Dragon Age 2

[Slowtrain]

Fact: Going on and on about graphics as being a measure of a game, either good or bad, simply makes publishers and developers even more convinced that graphics are far and away the most imporatnt part of the game.

 

Really, unlese you just like games for the images, you're shooting yourselves in the foot.

[Hell Kitty]

Fact: Going on and on about graphics as being a measure of a game, either good or bad, simply makes publishers and developers even more convinced that graphics are far and away the most imporatnt part of the game.

 

Really, unlese you just like games for the images, you're shooting yourselves in the foot.

 

Yeah, because publishers and developers are very concerned with what internet forum dwellers go on and on about

[Humanoid]

At least graphics aren't in as poor a state as sound in that it's not presently limited by the output device. Both in PC and console world there's not much developers can do when bound by muddy Logitech speakers (including the ubiquitous top of the line Z-5500) and built-in TV speakers (spend $3-4k on the TV but zero on decent sound).

 

 

Ironically perhaps the once massively derided quality of onboard sound is now way overkill for the standard speakers people plug into their PCs.

[Nepenthe]

At least graphics aren't in as poor a state as sound in that it's not presently limited by the output device. Both in PC and console world there's not much developers can do when bound by muddy Logitech speakers (including the ubiquitous top of the line Z-5500) and built-in TV speakers (spend $3-4k on the TV but zero on decent sound).

 

 

Ironically perhaps the once massively derided quality of onboard sound is now way overkill for the standard speakers people plug into their PCs.

... What?!

 

Not sure what you are going here, but you only need to pop in either of the Mass Effect games (never mind the fishy CoDs) to be able to tell that a lot of attention is paid to audio design. I mean, spending 3000 € on audio is worth it just to hear Wrex's voice as it should be heard.

 

In fact, the importance of the audio part of gaming is what has mostly driven me towards the sofa (and thus pretty inevitably console) side of gaming. The sound design of games is certainly not done with the logitech speakers in mind, and there's a not-insignificant amount of home theatre enthusiasts who are also quite fond of their gaming...

 

Edit: unless your point simply is that people use crap gear for listening to games. In which case I have no idea why you start "At least graphics..."

Edited November 24, 2010 by Nepenthe

[HoonDing]

I mean, spending 3000

[Humanoid]

Meant to be understood as that no matter how much effort a developer puts into the audio, most gamers won't be able to hear it. Contrast to graphics where even a bog-standard 16x10 TN panel isn't a hindrance at all, neither is a 1080p TV when, as I understand it, current consoles (I don't own one, so I could be wrong) only push out 720 vertical lines.

[Nepenthe]

Editshow again.

 

PS3 has some games that run native at 1080p, and they can generally output most games at this resolution - generally the native resolution is going to be less (often less than 720p) and is upscaled to whatever is output.

 

I think that with semidecent headphones and stuff, a lot of gamers could get pretty close to the maximal audio experience as is. Certainly the devs and pubs seem to consider it worthwhile - in fact, the emphasis on it seems to be growing. :/

 

I mean, spending 3000 € on audio is worth it just to hear Wrex's voice as it should be heard.

But... what about Mark Meer?

 

Well, I guess that must be the reason why I rather like his voiceacting, as well.

Edited November 24, 2010 by Nepenthe

[Azure79]

At least graphics aren't in as poor a state as sound in that it's not presently limited by the output device. Both in PC and console world there's not much developers can do when bound by muddy Logitech speakers (including the ubiquitous top of the line Z-5500) and built-in TV speakers (spend $3-4k on the TV but zero on decent sound).

 

 

Ironically perhaps the once massively derided quality of onboard sound is now way overkill for the standard speakers people plug into their PCs.

... What?!

 

Not sure what you are going here, but you only need to pop in either of the Mass Effect games (never mind the fishy CoDs) to be able to tell that a lot of attention is paid to audio design. I mean, spending 3000

[Nepenthe]

I remember when I had 5.1 surround sound speaker set up for my computer years ago. It was sweet. I just use headphones now. I was thinking of buying a surround sound headset, but never found one that seemed worth the money.

 

I have this (well, the Euro version sc-lx72) and a mix of Tannoy Mercury F2s and F1 customs. No sub, as the F2s dig pretty low and I ran out of cash before I could get a good sub with the necessary room acoustic correction (would have set me back as much as the rest of the gear put together, also starting to run out of space in my tiny studio)

[Slowtrain]

Fact: Going on and on about graphics as being a measure of a game, either good or bad, simply makes publishers and developers even more convinced that graphics are far and away the most imporatnt part of the game.

 

Really, unlese you just like games for the images, you're shooting yourselves in the foot.

 

Yeah, because publishers and developers are very concerned with what internet forum dwellers go on and on about

 

 

Not specifically what one poster says, no, but it all adds up.

 

ANyway, it doesn't matter since we all know the graphics are very important to most gamers, despite the rampant, OMG-grafics-don't-matter BS many of them spout, then proceed to go on and on about how the graphics suck.

 

 

This thread and the DX 3 thread are perfect examples of graphical importance, in opposite ways.

 

 

Meant to be understood as that no matter how much effort a developer puts into the audio, most gamers won't be able to hear it.

 

 

Agreed, plus it's harder to sell a game on awesome ambient sound work than it is on awesome visuals.

Edited November 24, 2010 by Slowtrain

[mkreku]

I mostly find it funny that some people *COUGH*Kaftan*COUGH* still claim dedicated soundcards deliver better sound.

 

As an example.. If I'm not misinformed, the PS3 does not even contain any sound hardware at all, it's all software driven. That's how much you need a soundcard.

[Nepenthe]

I mostly find it funny that some people *COUGH*Kaftan*COUGH* still claim dedicated soundcards deliver better sound.

 

As an example.. If I'm not misinformed, the PS3 does not even contain any sound hardware at all, it's all software driven. That's how much you need a soundcard.

That's a pretty major simplification. The PS3's main advantage is that it outputs uncompressed digital audio (up to 7.1 channels) via HDMI. You need a dedicated soundcard to do it on the PC (or at the very least a graphics card that doubles as a sound card).* It also does have the advantage of Windows not mangling the sound without having to find ways of bypassing it.

 

Additionally, the PS3 architecture is peculiar enough that I wouldn't call it a perfect example of all the stuff you can do in hardware. For example, it's HD video decompression is also purely software (unless things have changed) - something that would definitely be a bad approach on the PC side.

 

*Or a Mac Mini, which is what I have.

[entrerix]

i'm one of those people with a 50 inch 1080p plasma screen and no sound system.

 

i spent all my money on the tv

[Tale]

Sound systems are for chumps.

[Amentep]

Who needs sound when you can turn subtitles on?

[sorophx]

Who needs sound when you can turn subtitles on?

that's pretty much my whole gaming youth

[Maria Caliban]

'Statues of tortured slaves fill the Gallows courtyard, a ghastly memento of Kirkwall's history. The statues are not monuments to the suffering of slaves. Every inch and angle of the courtyard was designed by magisters bent on breaking the spirit of newcomers. Executions here took place daily, sometimes hourly, and corpses were hung from gibbets throughout the yard. New slaves trudging in from the docks saw what awaited them.'

 

 

'Aveline Vallen is a soldier, a master of sword and shield, and a tireless guardian... to a point. The daughter of an exiled chevalier, Aveline is not the knight her father wished her to be. Although fully trained in chivalrous combat, she was raised in the shadow of a lost life and will not lose another for the sake of honor. Protecting her adopted home of Kirkwall becomes a chosen duty, not a privileged calling. The people she stands for will not be wasted on lost causes or protecting the foolish from themselves. Pride can be bandaged like any other wound—when threats are dead and everyone is safely home.'

 

Edited November 25, 2010 by Maria Caliban

[Orogun01]

Is all of the new info on the wiki yet?

[HoonDing]

Aveline looks a lot like the female pirate archetype from Drakensang.

 

[Labadal]

Both Isabela and Aveline have a poor design imo. Varric looks ok. (I'm talking about the art, not in-game). Nothing looks good in-game so far.

[Labadal]

Internet messdd up and I somehow managed to doublepost.

Edited November 25, 2010 by Labadal

[Tale]

I think she looks like a tall thin dwarf. As does the guy she's fighting.

[sorophx]

oh god. there's so much blood on the floor under her... that's usually the result of a dead body, that had been lying for hours, not two people fighting. it does like like anime, only the more morbid type.

[Tale]

oh god. there's so much blood on the floor under her... that's usually the result of a dead body, that had been lying for hours, not two people fighting. it does like like anime, only the more morbid type.

That's pretty much the same way DA1 handled blood. Only it couldn't get it on the floor, so it was just all over characters.

[Pop]

It looks like Fable.