LAIR Thread - * Rules: post #469

I think the latest screens look better but fall way short of the target renders. Coming from an art background I have to agree with Yosh, it's sloppy and rushed. Isn't this game supposed to be coming out soon?

 

I remember scans from a mag with some of these pictures. Especially the one with the big monster looked much better on the scan simply because it was brighter.
The one that is posted here just drawns much of the detail in black.

 

I think some people are looking too deep and trying too hard to find flaws in screenshots these days. (NOT that there isn't any flaws there) Its fine though since this is technical forum where we discuss these things. However, I'm pretty sure these screenshots aren't quite new and this might be too much to handle for some people when I say that these screenshots look excellent to me. I just wanna see it in motion.

 

That is about how I feel about now. Some of the new shots look good and show a lot of potential for future growth, but others are just horrible. Did someone kidnap all the screenshot masters this generation? It sure seems like a LOT of companies are having a difficult time composing nice screenshots.

Anyhow, graphics isn't what anyone should worry about with this game. F5 is typically very technically competent (although pushing native 1080p could make that harder). And if the game is a GTA like open ended game graphically we may need to look at it a little differently if the world is absolutely massive (although if it is covered with a lot of water and barren rocks then there should be a concerted effort to go with an art style that makes them austhetically pleasing). No, the real issue is gameplay and that should be on the radar. Dragon games have worked as shooters, but this seems to be more close combat oriented. Game mechanic wise I wonder how that will work. I am hoping the huge, massive swarms of dragons is still in the game and that they clean up the large troop scenarios.

Like a lot of games, outside of PR, we don't know a lot about what the finished product will deliver. Hence all the focus on the graphics. Which bears the point: If all you can say/show is a couple screenshots make sure they all are killer. If your game rocks, but you are floating out crappy screenshots then your actions really are counter productive.

 

Isn't it possibly that the sandworm is supposed to have a shiny reflecting shell on his back and the top of his head while it's belly is 'soft'?

 

There are some shots that look decidedly dodgy, but there are more shots that look excellent. I think the good looking ones are more indicative of how the final game will look as Factor 5 always make outstanding looking games.

The biggest concern should be have they finally managed to nail the actual gameplay of the thing, that's where they have fallen down in the past.

 

Looking at the stills, it doesn't look that way to me, basically because the lighting on the scales etc. is back-to-front with light direction. Maybe in motion it looks okay, but I have serious doubts.

In fact, if you look at some of the worst offending screenshots, it makes a lot of sense to think they're also making a PS2 version! A lot of what's shown could come straight from a PS2 game. I don't know what the reason for discrepency is. We can be confident that the game will look like the best shots rather than worst, overall, but it would be nice to know why the huge difference in lighting and shading quality. Maybe Carl can get an interview with Eggbrecht and ask about how what we see relates to what they're producing?

 

Although many disagreed with Laa-Yosh's point I have to agree with him

I think many misundrestood what he was trying to say. He did a rushed job to render an image that reminds of Lair, And indeed I was fooled by it. I thought it was from the game. What he was trying to point is that there is no substantial variation in visuals shown in these screens and in terms of art direction it lacks. Knowing this game is supposed to be an AAA game with lkots of promise it is supposed to show some better effort in some aspects of the game.

It still looks good (Laa-Yosh's pic as well despite the rushed job) but not as good as it should have been.

For a game its visuals are decent and interesting in some areas and feature some expected standard next gen effects but really there are more potential in the hardware, more and better assets that can be used and more advanced effects. Currently it's doing the satisfactory level only which sometimes gives mixed impressions

 

Geezus Christ now it could have started out as a PS2 game. You really don't like the look of this game do you?

 

How can you honestly think this game looks good? I know it’s your opinion but I just can’t see anything there to say it looks good. When you have posters like Shifty comparing it to a PS2 game, it kind of vindicates my point.

Do you like the artistic design? Do the lighting issues not seem obvious to you? I'm getting my PS3 on launch. LAIR based on the GDC '06 and TGS '05 shots was previously on a list of must buy games.

Now it's just fallen of the side of a cliff.

You know why I don't think it's up to F5's standards? Previous F5 games made everyone stand up and say WOW. This used to. It doesn't anymore. This divides opinion hugely. It isn’t because it's a PS3 game. It isn't because it's a dragon game. It just simply does not look good. It is inconsistent. It's Jekyll and Hyde, but right now more Hyde.

This is the only good screen of the latest media



That looks amazing. Clearly some AA BS going on there but apart from that it looks amazing. Why are the other screens so all over the place?

I’m not going to lay complete judgement on the game now. It isn’t even finished. But why release media of it if it doesn’t look that good to begin with?

 

You missed the argument. I was saying some screens have aspects comparable to PS2 games. Look at the brown/green monster here and the dragons here, and then the monsters here and here.

The models and textures and effects in use are comparable, no?

 

You like that shot because of the pretty blue skyline and beautiful scales on the dragon. And the HDR lighting isn't screwing up the look of the rider. I understand that. That shot is one of my favorites too.

Yes I think this game looks great. And yes some of the pics bother me, but the same can be said about any game that has bad screenshots taken of it. Like Acert said some of the screenshots shouldn't have been released. I've seen some Gears screenshots that shouldn't have been released that don't represent what the game really looks like. The same could be said about Motorstorm and etc.



Are you seriously telling me that this pic doesn't look good to you?

 

Why don't you tell us what's so great about it instead?

 

I think this thread should be closed, it's obviously not going anywhere

 

Alright.

1. The beautiful look of the sunlight hitting the ocean water. Haven't really seen a game do it as well as that picture before.

Reminds me of this real pic



2. I love the look of the rocks in the ocean. I've seen that same rocks in the ocean look before in real-life and I think they pulled it off well.

3. The transporter/huge beast. Artisically it looks great to me.

4. The scale of the beast compared to the dragon. And better yet the scale of the beast compared to the main character.

5. The actual ocean itself.


There you go my top 5 reasons why that pic looks great to me.

 

I agree...

I don't see why so many people are seriously discrediting the potential of this game purely because of sloppy art direction (especially when it's pretty clear to me that this area will see further improvements before release since it has already..)

To judge the merit of a game purely based around things like current lighting parameters/animations/colour choice etc (basically all things graphics related) only proves to me whats wrong with some of the people in these forums..

 

It looks good. Nothing amazing. I'm not going to get into screenshot wars. I don't want to be down on this game, I'm just deeply disappointed with what has happened to it. I'm not going to discuss this any further

 

Some of you sure have some awfully lofty standards for graphics these days.

 

Yeah I see. I guess that's what happens once you enter the HD era. *shurgs*