Poll: How important are graphics in gaming to you?

[sneakypenguin]

Graphics and animation are the MOST important thing for me. Unless its multiplayer than draw distance and framerate are most important. Games to me are technical programs for developers to impress me with. Only Mass effect and halo have been outside of that box for me. I loved the universe of ME and I loved the deep world of HALO. I guess graphically they were pretty good too.

 

[UnmotivatedSlacker]

Meh.
A game can be 8-bit for all I care, if it done right it can be good. Mega Man 9 and 10 serve as a good example.

I agree with this guy. The style doesn't matter as long as it's pleasing to the eyes.

 

[fogmike]

Graphics and animation are the MOST important thing for me. Unless its multiplayer than draw distance and framerate are most important. Games to me are technical programs for developers to impress me with. Only Mass effect and halo have been outside of that box for me. I loved the universe of ME and I loved the deep world of HALO. I guess graphically they were pretty good too.

Get on your bike, and buy yourself either FFXII, or FFX (Ten is more strategic turn-based, Twelve more fluid.) Good graphics, epic story. Games are great only if they have everything else great too. Graphics is one of the lesser things (though by no means unimportant). See, for example, Ocarina of Time or Kingdom hearts.

 

[Haloperidol]

So long as the settings aren't low on a resolution lower than 1024 x 768, it's all good

 

[Auric]

I'm sad to say that it means quite alot to me. It really adds to a game if it actually looks good, it doesnt have to look GREAT, but when its overly pixelated i get annoyed.

That being said i wont buy a crap game just because it looks cool.

 

[YarnBarf]

I'm currently playing my way through the vintage Sierra catalog: King's Quest, Quest for Glory -- no graphics too eight-bit, no interface too cheesy. And it's awesome.

Which is to say that graphics don't matter to me much. Then again, I'm old.

 

[sneakypenguin]

Graphics and animation are the MOST important thing for me. Unless its multiplayer than draw distance and framerate are most important. Games to me are technical programs for developers to impress me with. Only Mass effect and halo have been outside of that box for me. I loved the universe of ME and I loved the deep world of HALO. I guess graphically they were pretty good too.

Get on your bike, and buy yourself either FFXII, or FFX (Ten is more strategic turn-based, Twelve more fluid.) Good graphics, epic story. Games are great only if they have everything else great too. Graphics is one of the lesser things (though by no means unimportant). See, for example, Ocarina of Time or Kingdom hearts.

I don't really have the time to run through any RPGs I could do mass effect cause those take 8-10 hours, I spend most of my time in COD in 30 min sessions. I agree games need something else besides graphics, story just doesn't do it for me though. I played through ME 3 times and I still couldn't tell you much about the story but I know I loved the setting. Only thing where story actually meshed with me was Halo.

 

[DragonChi]

with graphics....its like a woman(bear with me here)she doesn't have to be the most sexy thing out there....but dammit...i have to be able to look at her.
because lets face it....the model looking chick is definitely way to expensive for you...and most of us

lol, well said. I would have to say that this sums up my opinion as well. Gfx are great, I Love and very much enjoy pretty artful eye-candy, but at the same time, it doesn't have to be state of the art to satisfy me. I still play many many old games that have primitive gfx and love the games all the same. eg (Ocarina of time) great game, but gfx are borderline disgraceful. I look past it all the time cause the game is god damned awesome. really depends on the game. expectations vary with each one.

 

[Blue Musician]

I don't care really. I never really take time to gawk at how beautiful the sky is or how realistic that monster over shooting at me looks.

EDIT: Vote please! I like percentages. I hate math though.

I do not care really, as long that I has a great story, say like Silent Hill 2, Half Life and System Shock 2. And decent gameplay to go with the story which makes the game bearable (not like DreamFall, it had bad gameplay, not such a good story and I didn't like basically everything else). So you get the picture.

 

[Kouen]

me personally I dont care all much about graphics... its the game play im there for! but yea Game play 1st graphics second, not that I dont have a decent machine that can max most games but im in it for the Fun and Game play, Graphics help but are no where near my deciding factor

 

[mexicola]

Almost as much as my desire of seing this poll yet again.

 

[Contextualizer]

Seriously, this is a topic that has been repeated over and over again. The worst part is that most people don't even understand the actual discussion points.

 

[Jodan]

im okay with shoddy graphics as long as the gameplay makes up for it like with the brothers in arms series i LOVED the gameplay and didn care that the graphics were not photorealistic. but i did have to put assassins creed 2 down a couple of times due to the graphics glitches. they just got too distracting and my immersion level was dropping.
if i can get immersed in a game the graphics arent worth a thing cause i will fill in the gaps with my imagination. in fact i find it easier to get immersed in old games like freespace, goldeneye,and the suikoden series because i have to engage myself in the game to get into it. or like the phoenix wright series witch forces you to visualize the story like a novel just with visual representations of the charaters. this visualisation lets you expiriance the game in your own personal way and the personalization of my expiriance hightens my immersion.
conncurrently i found it hard to get immersed in gmaes like killzone 2, and bioshock and although exploring venice was great it ended up just being one beutifly renederd building after another.
the charaterization also lends itself to this i find if i can identify with a charater i can ignore the fact that he is just a 2d bitmap.

 

[Sacman]

Graphics are the last thing on my mind though art direction is a different story. sure the resolution is 1280 X 1040 and texture details are at there max but if the direction is driven into the ground it really won't make a difference...

 

[kampori]

I never grew up with video gaming. Only in the last decade have I gotten into it myself- with the Xbox, the 360 and the occasional pc game. Therefore, I've been involved in a gaming environment where the technology is capable for realistic, good looking graphics, so that is what I am used to.

And to all those who say that graphics aren't important, but its the gameplay/story/music... come on, get real. Graphics are just as important to any other aspect of making a game. That's like saying there shouldn't be CGI in films where black and white would suffice. Bullshit it would. Technology advances, so does requirements & advantages. Use the graphics. They are important.

 

[War Penguin]

Graphics are nice and all but it doesn't compare to gameplay. I have the perfect example: Star Wars the Force Unleashed.

The graphics were nothing short of amazing. I loved the physics, I loved the character design/animation, but I hated the combat. Seriously, the lightsaber sucked, and I only used the force powers and because of that there were balancing issues. I was a fucking power house, which was a selling point of the game, but there was no challenge. But I digress, the point is the graphics/physics had more care put into it than the actual gameplay, taking away the fun.

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

I have to say that it depends ENTIRELY on the game. When I play games from the first person, better visual fidelity is often a plus. In virtually every other kind of game, I can accept lower visual standards.

 

[mechanixis]

Depends. If I'm running around causing any sort of havoc, I find what I really need is a good physics engine to enjoy it. Generally, the quality of the graphics takes a backseat to the quality of animation. The characters can be beautifully rendered, but if they move like a bunch of drugged mimes, it counts for nothing. The Halo series is a great example of this. Those cutscenes were so goddamn stupid looking.

And to all those who say that graphics aren't important, but its the gameplay/story/music... come on, get real. Graphics are just as important to any other aspect of making a game.

Yeah, actually, I'm gonna side with this guy. Asking "Are graphics important?" is like asking "Is good voice acting important?" or "Is a good story important?" A game is the sum of its parts. Of course they're important - not having them makes the game worse, and having them makes the game better. That doesn't mean they're necessary. Fallout 3 has absolutely shitty voicework, but people still think of it as an incredible game. Pokemon has a story like the fever dream of a ten-year-old, but it's still a legendary franchise. Unless a game has simplified graphics deliberately, it could benefit from a graphical upgrade.