The engine Bill Tiller uses for his games is a mixed 2d 3d engine.
2d Backgrounds 3d characters.
i like this kind of graphic, 2.5d ... and my favourite it's CMI style, I love that graphic ( the new game of Bill Tiller, Ghosts Pirates..., seems very similar to that !!!) i think though that Telltale boys made a good work also with this 3d, i hope it will very nice, and want to play Tales Of Mi now !!!
Not because of the game - it's just what I'm in to...
But anywhy, I also grew up loving the 2D-ness of the first 3 games, and I feel that my former 14 year old self probably died a wee bit (just before vigorously rubbing wasabi in his eyes and trying to aphyyiate myself on a horses ass) after playing EFMI.
Generally I would usually say 3D could never beat 2D for creating that "Magical" feeling (opening shot of Monkey Island 1 anyone?) - But after seeing the in-game preview and hearing the previous comment from Emily (who I believe must be either an angel or a highly sexual woman - possibly both?) I tend to believe that we should trust in Telltale, they are fans of the series themselves and would only want to do their inner 14 yr old self justice (or whichever age they were in when they fell in love with the Monkey Island series).:rolleyes:
Now that I've watched those gameplay videos, I think TOMI graphics look great in motion. The new Guybrush looks like one of the best animated characters you've done (though Wallace & Gromit rock too).
I can't decide that if more gameplay videos are released, whether or not I should watch them. I'm tempted to rewatch Gamespot's.. but I feel like what I've watched spoiled me enough already. I'm feeling like I may go insane before TMI is released. Did I mention that it's roughly 32 1/2 days until it's released? :rolleyes:
I'm heavily biased in the direction of 3D myself, and the reason for that is freedom of angles.
If you look at CoMI, barring the character art (must not talk about that... must not talk about that... must not...), it looks as pretty as a picture. But that's all it is, a picture. An interactive picture, maybe, but a picture. Games like Samorost of late have played to the strengths of this, by actually admitting the truth of 2D gaming and playing to its strengths. And usually the strengths of 2D gaming lie in artsy-fartsy efforts, which I admit I have a soft spot for.
But when playing a game like this, I'm going to prefer 3D. Why? Monkey Island is a game of swash-buckling adventure, and I like to be able to explore my environs! The problem with 2D gaming is that at its core, a 2D adventure gaming engine is a slideshow, there's no real freedom there at all. This is why, despite my unending love for Lechuck's Revenge, I recognise the need to move on to current technology, technology that provides greater levels of freedom of movement.
In a 2D game, if you see something odd sticking out from the back of a hut, there's nothing you can do about that other than get OCD over it because the character is limited in movement and viewing angles. However, in a 3D game you can simply wander around to the back of the hut and use a different viewing angle to find out what that object was, it means you can really nose at and inspect the environment, for that reason 3D has to be much more detailed, 2D hides a multitude of sins.
Not to mention that the stills of ToMI look almost as good as the backgrounds of CoMI, and the character art of ToMI (in my opinion) is leagues ahead of CoMI in every conceivable way. Plus the bonus of being able to really inspect the environment in three dimensions.
I really don't understand what the Rage regarding the loss of 2D is about these days, with 3D looking as incredible as it does. If 3D looked as bad as it did back in the days of EMI, I'd understand, but it doesn't. A still 3D shot can look as good as a still 2D shot, and a lot of old 2D games even used backdrops which were rendered as 3D and saved as a 2D image.
Really, look at the ToMI in-game still above and look at the CoMI still, the ToMI one looks just as nice as the CoMI one, I think, but the CoMI one will forever look that way, whereas the ToMI one can be viewed from any angles the developers see fit to allow us to have. 3D is grand, and that freedom of viewing angles helps to make a World feel alive, rather than just moving characters on a still image. In my opinion (and I might be alone in this), 2D in all its glory can never present the same feeling of liveliness that 3D does, and for that reason I'm glad ToMI is 3D.
I'm heavily biased in the direction of 3D myself, and the reason for that is freedom of angles.
Freedom of camera movement has it's limitations. It's much easier to create moods with static camera angles. The trick is to learn to balance when it's appropriate to allow someone to control the camera, and when the storyteller needs to take control and limit what you can view.
I think Myst 4 is a wonderful example of how alive 2D environments can be.
Birds flying around, leaves waving in the wind, water flowing, etc... still looks fantastic. And of course, you could look around 360 degrees.
I think Myst 4 is a wonderful example of how alive 2D environments can be.
Birds flying around, leaves waving in the wind, water flowing, etc... still looks fantastic. And of course, you could look around 360 degrees.
I feel that Myst 4 is a 3D game in any meaningful sense. Pre-rendered 3D, yes, but 3D nonetheless.
Although to imagine the Myst 4 engine with hand-drawn 2D art is a pretty mind-blowing thought.
I've been thinking.. while EMI is my least favorite Monkey Island game, it's not by any means a bad game. Sure, Monkey Kombat was terrible, and I really disliked the ending, but the rest of the game wasn't that bad at all. It's still Monkey Island, albeit not as awesome as the rest of the games in the series. It's also the one I've played the least, mostly because of the bad memories of Monkey Kombat. I also remember enjoying making Guybrush eat the pretzels at the SCUMM bar. :rolleyes:
I think to pass the time while waiting for TMI, I'm going to go play through EMI again, since I've beaten SOMI, MI2, and CMI more times than I can count. Anyone else doing the same, and if so, which one(s) are you playing?
Edit:Being in the mood to play EMI, I felt like posting this just for the heck of it! SCUMM Bar Theme from EMI
The funny thing is, nobody mentioned one big limitation of 2d, besides that it is more expensive, 2d does absolutely not scale regarding resolutions. You could use vector graphics which scale, but then you are 2/3rd into 3d again.
I will give you an example, load EMI in a big shiny new HD monitor and be into a bad surprise, the game was rendered on 640x480.
Now you theorectically could use scalers, and whupps suddenly the blockyness is gone and everything becomes unsharp and washed out!
As I said the solution would be to use vector graphics, but once you are there you also can use 3d anyway and get a decent hardware acceleration!
The funny thing is, nobody mentioned one big limitation of 2d, besides that it is more expensive, 2d does absolutely not scale regarding resolutions. You could use vector graphics which scale, but then you are 2/3rd into 3d again.
I will give you an example, load EMI in a big shiny new HD monitor and be into a bad surprise, the game was rendered on 640x480.
Now you theorectically could use scalers, and whupps suddenly the blockyness is gone and everything becomes unsharp and washed out!
As I said the solution would be to use vector graphics, but once you are there you also can use 3d anyway and get a decent hardware acceleration!
Agreed.
Digression: Having said that, EMI looked uglier than a drowned rat when it was originally released. No amount of scaleability would have helped it. The pre-rendered backgrounds and real-time models were plain shoddy.
I think it's actually Roger Jackson (Mojo Jojo from PowerPuff Girls, Lincoln from Sam & Max). I might have to triple-check that, but I'm pretty sure.
Too bad, I think that Bosco(es) has(have) a fitting voice for a Monkey Island game, even if it's not Joey Camen I'll still think of this voice as a Bosco cameo, though.
I think to pass the time while waiting for TMI, I'm going to go play through EMI again, since I've beaten SOMI, MI2, and CMI more times than I can count. Anyone else doing the same, and if so, which one(s) are you playing?
Actually, yes. I've played through the first three MI games more times than I care to count, but I only played through EMI once, back when it came out. I figured I'd go through it again, though this time on the PS2, as I've had that version lying around for ages.
I just reached Jambalaya Island, and I still stand by my original feelings for this game: It's a pretty fun game on it's own right, but an inferior Monkey Island game that takes way too many liberties with the license material.
Using vectors for computer and console games are a bit tricky to look right.
For instance, Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD remix for the xbla and psn uses vectors instead of pixelart. However, because the framerate remains the same and that comicbook artists did the illustrations, the game looks terrible animated. It ends up bein clunky; itpretty much looks like one of those flash games
From what I have seen from the vids of the mi 1 remake, the animation looks much like SSF2HDR
But why does it have to be this god damn ugly? Sorry to piss on the parade by the way. But it looks awful. I realize it's better to include more people, at least for Telltale, but they could surely have added a little more detail that this?
Yuck. Oh well.
And one last rant. Please don't force the comedy as I felt you did with Sam n Max. I still haven't finished season 2 because the jokes felt so forced. It just became unbearable to listen to. I might as well get it off my chest now that I'm on a rant. Apart from the jokes and the graphics, I also disliked the rather bland design of many of the characters in Sam n Max and looking at this new game I don't get the feeling Telltale have improved on that area. The captain from the trailer has some way to go before he measures up to the chef in MI3 for example.
So, yeah sorry if I'm harsh, but since you have a forum I would assume it's accepted to let you know what I don't like about your product. And I'd assume it's better to let a producer know what you think of their product and give them a chance to improve.
Hard to believe those two screenshots are even from the same franchise, let alone that this one is 19 years older.
But why does it have to be this god damn ugly? Sorry to piss on the parade by the way. But it looks awful. I realize it's better to include more people, at least for Telltale, but they could surely have added a little more detail that this?
Yuck. Oh well.
And one last rant. Please don't force the comedy as I felt you did with Sam n Max. I still haven't finished season 2 because the jokes felt so forced. It just became unbearable to listen to. I might as well get it off my chest now that I'm on a rant. Apart from the jokes and the graphics, I also disliked the rather bland design of many of the characters in Sam n Max and looking at this new game I don't get the feeling Telltale have improved on that area. The captain from the trailer has some way to go before he measures up to the chef in MI3 for example.
So, yeah sorry if I'm harsh, but since you have a forum I would assume it's accepted to let you know what I don't like about your product. And I'd assume it's better to let a producer know what you think of their product and give them a chance to improve.
Hard to believe those two screenshots are even from the same franchise, let alone that this one is 19 years older.
I do agree that the characters in the TT Sam and Max games and from what we can gather from Tales are quite bland, but I think gameplay is more important than the visuals.
I do agree that the characters in the TT Sam and Max games and from what we can gather from Tales are quite bland, but I think gameplay is more important than the visuals.
Yeah gameplay is important, but the graphics, music and general mood have always been important to MI. As far as gameplay goes I can only comment on Sam n Max: While I liked many of the puzzles, the story and particularly the humor was a major letdown for me unfortunately. It was as if they tried to make it too keeracy but also felt restricted in terms of how far to go. The result felt tame and forced. Humor has to go beyond the edge of what's generally accepted or it will just fall to the ground. Simply crazy (read obnoxious) voices won't cut it, and that's where I stopped playing Sam n Max after giving it one and a half season of a chance. Again, I'm not trolling, just expressing my dislikes of TT's general style in hope that they don't do the same mistakes again.
Oh, come on. The graphics are fine. They will obviously have a different style in 3D, but I think they're more than decent.
I really don't think they are. I'd even go as far as to say they are absolutely awful. Bland, lacking of detail or charm and way too cartoony to look right. OK for example, the wooden pier: It just goes completly straight out. Just a few vertical bends on it would have made it more interesting to look at and it would be more in line with Woodtick in MI2 for example. I get the feeling that TT are producing things way to quickly and cheaply to put in the necessary love and attention to detail.
MI3 pulled a cartoony style off because it was basically one long highbudget animated film, but unless you can do that... We all know what a catastrophy MI4 was.
I know that they want to include more people by making the game less demanding on a technical level, but maybe their approach with the graphics could have been another.
Anyway, this is just my opinion. I don't want to ruin anyone elses enjoyment of it.
Hey, here's a solution. Support TTG as much as you can by buying all their products so that they can have more of a budget to make better-looking adventure games with the latest graphics hardware support! Monkey Island WOULD look mighty fine with Crysis graphics.
Do you think so? I'd hate to see a Monkey Island game use Crysis's aesthetic style. No, I actually think that Telltale are on the right track, although I would like to see more dramatic and vibrant environmental lighting.
Higher texture resolution, poly counts, and speech quality is all I want that Telltale does not already provide.
I have no problem downloading large files from the internet, and my computer could handle the game with the extra detail, as could a lot of us, so it should just be an option available to us to download a better quality version of their games. Although I know it's been said countless times, so I'm just beating a dead horse here. Maybe someday. :P
And even if they never do it, it won't keep me from buying their games. I care about the gameplay and the dialogue. They get that right, and I'm sold.
I don't want to upgrade my computer to play adventure games or have to buy the latest technology. There's a point where you hit passable and alternatively pleasing.
Neither does my mother or any other exceptionally casual gamer like her. Better graphics hurts your market if you go to an excess.
Now don't make it ugly, but I like TMI a lot in terms of style. My only problem is LeChuck's voice.
I will definitely buy it. But I'll still wish they could have polished the graphics more. I'll give one example of a Wii game that, while still on a relative budget, has accomplished a fantastic visual style. And since it's for the Wii, it was made with a technically limited platform in mind.
If i can draw your attention to the character at the bottom right. It's in realtime 3D, animated and it looks fantastic. The visual style of that character is much more in line with MI 1 and 2. A mix of reality and cartoon. There are other characters than her that have more personality and look a bit more wacky, but I couldn't find images of them. I'm just saying it's possible to make a game look stunning even if it's made with technical limitations and isn't running on the Crysis engine.
But why does it have to be this god damn ugly? Sorry to piss on the parade by the way. But it looks awful. I realize it's better to include more people, at least for Telltale, but they could surely have added a little more detail that this?
Yuck. Oh well.
And one last rant. Please don't force the comedy as I felt you did with Sam n Max. I still haven't finished season 2 because the jokes felt so forced. It just became unbearable to listen to. I might as well get it off my chest now that I'm on a rant. Apart from the jokes and the graphics, I also disliked the rather bland design of many of the characters in Sam n Max and looking at this new game I don't get the feeling Telltale have improved on that area. The captain from the trailer has some way to go before he measures up to the chef in MI3 for example.
So, yeah sorry if I'm harsh, but since you have a forum I would assume it's accepted to let you know what I don't like about your product. And I'd assume it's better to let a producer know what you think of their product and give them a chance to improve.
Hard to believe those two screenshots are even from the same franchise, let alone that this one is 19 years older.
The ship in that pic looks like something made in Gmod
Higher texture resolution, poly counts, and speech quality is all I want that Telltale does not already provide.
Actually if you see it in motion, check out the gamespot videos the game looks fine, what you ask for is somewhat problematic, you have to find a middle ground between what you can do with your hardware and what people actually can play. Even if you leave the high number of people on measly intel chipsets (which counts currently for 75% of all PCs there is) out, then you still have a myriad of people on older generation graphics cards. Sure you can scale to some degree but with textures for instance there are limits on what you can do, and add to that that all the games are download content, so pushing gigabytes of textures is a no go.
I've been keeping an eye on this forum since ToMI was first announced, and have to say have been astonished as boundless enthusiasm has turned into widespread criticism.
Graphics aside, the game couldnt be in more capable, experienced hands. I see Runaway, Vampyre Story, and So Blonde being referenced by some as having the quality of visuals people have come to expect of the MI series. Is that what you'd really want though? Eye candy masking what are otherwise very average, uninspired adventures, with poor puzzles, bland script, and lousy voice overs? Because that's what most modern day adventure games have in common.
You can guarantee if this were the case, the very same graphics detractors would have their knives out. Like film, a good game is remembered in years to come for the quality and integrity of its writing. I'd take the original King Kong over Matrix Reloaded any day.
Some people need to recognise that the gaming landscape has changed dramatically since MI's glory days. It's a genre that most had written off long ago. The fact that it's going through a mini-renaissance is something we should be grateful for. Gone are the days where this type of game could command big budgets and huge teams comprising of the very best artists and animators the industry has to offer. To expect more, is rather wanting to have your cake and eat it.
And anyway, who's not to say that this isn't Lucasarts way of dipping their toes in the water, to see whether MI can still be a successful IP. At the very least it's a step in the right direction. And if we end up with five episodes that sparkle with the old MI wit and charm, this would surely more likely lead to bigger and better things for the franchise, than if we had a load of poorly written story and dialogue hiding behind some pretty tinsel.
So be thankful to Lucasarts for resurrecting MI from the dead and giving it another chance, be realistic about the limitations of episodic content, and remember what really makes a great adventure great, I say
Zaradan - sure, I am grateful for the MI series being taken back to life. But I don't see it as having the cake and eating it if the game is both entertaining and pretty. In that case I guess we got the cake and got to eat it too during at least the first three games.
You argue that we'd get something superficial if we had good graphics. I don't think that was the case the first three games at all. They were a work of art and the great craftmanship showed a dedication and love for what they were doing. I love Hayao Miyazakis films because they are a work of art. That they are pretty does absolutely not make them superficial, rather the opposite.
Adventure games do pretty well now, so I think it's time to start expecting something more than them just to exist and not just being grateful someone makes them. Since TT are basically the only ones who does make them, and get a load of time in the media, I would assume they do better economically than many smaller developers.
I showed a Wii game to counter the argument on technical limitations. It's a platform that's so weak that I would assume most PCs would run a Wii game without any problems. Anno for Wii still looks gorgeous because the art assets look good, something that can't be said of TTs MI series so far.
I know that it's in capable hands, at least when it comes to art direction, music, story and acting. But the art assets are simply not up to the quality I'd expect from a Lucas Arts aspiring title.
There's no need for the most advanced shaders if the basics are pretty to start with. Here's what I'd expect characters to measure up with:
Again, sorry to be a downer, but I can't help thinking it looks awful. And that's a first for a MI game.
Comments
i knew i shouldn't of watched that video. DAMN SPOILERS!!! :eek:
i like this kind of graphic, 2.5d ... and my favourite it's CMI style, I love that graphic ( the new game of Bill Tiller, Ghosts Pirates..., seems very similar to that !!!) i think though that Telltale boys made a good work also with this 3d, i hope it will very nice, and want to play Tales Of Mi now !!!
Not because of the game - it's just what I'm in to...
But anywhy, I also grew up loving the 2D-ness of the first 3 games, and I feel that my former 14 year old self probably died a wee bit (just before vigorously rubbing wasabi in his eyes and trying to aphyyiate myself on a horses ass) after playing EFMI.
Generally I would usually say 3D could never beat 2D for creating that "Magical" feeling (opening shot of Monkey Island 1 anyone?) - But after seeing the in-game preview and hearing the previous comment from Emily (who I believe must be either an angel or a highly sexual woman - possibly both?) I tend to believe that we should trust in Telltale, they are fans of the series themselves and would only want to do their inner 14 yr old self justice (or whichever age they were in when they fell in love with the Monkey Island series).:rolleyes:
Now where did the cat go?
You're not the only one, bro.
I think it's actually Roger Jackson (Mojo Jojo from PowerPuff Girls, Lincoln from Sam & Max). I might have to triple-check that, but I'm pretty sure.
It can't be nighttime all the time
Will it be nighttime sometimes, or like in the other MI games, nighttime in some places?
If you look at CoMI, barring the character art (must not talk about that... must not talk about that... must not...), it looks as pretty as a picture. But that's all it is, a picture. An interactive picture, maybe, but a picture. Games like Samorost of late have played to the strengths of this, by actually admitting the truth of 2D gaming and playing to its strengths. And usually the strengths of 2D gaming lie in artsy-fartsy efforts, which I admit I have a soft spot for.
But when playing a game like this, I'm going to prefer 3D. Why? Monkey Island is a game of swash-buckling adventure, and I like to be able to explore my environs! The problem with 2D gaming is that at its core, a 2D adventure gaming engine is a slideshow, there's no real freedom there at all. This is why, despite my unending love for Lechuck's Revenge, I recognise the need to move on to current technology, technology that provides greater levels of freedom of movement.
In a 2D game, if you see something odd sticking out from the back of a hut, there's nothing you can do about that other than get OCD over it because the character is limited in movement and viewing angles. However, in a 3D game you can simply wander around to the back of the hut and use a different viewing angle to find out what that object was, it means you can really nose at and inspect the environment, for that reason 3D has to be much more detailed, 2D hides a multitude of sins.
Not to mention that the stills of ToMI look almost as good as the backgrounds of CoMI, and the character art of ToMI (in my opinion) is leagues ahead of CoMI in every conceivable way. Plus the bonus of being able to really inspect the environment in three dimensions.
I really don't understand what the Rage regarding the loss of 2D is about these days, with 3D looking as incredible as it does. If 3D looked as bad as it did back in the days of EMI, I'd understand, but it doesn't. A still 3D shot can look as good as a still 2D shot, and a lot of old 2D games even used backdrops which were rendered as 3D and saved as a 2D image.
Really, look at the ToMI in-game still above and look at the CoMI still, the ToMI one looks just as nice as the CoMI one, I think, but the CoMI one will forever look that way, whereas the ToMI one can be viewed from any angles the developers see fit to allow us to have. 3D is grand, and that freedom of viewing angles helps to make a World feel alive, rather than just moving characters on a still image. In my opinion (and I might be alone in this), 2D in all its glory can never present the same feeling of liveliness that 3D does, and for that reason I'm glad ToMI is 3D.
Freedom of camera movement has it's limitations. It's much easier to create moods with static camera angles. The trick is to learn to balance when it's appropriate to allow someone to control the camera, and when the storyteller needs to take control and limit what you can view.
Birds flying around, leaves waving in the wind, water flowing, etc... still looks fantastic. And of course, you could look around 360 degrees.
I feel that Myst 4 is a 3D game in any meaningful sense. Pre-rendered 3D, yes, but 3D nonetheless.
Although to imagine the Myst 4 engine with hand-drawn 2D art is a pretty mind-blowing thought.
Myst 5 on the other hand *is* 3D, and looks very ugly in comparison.
I think to pass the time while waiting for TMI, I'm going to go play through EMI again, since I've beaten SOMI, MI2, and CMI more times than I can count. Anyone else doing the same, and if so, which one(s) are you playing?
Edit: Being in the mood to play EMI, I felt like posting this just for the heck of it! SCUMM Bar Theme from EMI
I will give you an example, load EMI in a big shiny new HD monitor and be into a bad surprise, the game was rendered on 640x480.
Now you theorectically could use scalers, and whupps suddenly the blockyness is gone and everything becomes unsharp and washed out!
As I said the solution would be to use vector graphics, but once you are there you also can use 3d anyway and get a decent hardware acceleration!
Agreed.
Digression: Having said that, EMI looked uglier than a drowned rat when it was originally released. No amount of scaleability would have helped it. The pre-rendered backgrounds and real-time models were plain shoddy.
Too bad, I think that Bosco(es) has(have) a fitting voice for a Monkey Island game, even if it's not Joey Camen I'll still think of this voice as a Bosco cameo, though.
Actually, yes. I've played through the first three MI games more times than I care to count, but I only played through EMI once, back when it came out. I figured I'd go through it again, though this time on the PS2, as I've had that version lying around for ages.
I just reached Jambalaya Island, and I still stand by my original feelings for this game: It's a pretty fun game on it's own right, but an inferior Monkey Island game that takes way too many liberties with the license material.
For instance, Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD remix for the xbla and psn uses vectors instead of pixelart. However, because the framerate remains the same and that comicbook artists did the illustrations, the game looks terrible animated. It ends up bein clunky; itpretty much looks like one of those flash games
From what I have seen from the vids of the mi 1 remake, the animation looks much like SSF2HDR
Yuck. Oh well.
And one last rant. Please don't force the comedy as I felt you did with Sam n Max. I still haven't finished season 2 because the jokes felt so forced. It just became unbearable to listen to. I might as well get it off my chest now that I'm on a rant. Apart from the jokes and the graphics, I also disliked the rather bland design of many of the characters in Sam n Max and looking at this new game I don't get the feeling Telltale have improved on that area. The captain from the trailer has some way to go before he measures up to the chef in MI3 for example.
So, yeah sorry if I'm harsh, but since you have a forum I would assume it's accepted to let you know what I don't like about your product. And I'd assume it's better to let a producer know what you think of their product and give them a chance to improve.
Hard to believe those two screenshots are even from the same franchise, let alone that this one is 19 years older.
I do agree that the characters in the TT Sam and Max games and from what we can gather from Tales are quite bland, but I think gameplay is more important than the visuals.
I really don't think they are. I'd even go as far as to say they are absolutely awful. Bland, lacking of detail or charm and way too cartoony to look right. OK for example, the wooden pier: It just goes completly straight out. Just a few vertical bends on it would have made it more interesting to look at and it would be more in line with Woodtick in MI2 for example. I get the feeling that TT are producing things way to quickly and cheaply to put in the necessary love and attention to detail.
MI3 pulled a cartoony style off because it was basically one long highbudget animated film, but unless you can do that... We all know what a catastrophy MI4 was.
I know that they want to include more people by making the game less demanding on a technical level, but maybe their approach with the graphics could have been another.
Anyway, this is just my opinion. I don't want to ruin anyone elses enjoyment of it.
I have no problem downloading large files from the internet, and my computer could handle the game with the extra detail, as could a lot of us, so it should just be an option available to us to download a better quality version of their games. Although I know it's been said countless times, so I'm just beating a dead horse here. Maybe someday. :P
And even if they never do it, it won't keep me from buying their games. I care about the gameplay and the dialogue. They get that right, and I'm sold.
Neither does my mother or any other exceptionally casual gamer like her. Better graphics hurts your market if you go to an excess.
Now don't make it ugly, but I like TMI a lot in terms of style. My only problem is LeChuck's voice.
If i can draw your attention to the character at the bottom right. It's in realtime 3D, animated and it looks fantastic. The visual style of that character is much more in line with MI 1 and 2. A mix of reality and cartoon. There are other characters than her that have more personality and look a bit more wacky, but I couldn't find images of them. I'm just saying it's possible to make a game look stunning even if it's made with technical limitations and isn't running on the Crysis engine.
The ship in that pic looks like something made in Gmod
Actually if you see it in motion, check out the gamespot videos the game looks fine, what you ask for is somewhat problematic, you have to find a middle ground between what you can do with your hardware and what people actually can play. Even if you leave the high number of people on measly intel chipsets (which counts currently for 75% of all PCs there is) out, then you still have a myriad of people on older generation graphics cards. Sure you can scale to some degree but with textures for instance there are limits on what you can do, and add to that that all the games are download content, so pushing gigabytes of textures is a no go.
I've been keeping an eye on this forum since ToMI was first announced, and have to say have been astonished as boundless enthusiasm has turned into widespread criticism.
Graphics aside, the game couldnt be in more capable, experienced hands. I see Runaway, Vampyre Story, and So Blonde being referenced by some as having the quality of visuals people have come to expect of the MI series. Is that what you'd really want though? Eye candy masking what are otherwise very average, uninspired adventures, with poor puzzles, bland script, and lousy voice overs? Because that's what most modern day adventure games have in common.
You can guarantee if this were the case, the very same graphics detractors would have their knives out. Like film, a good game is remembered in years to come for the quality and integrity of its writing. I'd take the original King Kong over Matrix Reloaded any day.
Some people need to recognise that the gaming landscape has changed dramatically since MI's glory days. It's a genre that most had written off long ago. The fact that it's going through a mini-renaissance is something we should be grateful for. Gone are the days where this type of game could command big budgets and huge teams comprising of the very best artists and animators the industry has to offer. To expect more, is rather wanting to have your cake and eat it.
And anyway, who's not to say that this isn't Lucasarts way of dipping their toes in the water, to see whether MI can still be a successful IP. At the very least it's a step in the right direction. And if we end up with five episodes that sparkle with the old MI wit and charm, this would surely more likely lead to bigger and better things for the franchise, than if we had a load of poorly written story and dialogue hiding behind some pretty tinsel.
So be thankful to Lucasarts for resurrecting MI from the dead and giving it another chance, be realistic about the limitations of episodic content, and remember what really makes a great adventure great, I say
I was shocked that the free sam and max was only 75 meg
You argue that we'd get something superficial if we had good graphics. I don't think that was the case the first three games at all. They were a work of art and the great craftmanship showed a dedication and love for what they were doing. I love Hayao Miyazakis films because they are a work of art. That they are pretty does absolutely not make them superficial, rather the opposite.
Adventure games do pretty well now, so I think it's time to start expecting something more than them just to exist and not just being grateful someone makes them. Since TT are basically the only ones who does make them, and get a load of time in the media, I would assume they do better economically than many smaller developers.
I showed a Wii game to counter the argument on technical limitations. It's a platform that's so weak that I would assume most PCs would run a Wii game without any problems. Anno for Wii still looks gorgeous because the art assets look good, something that can't be said of TTs MI series so far.
I know that it's in capable hands, at least when it comes to art direction, music, story and acting. But the art assets are simply not up to the quality I'd expect from a Lucas Arts aspiring title.
There's no need for the most advanced shaders if the basics are pretty to start with. Here's what I'd expect characters to measure up with:
Again, sorry to be a downer, but I can't help thinking it looks awful. And that's a first for a MI game.