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[RedSwirl]

Isn't this the sort of thread where it's very difficult for console games to be contenders, because of the fixed nature of their hardware?

Yeah, but I'm still wondering if the Dreamcast and PS2 weren't on top in the period between 1998 and maybe 2004. The Dreamcast in particular may have launched in a perfect period where it was significantly ahead of everything else on the market.

I'm not sure any PC game in 1999 looked like Soul Calibur on the Dreamcast, but I'm not an expert on 1999 PC games. Hell, Dead or Alive 2 was a damn technical tour de force at the time. Shenmue in 2000 was basically an immersive sim that looked an order of magnitude better than Deus Ex and System Shock 2, even if its actual gameplay wasn't quite as expansive.

 

[rottendevice]

I remember being completely blown away by Shenmue on DC. It was more than just the graphics... it was the insane level of detail in the entire game's world. Drawers in your house could be opened. Capsule toy machines could be used. Arcade games could be played. The bus ran on a schedule. We still don't see games with as much detail as Shenmue very often.

You might say current-gen games are also very state-of-the-art. It seems like we're finally reaching that Pixar movie level of graphical fidelity.

 

[yanipheonu]

I remember Shenmue being a big deal when it was coming out.

 

[lazygecko]

Yeah, but I'm still wondering if the Dreamcast and PS2 weren't on top in the period between 1998 and maybe 2004. The Dreamcast in particular may have launched in a perfect period where it was significantly ahead of everything else on the market.

I'm not sure any PC game in 1999 looked like Soul Calibur on the Dreamcast, but I'm not an expert on 1999 PC games. Hell, Dead or Alive 2 was a damn technical tour de force at the time. Shenmue in 2000 was basically an immersive sim that looked an order of magnitude better than Deus Ex and System Shock 2, even if its actual gameplay wasn't quite as expansive.

I'm sure either of those games would run just fine on PCs at the time. There just wasn't any significant market for 3D fighters on PC at the time. Of course 3D fighters in particular looked really impressive in that period, since their scope was way more narrow than something like Deus Ex and they could pool all the system resources into just rendering 2 characters and a simple level backdrop.

The closest kind of equivalent for graphical showcases that appeared on both PC and consoles would probably be racing games.

 

[RealityCheque]

Maybe Crysis. Took years for everything to catch up to the point where normal machines could run it.

Fired it up the other day, looks a little like ass now though.

 

[InfiniteCombo]

Soul Calibur on Dreamcast.

Boom.

My entire history of playing fighting games up to that point had been: (1) play awesome arcade game; (2) play the home console version of that game, which inevitably had anywhere between moderate to massive downgrades, compared to its arcade counterpart.

DC SoulCalibur was not even on par with the arcade version: it was leaps and bounds better. Graphics (which actually hold up decently to this day!) were amazing, and the game was chock full of additional modes.

It was the first game that made me think that not only had home console hardware finally caught up to the arcades, but that the home version could be enhanced way beyond the original arcade version.

 

[Shin-Ra]

Some of the stuff Media Molecule is doing with Dreams looks pretty groundbreaking. I can only imagine how good it will be when it's out there in the wild.

The 'GeoMod' possibilities in gameplay are potentially the most exciting thing about Dreams. Especially if it could be mixed with a fluid simulation like PixelJunk Shooter's.

 

[Refreshment.01]

Yeah, but I'm still wondering if the Dreamcast and PS2 weren't on top in the period between 1998 and maybe 2004. The Dreamcast in particular may have launched in a perfect period where it was significantly ahead of everything else on the market.

I'm not sure any PC game in 1999 looked like Soul Calibur on the Dreamcast, but I'm not an expert on 1999 PC games. Hell, Dead or Alive 2 was a damn technical tour de force at the time. Shenmue in 2000 was basically an immersive sim that looked an order of magnitude better than Deus Ex and System Shock 2, even if its actual gameplay wasn't quite as expansive.

Red, for the purposes of this thread i think is totally fair if we consider Shenmue a 1999 game.

Just another thing im pointing out that might be of interest so someone, not saying Shenmue is or isn't the most state of the art game of that period.

 

[mavericktopgun]

Boom.

My entire history of playing fighting games up to that point had been: (1) play awesome arcade game; (2) play the home console version of that game, which inevitably had anywhere between moderate to massive downgrades, compared to its arcade counterpart.

DC SoulCalibur was not even on par with the arcade version: it was leaps and bounds better. Graphics (which actually hold up decently to this day!) were amazing, and the game was chock full of additional modes.

It was the first game that made me think that not only had home console hardware finally caught up to the arcades, but that the home version could be enhanced way beyond the original arcade version.

It's still awesome to this day.

When I first saw it my jaw dropped. I've never seen such graphics. So smooth, so sharp and colorful.

The other is GTA4.

 

[mavericktopgun]

I'll love it forever.

It was mindblowing in 2008.
So many beautiful memories with the game and my life back then... sigh

 

[heyf00L]

I'll love it forever.

It was mindblowing in 2008.
So many beautiful memories with the game and my life back then... sigh

Yeah, I agree. The Euphoria physics, tho a bit laggy, added so much to the sandbox.

It's too bad about the brown filter. PC mods that remove it make it look twice as good.

 

[yamaneko]

 

[Shin-Ra]

Too state of the art!

 

[CountAntonius]

NBA 2k absolutely blew my mind on Dreamcast. I couldn't believe what I was looking at. It also played better than anything before it. It was jaw dropping.

 

[Theognosis]

Sega's games on Model 2 and Model 3 were untouchable during their time. Daytona USA was head and shoulders above everything else and Scud Race took it to another level.

In recent years, I'd give the nod to the NBA 2K series for unmatched technical achievement. The engine used in the series has evolved to the point where the competition may never catch up with it.

 

[BlindJesus]

Yeah, I agree. The Euphoria physics, tho a bit laggy, added so much to the sandbox.

It's too bad about the brown filter. PC mods that remove it make it look twice as good.

Also too bad they removed it for GTA V, I just don't understand how they could do that.

Back on topic, Crysis. It's almost ten years old and it still looks phenomenal and has better physics than 95% of games out there.

 

[commish]

First game that came to mind was Silpheed for Sega CD. First time I saw it, I thought THIS CAN'T BE REAL.

 

[ScOULaris]

Also too bad they removed it for GTA V, I just don't understand how they could do that.

Back on topic, Crysis. It's almost ten years old and it still looks phenomenal and has better physics than 95% of games out there.

GTAV still used Euphoria physics and procedural animation. They just toned down certain aspects for performance reasons.

 

[djtiesto]

Space Harrier, Phantasy Star, Virtua Fighter 3, Shenmue... basically oldskool SEGA, the thread.

 

[Daingurse]

For me Crysis 1 was just unbelievable looking. I remember watching previews and videos thinking that the visuals I was looking at had to be horse shit. Benchmarked that game on so many configurations too. Whenever I got a new GPU, I'd boot up Crysis or Crysis Warhead. Till Crysis 3 anyway lol.


Also I've been wondering about this. How did the original Quake stack up back in the day?

 

[capitalCORN]

For me Crysis 1 was just unbelievable looking. I remember watching previews and videos thinking that the visuals I was looking at had to be horse shit. Benchmarked that game on so many configurations too. Whenever I got a new GPU, I'd boot up Crysis or Crysis Warhead. Till Crysis 3 anyway lol.


Also I've been wondering about this. How did the original Quake stack up back in the day?

Quake was a revelation. Consumer 3d gaming was never so fluid as Quake when it was released. And the addition of prebaked lightmaps continued Carmack's trend of being top of the game in terms of lighting tech.

 

[Daingurse]

Quake was a revelation. Consumer 3d gaming was never so fluid as Quake when it was released. And the addition of prebaked lightmaps continued Carmack's trend of being top of the game in terms of lighting tech.

Haha, nice. This sounds like how my step-dad described the game. Just a marvel of technology for it's time. Even playing the game for the first time now, I can really appreciate the visuals taking into account when the game was made.