[MUD-Dev] The importance of graphics

[Damion Schubert]

From: Zach Collins (Siege)

> I was chatting with some friends last night, and we got onto the
> subject of graphics in games.  One of them made the claim that
> graphics will make or break a game, while another made a very
> interesting point, that it's the *consistency* of the art
> direction instead of just how pretty everything looks.
 
> In a graphical MU* (MM or not), graphics can only be so dense, and
> therefore have only a certain amount of inherent visual quality -
> but under Moore's Law, that amount has been steadily improving
> with the rest of computing.
 
> So the question I want to ask is this, in three parts:
 
>   How important is it to have graphics?

That depends a lot on the game that you're making and the audience
you hope to get hold of.  Even in the pay-for realm, Ultima Online
continues to hold a couple hundred thousand subscribers despite the
fact that their graphics are undeniably dated looking by now (even
factoring in their 3D upgrade).  What UO offers is something
different entirely.

>   What level of visual quality (slickness, flashiness) is
>   acceptable versus bandwidth or rendering considerations (assume
>   that the graphics card has no effect)?

MMORPGs haven't so far looked as good as their offline counterparts,
but don't confuse that with technical insophistication.  Graphics
engines in MMORPGs have to deal with larger areas, longer horizons,
more unpredictable scenes, and customizable characters.  Given that,
3D for MMPs will probably lag behind the FPS market for quite some
time.

>   How is visual consistency important, how do you create it, and
>   how do you maintain it throughout the life of a project (MMOGs
>   being continuously expanded)?

It's incredibly important.  A great look and feel really does mean
the difference between the project looking like a patchwork quilt
and a whole, cohesive project.  I think that strong, central,
identifiable art direction is one thing that really makes the top
titles you've heard about really stand out (Myst, Sims, anything by
Blizzard).

One of the things I've noticed is that a strong, directed art style
can make lower quality art look better, simply because the total
cohesive picture is better.  On one of the projects I've contracted
on recently, this was especially true.  Their models were very
simplistic and wouldn't have stood muster against most of the titles
out at the time, but when the game was running in its entirety,
those models fit the mood so well with the atmosphere, the room
geometry, the animations and the models that the game looked far
superior to what else is on the market right now.  Tragically, the
company went bankrupt, so it'll never see the light of day.

--d

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