God is in the details

[Intrepid Homoludens]

Although the game's screenshots continue to portray Tony alone in a fairly desolate environment, dtp promises that the finished version of the game will include numerous animated details, real-time weather changes, and plenty of NPCs covering 30 different locations.

Exclusive Tony Tough 2 screenshots (http://www.adventuregamers.com/newsitem.php?id=956), AG news

http://media.ign.com/thumb/786/786061/syberia2_march04__032504_023_thumb.jpg (http://media.pc.gamespy.com/media/499/499421/img_2056439.html) http://media.ign.com/thumb/710/710859/499080_2004-03-22_07_thumb.jpg (http://media.pc.gamespy.com/media/016/016213/img_1980859.html)
God is in the details. Left - Syberia II, Right - BS3.

Just got the news of new screenies from the Tony Tough prequel and started thinking. Only a few years ago did we adventurers not have the benefit of taking pleasure in the technological marvels used in the art direction of little graphical or aural touches that games of other genres have been enjoying long before. Many of us say that graphics don't ultimately matter. I remember a brief discussion here about the advent of real time shadows cast by 3D characters in a point-&-click game (which was finally coming to adventure games), and some people didn't care for it while still a few others complained that it would probably end up demanding better hardware to run.

Yet games continue to progress, incrementally giving us treats. In Syberia II we are offered beautiful snowflakes that cascade down a white winter forest as Kate walks its path. In BS3 the radiosity lighting imparts an otherwise dark Paris apartment with an incredible glow of intense patches of summer sun reflected off the wood floors. In Still Life the shadow cast by Vic McPherson as she walks extends and recedes in proportion to the light source creating it and lends to the atmosphere of suspense. These details were made possible by art direction combined with advancing technology.

Regardless of the ongoing arguments of gameplay vs. graphics, what an adventure game is supposed to be, and whether its state is questionable or fine as is, there you are. Take it for granted if you want, but don't be telling me I'm not allowed to enjoy these small but exquisite touches in my games. I WELCOME things like these, and I'd be damn to not appreciate them.

[squarejawhero]

Technology is nothing without artistic talent. You can throw as many effects at a game as you like, if the base design has no merit then it's going to look like rubbish.

Most game developers are clicking onto this now. Something like Psychonauts doesn't use the latest in technology, just talented artists to create unique (if not original) design and expressive animation - and it WORKS! Same goes for Blizzard with WoW, a basic engine married to smooth games design, simple but concise models and flair in texturing... and people are lapping it up and not complaining about the visuals one iota. What's great is when the design comes together with new technology... then there's something to marvel at!

[eriq]

You Go Girl!

;p

[Intrepid Homoludens]

That's what I meant when I said:

These details were made possible by art direction combined with advancing technology.

[Intrepid Homoludens]

http://metropolis.japantoday.com/xmg/546/546-A-watanabe.jpg
Jacket and skirt by Junya Watanabe.

To some extent I can't help comparing this idea of creativity, art direction, and progressive technology to the fashion designers Issey Miyake (http://french.chass.utoronto.ca/fcs298/images/miyake.jpg) and Junya Watanabe. What they do is take advantage of technology to realize their visions of what beauty can be in terms of the ornamental and what that means to the spirit and experience, both for the wearer and the onlooker.

In parallel, the same thing in essence with games (adventure games in particular). The art director would say something like, "We want to give the player the sensation that they are in a beautiful wintry climate that is alive with nature, it helps to set the story." The technology allows environmental effects, the snowflakes and dynamically shifting weather. It gives the gameworld life. Same thing with dynamic shadows in a suspense thriller game (like Still Life). The art direction says, "Shadows cast by the characters will move around, lending to the creation of tension and dread, a foreshadowing of events.

And this is what I love, the gelling of technology to make things possible for particular kinds of aesthetic experiences in a game.

What adventure games (or other games) have you played where you admired the the marriage of art and technology to convey the story, atmosphere, or even gameplay? Where you said, "Yes, this is what I love about it"?

[Wormsie]

God? JESUS is in the details, woman!

Anybody got the reference? :shifty:

[Antoinetta]

"God? JESUS is in the details, woman!" Posted by Wormsie

Actually, Trep has it right. "God is in the details" is a line from Gabriel Knight III. Gabriel is posing as a reporter from the New York Times and asks Montreaux to let him down into the wine-cellar, so he can get some atmosphere for his supposed story. "I could just make it all up", said Gabriel, "but it will come off better if I see for myself. After all, God is in the details."

Or something like that.

Antoinetta

[SakSquash]

Exclusive Tony Tough 2 screenshots (http://www.adventuregamers.com/newsitem.php?id=956), AG news

http://media.ign.com/thumb/786/786061/syberia2_march04__032504_023_thumb.jpg (http://media.pc.gamespy.com/media/499/499421/img_2056439.html) http://media.ign.com/thumb/710/710859/499080_2004-03-22_07_thumb.jpg (http://media.pc.gamespy.com/media/016/016213/img_1980859.html)
God is in the details. Left - Syberia II, Right - BS3.

Just got the news of new screenies from the Tony Tough prequel and started thinking. Only a few years ago did we adventurers not have the benefit of taking pleasure in the technological marvels used in the art direction of little graphical or aural touches that games of other genres have been enjoying long before. Many of us say that graphics don't ultimately matter. I remember a brief discussion here about the advent of real time shadows cast by 3D characters in a point-&-click game (which was finally coming to adventure games), and some people didn't care for it while still a few others complained that it would probably end up demanding better hardware to run.

Yet games continue to progress, incrementally giving us treats. In Syberia II we are offered beautiful snowflakes that cascade down a white winter forest as Kate walks its path. In BS3 the radiosity lighting imparts an otherwise dark Paris apartment with an incredible glow of intense patches of summer sun reflected off the wood floors. In Still Life the shadow cast by Vic McPherson as she walks extends and recedes in proportion to the light source creating it and lends to the atmosphere of suspense. These details were made possible by art direction combined with advancing technology.

Regardless of the ongoing arguments of gameplay vs. graphics, what an adventure game is supposed to be, and whether its state is questionable or fine as is, there you are. Take it for granted if you want, but don't be telling me I'm not allowed to enjoy these small but exquisite touches in my games. I WELCOME things like these, and I'd be damn to not appreciate them.

I love technology, not as much as you you see, but I still love technology, always and forever.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v309/temporaryscars/w_kip_dynamite_fighter.jpg

[Intrepid Homoludens]

[QUOTE=Wormsie]God? JESUS is in the details, woman!

Actually, Trep has it right. "God is in the details" is a line from Gabriel Knight III. Gabriel is posing as a reporter from the New York Times and asks Montreaux to let him down into the wine-cellar, so he can get some atmosphere for his supposed story. "I could just make it all up", said Gabriel, "but it will come off better if I see for myself. After all, God is in the details."

Or something like that.

Antoinetta

Actually it's a quote from architect Mies van der Rohe.

[Intrepid Homoludens]

I love technology, not as much as you you see, but I still love technology, always and forever.

Care to elaborate? :)

[SakSquash]

Care to elaborate? :)

Nah. :crazy:

[Intrepid Homoludens]

Cop-out!!!!

:pan:
:crazy:
tempsie

[squarejawhero]

Could you pass the chapstick?

[Intrepid Homoludens]

http://www.chapstick.com/natural/images/natural_img.gif

[SakSquash]

Could you pass the chapstick?

Just use the nurse's. I know she's got, like, 5 sticks in her drawer.

Before Fov moves this, i'd like to put it back on topic and say I'd love to see AG's use more cutting edge graphic engines, like the unreal engine and such.

[Intrepid Homoludens]

And have there been any adventure games where you admired how the technology was used creatively and in the service of the story and/or gameplay? :D

[SakSquash]

And have there been any adventure games where you admired how the technology was used creatively and in the service of the story and/or gameplay? :D

Yessum'. I'd have to say I was quite impressed with the style and look of Monkey Island 3. I'm not sure if it was a technological powerhouse, but it looked exactly like a cartoon you would see on tv. More recently though, i'd have to say Broken Sword 3 was just fantastic looking, espc some of the lighting effects. I was also impressed with Gabriel Knight 3 when it came out.

[Erwin_Br]

Monkey Island 3 for me too! The seamless 3D integration was excellent. And the music system in Monkey Island 2 impressed me as well.

Oh, and the X-Files Game. It had moving, photorealistic, backgrounds, which I hadn't seen before. It took a lot of processing power, so this option was turned off by default, unfortunately.

--Erwin

[Intrepid Homoludens]

I loved that GK3 allowed me to move the camera independently of the characters and let me explore Rennes le Chateau with all its nooks and crannies. It was my very first real adventure game, and I remember muttering under my breath, "Oh my god, I didn't know you can do this in games!"

[Fairygdmther]

In Mysterious Journey II, there was a village you needed to search through. At first you saw it in daylight, and could walk up to any part and look at it up close. The village was on three levels, and you could look up to or down from a level to the next, or even off to the distance from any point. While it was gorgeous in daylight, it was truly spectacular at night. The many colored lights made it look like a festival time. I tried to find some screenshots to show this, but couldn't locate any. This game, while not the greatest game I've ever played, was the first fully 3D game I ever played and got through. I needed the spacebar once to help the main character hop up a stair, otherwise it was totally under mouse control. This was a very bright game with ample use of color.

I haven't yet played Sentinel, though it uses the same engine as MJ II. It is one I'm looking forward to.

FGM-Lyn

[fov]

Before Fov moves this, i'd like to put it back on topic

*D Well done! *applauds*

I love falling snow in games. In Syberia II and also in Shadow of Destiny (during the "cold day"), the snow effects made a big impact on me... in a different way than rain does. I think it's the footprints that get left behind that I like so much.

Especially since I can experience it without being there myself and getting snow down my boots. :D

[Manhunter71]

*D Well done! *applauds*

I love falling snow in games.



I love snow *full stop*

Maybe it's because I come from a country where snow is a rarity, and the idea of a white christmas is incredibly romantic :)

I know what you mean about "Shadows of Memory" - I usd to love to run around the city whilst it was snowing in that game - it was very atmospheric :D

[SakSquash]

I love snow *full stop*

Maybe it's because I come from a country where snow is a rarity, and the idea of a white christmas is incredibly romantic :)

I know what you mean about "Shadows of Memory" - I usd to love to run around the city whilst it was snowing in that game - it was very atmospheric :D

Snow is rare in England?.....Boy, ya learn something new every day.

[squarejawhero]

It might snow on the day of The Wedding. :D Apparently it might do tonight, but it's been warm recently. Like Detroit and Chicago, if the wind shifts from blowing from the south to the north, the weather can get psychotic. :frown:

[Wormsie]

"God? JESUS is in the details, woman!" Posted by Wormsie

Actually, Trep has it right. "God is in the details" is a line from Gabriel Knight III. Gabriel is posing as a reporter from the New York Times and asks Montreaux to let him down into the wine-cellar, so he can get some atmosphere for his supposed story. "I could just make it all up", said Gabriel, "but it will come off better if I see for myself. After all, God is in the details."

Or something like that.

AntoinettaYes, I know about all that. I just made a nonsensical response - picked a line from The Longest Journey (Flipper says that "I need details! God is in the... f'ck, Jesus is in the details, woman!"), and decided to turn this into a bit of AG trivia.

[pinkgothic]

Oh, I agree Trep... that's part of the reason I adore playing Stranger's Wrath. Moving... layers of... clouds... ooh... bending light... multitudes of dried up patches of grass in a canyon like environment... the bottom of a lake... *seizure*

[Risingson]

Syberia 2 is a strange game: it has mostly the same flaws as the first part, though the conversations, characterizations and puzzles are a bit better and there is a bit less wandering... but the saving grace is... the details. If you want a gamer to just click through screens where there is nothing to examine of manipulate, discract the gamer. Syberia 2 has lots of snow, nearly as many animals as Simon the Sorcerer, and intriguing but subtle music that can surprise you in an empty screen. Syberia 1 had the problem that only a few of those screens had those animation details, so you realized more of the wandering. Neither of both games stand a replay from start to finish without boredom, but who cares.

Schizm 2 has great details too, like the petal bridges that you end up walking on, but those unbearable monollogues really killed the game.

[RaMa]

God? JESUS is in the details, woman!

Anybody got the reference? :shifty:
I just wanna say: TLJ! :D

You may continue :).

[shiajun]

You might just shoot me, but even though the technology used in the Last Express wasn't totally cutting edge, the art direction decision taken added a lot to the game, somehow. Haven't played Broken Sword 3, but all the screenshots always gave the impression that even in the game wasn't all that espectacular in the end at least the atmosphere was delicious. Lighting and colouring goes a long way.

I'll just advocate once more for the Unreal 2004 engine. Of course they kept detail "down" to increase framerate. I mean "down" because a lot of the levels created have an inmense amount of detail that just look incredible. I mean, some levels even have REALISTIC grass just blowing in the wind, touching water that slips away beautifully, steam rising from waterfalls, little leaves floating around in the air, better snow than Syberia II squared, some skies that make your jaw drop, etc. Imagine if you could just add MORE detail using it an adventure, dropping framerate, which isn't all that necessary in the pacing of this genre.

[Sage]

Actually it's a quote from architect Mies van der Rohe.

It's ironic that Mies van der Rohe would have said "God is in the details", since he and Eero Saarinen were the principal proponents of the "glass box" modernist style of architecture, and his buildings are notable for their lack of detail of any kind, Godly or otherwise.

Thrifty