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[NeoIkaruGAF]

Seeing how it’s been going for the last 20 years, it’s like saying porn needs more plot.

Games didn’t push their way to mainstream with imaginative designs and creative artstyles. People were very happy to drop all that like a stone the minute you could get realistic-looking graphics on screen. I think a lot of Mortal Kombat’s appeal, violence aside, was the digitized characters.

 

[Omega Supreme Holopsicon]

We need variety... And I think we have it.

The truth is, realistic graphics impress for the time... While artistic/ cartoony graphics age far better and stand the test of time.

I predict in 10 years time that Luigi's Mansion 3 will still look good yet Last of Us 2 will look dated.

we getting to a point where any kind of graphics does not age, miles morales will look good years from now. About the only thing missing is clothes physics simulation, npc ai simulation and destructible physics simulation.

I suspect fractal math can do for physics what it does for images, heck not only is the neural network in the brain near fractal but so is the heart beat and many of the structures of nature, including the lungs and blood vessels it has to do with the scale and life of systems. From the fall of rome, to the fall of corporations, laws dictate scaling of physical systems, and the nature of aging and death, of cells of organisms of ecosystems, of corporations, of societies their rise and collapse.

 

[rofif]

oh god... ratchet looks amazing technically but the worst thing about it is how pixar and disney it feels.
Safe, big eyes, wholesome.... I want to puke

 

[Fart Knight]

 

[abcdrstuv]

The benefit of “Pixar” is that you can do more with the processing power you have when the art style is less graphically intensive. There’s also room for stylized “realism” between the cartoonish and the photorealistic.. Far Cry 4/5 are a great example.

We’re not in the uncanny valley, but graphics are so good now that they remind me I’m looking at something that’s not quite real life - next-Gen NBA 2k looks great but also *more* artificial because it’s closer to real life. The illusion and approximation with older games gets less persuasive..

 

[Rikkori]

New gameplay ideas but you're talking about a rehashed 20 year old formula game like R&C? lmao. Just say you like graphics bro, let's stop this bs about caring about gameplay when you play stale shit just for the looks.

 

[Miles708]

oh god... ratchet looks amazing technically but the worst thing about it is how pixar and disney it feels.
Safe, big eyes, wholesome.... I want to puke

It kinda feels like it falls into the same trap recent Sonic games have: the main character should be as kid-friendly as possible. And that means: no jokes, no emotions (aside a constant smirk or, occasionally, just a little afraid), no clever dialogue, no funny "hurt" scenes where the protagonist gets hit by something, no making fun/maked fun of from everyone who isn't the main villain, etc. etc.

A single frame from a Tom & Jerry episode has more emotion and energy than an entire modern cinematic, and that's from 1950's. How are animators not constatly ashamed of their work I wonder.

The only exception is the newest Crash game, and of course the team has been destroyed.

/rant.

 

[Rheon]

I just want more games like BOTW where there is great consistency across all of the in-game assets. You never/rarely have super high-poly assets next to low-poly assets in that game.

This this this.

I'm playing Yakuza Like A Dragon right now and one thing that really sticks out is how nice the character models look, but then you'll see them next to some low poly asset with shitty textures and it just takes you out completely.

 

[Insane Metal]

Just wait, Halo Infinite is coming.

 

[justiceiro]

Wow, so simple, just a imaginative game, who could have thought of that. All those thousands developers are kicking themselves right now for not thinking about it before.

 

[supernova8]

This this this.

I'm playing Yakuza Like A Dragon right now and one thing that really sticks out is how nice the character models look, but then you'll see them next to some low poly asset with shitty textures and it just takes you out completely.

Completely agree. It's hilarious how some of the proper characters look really good, and then random street-walking NPCs just look like PS2-level garbage. I get it that they have to do it to conserve power and be able to render so many on screen, but it's still stupid and ruins the immersion.

 

[Ghost of Caelid]

I'd like to see more claymation art style in games. But the sad thing is the people who can pay for cutting edge graphics not putting the funding into what they deem as "risky". It really sucks.

 

[lh032]

its up to Sony now, they are the only one able to make it happen.

 

[rofif]

It kinda feels like it falls into the same trap recent Sonic games have: the main character should be as kid-friendly as possible. And that means: no jokes, no emotions (aside a constant smirk or, occasionally, just a little afraid), no clever dialogue, no funny "hurt" scenes where the protagonist gets hit by something, no making fun/maked fun of from everyone who isn't the main villain, etc. etc.

A single frame from a Tom & Jerry episode has more emotion and energy than an entire modern cinematic, and that's from 1950's. How are animators not constatly ashamed of their work I wonder.

The only exception is the newest Crash game, and of course the team has been destroyed.

/rant.

Thank you. I needed someone to confirm this. Everyone is absolutely crazy about the last 2 ratchet games and I felt like the only one noticing this issue.
That said, the new game IS WAY better than the last one on pure gameplay standpoint

 

[Thirty7ven]

Of course, visuals need to be pushed. It’s a publishers dream when people just want the same recycled looking bs they been having for the past decade.

I don’t buy 500$ consoles on release and spend money on a quality TV just so I can play some shitty looking game.

 

[FunkMiller]

I’m rather hoping the success of Ratchet &Clank gets Naughty Dog to look at doing more Jax games.

 

[TheThreadsThatBindUs]

Just wait, Halo Infinite is coming.

 

[SlimySnake]

Nah. Lets all grow up and move on. There are like five AAA studios as it is and they take like 5 years to make one game. We cant have them create cartoon games.

The average age of gamers has been increasing steadily every gen. I remember it was in the late 20s in the PS360 era. Mid 30s last gen and wouldnt be surprised if its in the 40s now. We are too old to play these games more than once or twice a year.

If anything, Ratchet exposes how basic and simple these stories need to be. You are not challenged. Not in gameplay or mentally. Say what you will about TLOU2 but it made you uneasy, made you think, made you rage, and frustrated. And a lot of it was by design. Took me back to the MGS2 days when Kojima used every trick in the book to subvert expectations and make the audience see Snake from a different point of view. It didnt work back then and I dont think it worked with TLOU2, but I appreciate the ambition in both cases.

You are never gonna get that with pixar looking games. They are by design made for the lowest common denominator. Made for kids. I was playing Mario Odyssey with my 6 year old the other day, and it's pretty much the same game from start to finish. Every boss fight is three stages. Same arena design. It's definitely fun but I could tell it had to be simple and not too convoluted because a large portion of the audience is my 6 year old.

EDIT: One last thing. I was big on Pixar movies back in the 90s and 2000s, but they have lost me. I loved Incredibles. I thought the first hour of Wall-E was the best storytelling in a movie in years, and the first ten minutes of Up are the best thing Pixar have ever done, but thats it. All their movies have turned into basic B movie plots. Even Wall-E and Up just fizzled out after strong openings because you cant really push the audience too much who are just there to have a good time with their kids. I was watching Toy Story 4 the other day with my kids and it's the same plot as the first movie. Nothing has changed in over 25 years. Lets move on.

 

[Miles708]

Nah. Lets all grow up and move on. There are like five AAA studios as it is and they take like 5 years to make one game. We cant have them create cartoon games.

The average age of gamers has been increasing steadily every gen. I remember it was in the late 20s in the PS360 era. Mid 30s last gen and wouldnt be surprised if its in the 40s now. We are too old to play these games more than once or twice a year.

If anything, Ratchet exposes how basic and simple these stories need to be. You are not challenged. Not in gameplay or mentally. Say what you will about TLOU2 but it made you uneasy, made you think, made you rage, and frustrated. And a lot of it was by design. Took me back to the MGS2 days when Kojima used every trick in the book to subvert expectations and make the audience see Snake from a different point of view. It didnt work back then and I dont think it worked with TLOU2, but I appreciate the ambition in both cases.

You are never gonna get that with pixar looking games. They are by design made for the lowest common denominator. Made for kids. I was playing Mario Odyssey with my 6 year old the other day, and it's pretty much the same game from start to finish. Every boss fight is three stages. Same arena design. It's definitely fun but I could tell it had to be simple and not too convoluted because a large portion of the audience is my 6 year old.

There are brilliant non-realistic games with interesting (brilliant, even) stories and gameplay.
Persona comes to mind, but also Mad Rat Dead (my avatar) which is a surprising game in every aspect, or things like The Last Guardian or even Ghost Trick, which is simply a masterpiece in gameplay, imagination, story, comic relief and style, without being dumb for a second.

I really don't think realism is needed for good stories. I'd almost say that, during the 360 era, everything was gritty and "realistic" and the average story/gameplay was much more braindead than today's games.

I'm also in my 30s, if that's of any indication.

 

[SlimySnake]

There are brilliant non-realistic games with interesting (brilliant, even) stories and gameplay.
Persona comes to mind, but also Mad Rat Dead (my avatar) which is a surprising game in every aspect, or things like The Last Guardian or even Ghost Trick, which is simply a masterpiece in gameplay, imagination, story, comic relief and style, without being dumb for a second.

I really don't think realism is needed for good stories. I'd almost say that, during the 360 era, everything was gritty and "realistic" and the average story/gameplay was much more braindead than today's games.

I'm also in my 30s, if that's of any indication.

I love the Last Guardian and would love to see more games like it. i dont consider it a pixar like game though. Persona isnt one either.

 

[Grand Theft Scratchy]

And? Just like that other guy who posted screenshots from The Last of Us Part II and Horizon, these games are nothing like the examples that I gave in the OP. Show me something else like Ratchet & Clank or Kena, not Flight Simulator or Forza etc.

 

[Lethal01]

Nah. Lets all grow up and move on.

I agree, let's grow up and stop avoiding things because they aren't realistic.
Tons of stylized games with stories just as good as the last of us. We want more pixar games so we can get more variety and don't have to be stuck with something like Ratchet if we want high quality visuals..

 

[OmegaSpirit32X]

Nah. Lets all grow up and move on. There are like five AAA studios as it is and they take like 5 years to make one game. We cant have them create cartoon games.

The average age of gamers has been increasing steadily every gen. I remember it was in the late 20s in the PS360 era. Mid 30s last gen and wouldnt be surprised if its in the 40s now. We are too old to play these games more than once or twice a year.

If anything, Ratchet exposes how basic and simple these stories need to be. You are not challenged. Not in gameplay or mentally. Say what you will about TLOU2 but it made you uneasy, made you think, made you rage, and frustrated. And a lot of it was by design. Took me back to the MGS2 days when Kojima used every trick in the book to subvert expectations and make the audience see Snake from a different point of view. It didnt work back then and I dont think it worked with TLOU2, but I appreciate the ambition in both cases.

You are never gonna get that with pixar looking games. They are by design made for the lowest common denominator. Made for kids. I was playing Mario Odyssey with my 6 year old the other day, and it's pretty much the same game from start to finish. Every boss fight is three stages. Same arena design. It's definitely fun but I could tell it had to be simple and not too convoluted because a large portion of the audience is my 6 year old.

EDIT: One last thing. I was big on Pixar movies back in the 90s and 2000s, but they have lost me. I loved Incredibles. I thought the first hour of Wall-E was the best storytelling in a movie in years, and the first ten minutes of Up are the best thing Pixar have ever done, but thats it. All their movies have turned into basic B movie plots. Even Wall-E and Up just fizzled out after strong openings because you cant really push the audience too much who are just there to have a good time with their kids. I was watching Toy Story 4 the other day with my kids and it's the same plot as the first movie. Nothing has changed in over 25 years. Lets move on.

Mother 3 wants a word with you, so does Super Paper Mario, Sonic Adventure 2 and Megaman X, Zero and Starforce.
and those are traditionally cartoony games. plus the Megaman games are pretty challenging too

 

[sinnergy]

Yes we need new consoles for this !

 

[Omega Supreme Holopsicon]

Yes we need new consoles for this !

the ps6 is going to be an abomination it will likely have at the least 4-5x the capacity of the ps5, all that excess compute can go to physics and clothing, also far more memory for gpt like npc dialogue ai and on the edge computed voice synthesis for each and every npc. Imagine a next gen photo real sims like game, I thought of doing it but too lazy, better others do it.

 

[Masterbrew]

I think Nintendo should take a lesson from Ratchet and Clank. Their catalogue of titles could really benefit from this Pixar-approaching level of cartoony graphics we saw in R&C.

 

[wOs]

It isn't next gen, but it takes two looks fantastic, had a great story, and the coop gameplay feels fresh.

 

[ThatStupidLion]

too much risk for the suits OP

must stay the course and play it safe