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ShaDowDaNca

Member
Nov 1, 2017
1,645
tenor.gif
 

Blade Wolf

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
9,512
Taiwan
Art style is the soul, Shadow of the Colossus is the best example.

In my mind the game looks just as good as The Last Guardian, that's what good art style does to your game.
 
Oct 25, 2017
7,128
I mean, yeah the best looking games are usually mostly because of their art, but it reads likea bit of a puff piece for PS4 in official pee ess 4 mag so people don't feel inferior due to one X
 

Megamind.

Member
Nov 18, 2019
1,006
Its the combination of both. Suggesting that one cant go without the other is ridiculous. And the notion that only "cartoony" looking games have good art direction is even more absurd.
 

Edgar

User requested ban
Banned
Oct 29, 2017
7,180
But that applies to most games? Sony or not. What?
Does Nintendo, Xbox and third party devs don't rely on art direction???
 

Deleted member 27315

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 30, 2017
1,795
Kratos and Drake models look perfect and the reason is not only art style. Poly count, textures, animation etc play a big role as in exclusive games they really push the boundaries of the console
 

modiz

Member
Oct 8, 2018
17,807
The Best Looking Games Are on PS4 Thanks to the combination of expert tech and Art Direction
fixed it for you OP.
 

CountAntonio

Member
Oct 25, 2017
21,678
I agree. Sea of Thieves is one of the best looking games ever made.

Edit: Misread the title. Thought it read :
The Best Looking Games on PS4 Thanks to Art Direction Rather Than Power, Says Dev

I disagree with that statement. Has some great looking games THE best is highly debatable.
 

Lokimaster

Alt Account
Banned
May 12, 2019
962
I agree that art direction is really important and you can see that with games on all platforms. There is Hellblade on Xbox, and Nintendo has plenty of examples too. That said, I'm kinda curious why PlayStation devs/partners and fans are always so obsessed with touting everything as the BEST on their platform. It's sad that fans are already calling others "salty" for calling this out.

Huh? Hellblade is on PlayStation as well and doesn't have as good art direction as uc4, GOW or horizon. This statement makes no sense.
And please let's not talk about cgi trailers to games that are not even out yet.
The fact is, the art direction of Sony 1st party games is just going to get even better next gen. This is something that takes years and years to build, it's not easy at all. Sony has been doing it since the ps2 days starting with jak and daxter
 

Phendrift

Member
Oct 25, 2017
32,267
I mean this is universally true all the time.

There's a reason if you ask me "what looks better, BotW or [multiplat AAA PS4/XB1 game]?" my answer will almost always be BotW

Sony first party typically have phenomenal art styles though
 

Felipe Lins

Member
Nov 8, 2017
8
Brasil
I do, as well as almost everyone in this thread, agree with the fact that art direction tramples power when it comes to graphics beauty and spectacle. This has been a fact by ages, and I believe those who disagree might be misuderstanding concepts.

Although I won't agree with "the best looking games are on PS4". That's not a fact, but an opinion. Not right or wrong, mind you all, but disagreeable as such. And I sure disagree.

We've got gorgeous games coming from every platform, from Switch to PC. PS4 and Xbox included. Favoring PS4 sounds like a lot of bs coming from a dev whose only game was funded and published by Sony.
 

Deleted member 38706

User requested account closure
Banned
Jan 19, 2018
924
Huh? Hellblade is on PlayStation as well and doesn't have as good art direction as uc4, GOW or horizon. This statement makes no sense.
And please let's not talk about cgi trailers to games that are not even out yet.
The fact is, the art direction of Sony 1st party games is just going to get even better next gen. This is something that takes years and years to build, it's not easy at all. Sony has been doing it since the ps2 days starting with jak and daxter

It's an example of a game with good art direction on a Microsoft console, even if the first game isn't exclusive. I didn't mention any CGI trailers though. And what the fuck? Of course Sony will get better. But it's pretty disingenuous to pretend that other platform holders haven't taken years to built upon their own work as well. You can't just conveniently ignore Halo (1-3, ODST, and Reach was goddamn beautiful) or any of the Nintendo games. You have such a tunnel vision your entire post comes off as fanboyism. Jesus Christ. I didn't expect someone to be this butthurt about others not sharing your OPINION on who has the "best" art direction. Opinion is an opinion. It will never be objective no matter how much you try. Stop with this superiority contest. No one is shit talking how good Sony games looks -- just that it doesn't necessarily they are the BEST.

Era never learns with these posts.
 

Nephilim

Member
Oct 28, 2017
5,272
Yep, PS4 exclusives are the best looking.
Currently playing Days Gone, tremendously good looking game.
 

Version 3.0

Member
Oct 27, 2017
11,138
It's always true that the best-looking games are due to the best art direction, on any platform.

But yes, it's also true that PS4 has the cream of the crop this gen, and they're not leaning on hardware power as a crutch, certainly.

Apparently, Sony does do a great job of sharing around software tech between teams, though.
 

Andromeda

Member
Oct 27, 2017
4,839
It depends of the definition of best looking game. For some a PS2 game will be the best looking, for others it's going to be a Cartoony Nintendo game on SNES or Switch.

But some others games look good because how realistic or detailed they are. But for that you need a powerful hardware. Infamous Second son was one of the best looking game in 2014, It had great art direction but it also displayed high quality textures, insane amount of particules effects and really high number of polygons in each scenes that wouldn't even have being possible on SNES, Switch, or even XB1.

It's not a surprise if the best looking game on Switch are beautiful (for some) because of the use of cell shading and good color palette, not because of how detailed they are. But because those effect do not need a powerful current gen hardware. Zelda Switch runs on Wii U. Ni no Kuni on PS3 is also a very good looking game, even today, and it runs on previous gen hardware.
 

Dash Kappei

Member
Nov 1, 2017
4,826
"No one else would have funded LittleBigPlanet".
Except we know Nintendo too tried to snag it, but Sony was already hands on deck and worked out a deal with MM.

What a shitshow the level-sharing/community aspect would have been on Wii we can only imagine. On the other hand the physics would have probably not sucked as hard :P
 

Iztok

Member
Oct 27, 2017
6,130
Sure, but isn't it easier to realize your vision for art direction with better hardware?
This better not end up a talking point excusing the PS5's lack of power... :\
 

gofreak

Member
Oct 26, 2017
7,733
I don't think he's saying power is immaterial - but acknowledging a simple fact that consoles are never the most powerful boxes on the planet, and devs always have to work within a constraint. And that beautiful games don't just automatically happen because of a box's power. 'Technical geniuses being able to squeeze more out of less' - hardware power is a factor in that equation afterall. If PS4 had been to some substantial degree less powerful than it is, said 'geniuses' would be unable to get as much out of it as they did.
 
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AfropunkNyc

Member
Nov 15, 2017
3,958
Crazy that ive been playing majorty of the best ps4 games and haven't said "wow" once. PC gaming spoiled me a bit. Fidelity goes a long way. Pc gaming spoiled me. Honestly recently the only console game that made me say "wow" was luigi"s Mansion. Yeah art style matters.
 

supkid

Member
Oct 29, 2017
1,757
Dublin, Ireland
A) It's one guys opinion.

B) He's not saying there aren't other great looking games elsewhere, just that the majority of Sonys first party titles have great art direction, there's tons of other games out there with fantastic art direction. He just thinks there aren't as many publishers that nail it as often as Sony.
 

Voodoopeople

Member
Oct 29, 2017
3,845
Sounds like the beginnings of the goal posts being shifted. Maybe Sony knows they won't be matching the competition, next gen, in terms of power.
 
Oct 26, 2017
6,570
Worst thing you can do to a creative person is to remove all limits.
Good thing that hardware power will always be a limit and talent will always create good things despite and because of the limits imposed.

Then again, I expect next gen PR to be full of the bollocks about giving creators the tools to unleash their true creativity again. Or some mutation of the same BS.
 

VanDoughnut

Member
Oct 30, 2017
3,424
I don't think they're saying only Sony first party games have strong art direction, just they have a reputation for great visuals and their strong art direction is as much as a factor as their tech.

It does feel like every Sony first party game is either great looking or absolutely insane looking.
 

LewieP

Member
Oct 26, 2017
18,091
And for people who haven't played the original, the remake will be a beautiful haunting otherworldly place with a distinct tone and feeling.

What you're talking about is more about the individual than it is about either the original or the remake.
Because there is not difference or what?

They are extremely different looking games.
 

Deleted member 4247

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
8,896
Sony devs also spend much more time optimizing specifically for that hardware than anyone else, so it's clearly a combination of both.
 

mrfusticle

Member
Oct 30, 2017
1,548
Yeah but you cant measure art direction like flops or framerate to DEFINITIVELY PROVE your game box is the best
. That's what matters
 

Seesaw15

Member
Oct 27, 2017
8,809
I mean yeah besides good gameplay thats why nintendo titles are still relevant on under-powered hardware. Good art direction is timeless.
 

Rabalder.

Member
Dec 8, 2018
1,481
When it comes to Sony's first party, it's not so much art style, it's more the fact that they have huge budgets, long dev cycles and an inherent focus on visuals. Much like Rockstar. Having said that, I do really like the artistic direction in a lot of their big IP.