Poll: Do gamers really care that much about graphics?

[NBSRDan]

Obviously you need some graphical baseline in order to render a game playable, but developers go many steps beyond that. I'm constantly hearing about the latest graphical technique that will make games look more like shiny plastic than ever before.
I find it hard to believe that so many people are so easily swooned by shiny objects on a screen, so I have to ask: Are graphics really that important?

 

[Katherine Kerensky]

I'll take crap graphics anyday if it means good gameplay and/or storyline.

 

[Emphraim]

If the graphics ruin immersion or look really bad then yes they are important as they ruin any fun the game has. However, by good graphics I don't mean ultra realism or awesome textures. I mean the game's artistic direction. The World Ends With you looks better for me than Gears of War. Crysis beats both of them though.

 

[Curtmiester]

Looking at how much people scream about how their console has better graphics, I'm going to go with yes.

 

[crudus]

I generally don't care about the graphics. However if don't like the style then I won't play the game like Zelda: Windwaker.

 

[Flying-Emu]

Well Contra's still fun so... I'd say graphics don't matter at all.

 

[Cid Silverwing]

Today's generation only care about graphics. So do the retarded man-children.

Me? I balance the triumvirate of graphics, story and gameplay.

 

[Akai Shizuku]

Yes, because gamers are (mostly) human, and humans are shallow, shallow creatures.

The poll results seem to contradict your point, kind sir.

 

[Akai Shizuku]

Graphics are nice, but they're just a bonus to me. There are plenty of amazing games that don't look like Crysis and plenty of really sucky games with good graphics. Eye candy has its place, and under no circumstances should gameplay be sacrificed for it.

 

[axia777]

Graphics are just as important as gameplay and story pretty much sums it up for me. For a really great game I required a prefect mix between gameplay and graphics. Story is optional as it is only required for games that need a story.

 

[Et3rnalLegend64]

Current generation, I don't care about graphics much at all. I'd like if they didn't look like a bunch of polygons since all the systems can manage smooth textures fairly easily now. If the characters don't look like blocks, I don't care as long as it plays well.

 

[z0nbie]

If a game comes out for both consoles ( PS3 or 360... not my Nintendo Dust Collector... er... I mean "Wii" ... ) and graphically it's better on the PS3 but the controls are better on the 360 , I'll go with controls... graphics don't make or break a game... they absolutely add to it, but controls and game play are what's important.

 

[axia777]

The poll results seem to contradict your point, kind sir.

Jesus, of course it does.

Nobody* admits to being shallow.

*nobody in a general sense. some people will admit to being shallow. void in nebraska.

I do. I love great graphics. I am sorry but I cannot step backwards in terms of graphics for current gen games. If a game has crappy graphics it makes my eyes cry. I have been playing games since the days of PONG. Do you know how long I have been dreaming of having video games with graphics as good as they are now these days? Over 20 years. I am enjoying every eye savoring graphics goodness that current gen games have to give. If a dev makes a game with shitty graphics they just suck money balls in my eyes.

BTW, I still play old school games for fun. I am playing through FFVII now on my PC. I just got done playing through the original Fallout not too long ago. This also does not me I don't care about gameplay. That is important too. But current gen games better kick ass in the graphics department other wise it is a no buy for me.

 

[fix-the-spade]

Graphics haven't been important to me since Perfect Dark.

That game looks fantastic on the N64, better than most of the current FPS's, because it's design plays to the console's strengths. The world looks good, the guns look good, even the menu system looks good.

Pixels per inch matter nothing compared to gameplay and design aesthetics, unfortunately official magazines and young, dumb players perpetuate the notion that graphics=better.
Special mention has to go to pc gpu fetishists as well, for driving the very bleeding edge of the most pointless part of the gaming wars.

 

[Akai Shizuku]

The poll results seem to contradict your point, kind sir.

Jesus, of course it does.

Nobody* admits to being shallow.

*nobody in a general sense. some people will admit to being shallow. void in nebraska.

But the poll isn't asking about shallowness, it's asking about the importance of graphics.

& LOL.

 

[SquirrelPants]

As long as I can tell what's going on, and am having fun doing it, graphics do not matter to me at all. Because of recent games, though, I've been looking at graphics more critically. But still.

 

[twistedshadows]

I like good graphics, but they don't really matter if the game is crap. A good game (including gameplay and plot) with good graphics (no need for awesome graphics, in my opinion) suits me just fine.