There is 500+ million systems..)

 

[EGM1966]

This gen:

Journey - particularly surfing and the final level
Uncharted 2 - Train and Nepal
Uncharted 3 - Plane sequence followed by desert

Also worth a mention:
Far Cry when you first really get outside
Halo when you first step outside
Unreal when you first step outside (I sense a pattern here) plus Bluff Eversmoking
Halo jump in Crysis
Xen in Half Life

 

[not_so_special]

Yup, just about everything in the screenshots are places you can go and look back at where you came from. That's why screenshots don't do it justice.

oh my,thats truly impressive,im a bit disconected from japanese rpgs and though looks good but is just a backdrop,that is amazing

When I tell you that the explorable gameworld is enormous, you have no idea just how huge it is. Some of the areas are gigantic, and just walking from Colony9 to Eryth Sea by foot will probably take upward of 20 minutes if not more (asuming the road is clear and you don't get sidetracked by the miryad of side quests)

I loved the game for it's world and scope, too bad I absolutely hated the one dimensional characters and the ridiculously cheesy story. Still would recommend the game to anyone, if only to experience the amazing world that the developers crafted. If only they had designed the characters (both visually and in behaviour) with as much quality.

its a pity how much they have worked on the world just to waste with these problems ,someday someone will get right that concept

 

[TheOddOne]

Prince of Persia 2008!