Games with unbelievable amounts of polish

[Daystar Clarion]

As we all know, PSN is giving out two free games from a selection. Wipeout HD Fury is one those games, I've only just played this game today, for around 2 hours, and I've got to say. For a game made on the PS3 in 2008, it is one of the best looking games I've ever seen. This game gleams of polish and you can tell SCE Studio Liverpool poured a lot of love and effort into this game.

For those of you not in the know, the Wipeout franchise is a futuristic racer (very much like F-Zero). What amazes me about this game, is that despite being a racer, the world it is set in feels very 'alive'. Everything about the game screams sci-fi, from the vehicle designs, to the crisp dubstep soundtrack, to the pristine set up of the menu system. The tracks are stunning, with neon advertisements, pulsing light effects and it just has a very 'clean' feel to it.

For those of you who haven't yet downloaded your free PSN games, and are remotely curious in the game (this is coming from gamer who isn't really into racing games outside of things like Burnout and Motorstorm), I would recommend grabbing it.


So fellow escapists, even if you don't like a game, which ones have you played that are obvious results of polish and love on the part of the developers.

 

[nexekho]

and it just has a very 'clean' feel to it.

Which, as a Wipeout game, is exactly what's wrong with it.

Grime and industrial fallout!

 

[Daystar Clarion]

and it just has a very 'clean' feel to it.

Which, as a Wipeout game, is exactly what's wrong with it.

Grime and industrial fallout!

In a world of grey, gritty games, I think I prefer the clean aesthetic.

 

[Johnnyallstar]

Stacking was polished to a brilliant shine by the fellows over at Double Fine.

 

[Pingieking]

Most of Nintendo games. I may not be a fan of them, but most of those things are bugless. Very polished games.

Blizzard games. They live in their ivory towers and never say anything, but they know how to make good stuff.
EDIT: I also endorse WipeOut. Great series, and WipeOut HD + Fury is one of the best racing games this generation.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Most of Nintendo games. I may not be a fan of them, but most of those things are bugless. Very polished games.

Blizzard games. They live in their ivory towers and never say anything, but they know how to make good stuff.
EDIT: I also endorse WipeOut. Great series, and WipeOut HD + Fury is one of the best racing games this generation.

It would be nice to see what Nintendo are capable of with current gen graphics.

 

[nexekho]

In a world of grey, gritty games, I think I prefer the clean aesthetic.

I'm sorry if I came across as attacking your viewpoint, sorry, I'm not, it's just that Wip3out onwards never really felt like Wipeout games because of the sudden atmosphere change.

 

[noogai18]

Definitely Blizzard. It justifies their insane production times.

Besides them, another game like that is Just Cause 2. It's polished enough to immerse me to the point that at times I actually feel like I'm on a Pacific island rather than just playing a game.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

In a world of grey, gritty games, I think I prefer the clean aesthetic.

I'm sorry if I came across as attacking your viewpoint, sorry, I'm not, it's just that Wip3out onwards never really felt like Wipeout games because of the sudden atmosphere change.

I understand that, and i didn't think you were attacking me. Regardless of whether you think the game feels like Wipeout, you must admit that it looks amazing.

 

[nexekho]

Yeah, it does manage to pull off the clean, optimistic attitude.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Definitely Blizzard. It justifies their insane production times.

Besides them, another game like that is Just Cause 2. It's polished enough to immerse me to the point that at times I actually feel like I'm on a Pacific island rather than just playing a game.

How long would say it takes Blizzard to actually make something?

 

[DanielBrown]

Meh, rub it in. I took R&C: Quest for Booty and Dead Nation. Immedietly regretted Quest for Booty and wished I had taken WipeOut instead. ;_;

 

[gussy1z]

i thought l4d was quite good, come to think of it most valve games look polished

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

The Metal Gear Solid series has always had an insane amount of polish. The games all look fantastic (for the time they were released), great amount of attention to the little things and lots of Easter eggs, and there's barely any glitches in any of the games (MGS4 was never patched or updated which is very out of the ordinary in this day and age).

Uncharted 2 is extremely polished.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

Team Fortress 2. Perfect visual aesthetic. Its like The Incredibles meets Counter Strike.

 

[redisforever]

I have to say, TimeSplitters Future Perfect was incredibly polished. I actually never found a glitch, and so much love and care went into it...Wow.

Also, I have, just today, acquired a couple of PS2's. I can now play the first 2 games in the series. Woo!

 

[Katana314]

To preface, I do not believe polish is a mark of "overall quality" of the game. For instance, I love the STALKER games, but they definitely have very little in terms of polish.

What comes to mind: Call of Duty (interface and controls feel very smooth, even though the gameplay is samey)
Batman: Arkham Asylum (all the elements of combat just seem to "fit" together; nothing is wasted)
The original, 2-months-of-patches Team Fortress 2 (hats and countless weapons just add a layer that covers the polish in soot and paint)

 

[Durananrananrananran]

So fellow escapists, even if you don't like a game, which ones have you played that are obvious results of polish and love on the part of the developers.

The 4 of the 'Capcom 5' games that got released were amazingly polished (the Gamecube versions), and clearly made with love. Chibi Robo was also very polished. Dragon Quest 8. And Final Fantasy 12. The first Final Fantasy game I played where the UI didn't fell thrown together.

 

[Continuity]

Crysis and arkham asylum are the two that spring to mind for me, so much polish you could curl on them.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

so much polish you could curl on them.

I like that. Very clever.

I never played Crysis, but AA is a very nice looking game.