Damn, I can't believe we shipped the game like that ... oh wait, no we didn't.
Feel free to nitpick our WIP all you want. I'm pretty confident we'll be seeing some high graphics review scores once we're on the shelf ... hell, high scores all around for that matter Especially considering that a huge majority of feedback from the couple of screenshots that are out there has been overwhelmingly positive.
As far as Lilith and her skin tone goes, Sandbag, you are assuming that she is a normal human that has spent her entire life on that planet. Not the case.
The style isn't for everyone, that's obvious. Only thing I personally care about is that the style is for me. This game wasn't on my radar, but now it is.
It's so goddamn nice to take a break from grays and browns every once in a while.
The style isn't for everyone, that's obvious. Only thing I personally care about is that the style is for me. This game wasn't on my radar, but now it is.
It's so goddamn nice to take a break from grays and browns every once in a while.
Oh, obviously not for everyone. The overall response has been very positive, however. If someone doesn't care for it, that's fine; you can't please everyone. But when someone nitpicks the hell out of a single screenshot of a game that isn't even relatively close to release, it just comes across as hating to me.
Anyhow, glad you and the vast majority of my fellow Polycounters seem to like it, Jesse. It's a lot of fun to play as well
AZ - don't mind the artists nitpicking at a wicked colourful screenshot of a game showcasing its 'new art style'. :P It's bound to happen.
I couldn't be more pleased with the majority of the responses here to the new direction, particularly considering this is a community of artists Something like this is bound to polarize some people and, obviously, you just can't please everyone, all of the time.
I couldn't be more pleased with the majority of the responses here to the new direction, particularly considering this is a community of artists Something like this is bound to polarize some people and, obviously, you just can't please everyone, all of the time.
Hey those guns in that case are still the old stuff, right?
I might *know a guy* who knows a thing or two about making some guns, if you get my drift.
The new screenshot has me way more interested in this game than i was before and I think that rings true with a lot of people, so I would say this is a win
This looks awesome. Why don't more games try to have distinctive art styles? It's been proven time and time again that pictures get people talking. Look at the hype that surrounded the new Prince of Persia, the Jet Grind Radio games, Legend of Zelda Wind Waker, Okami, MadWorld...
tons of black outlines, washed out textures, bizarro Guitar Hero proportions, crazy vagina monster...man sign me up! Funny how much the water stands out too...
I'm digging the overall style. I think the main issue will be getting everything to look consistent throughout the game, which is certainly possible with good art direction.
tons of black outlines, washed out textures, bizarro Guitar Hero proportions, crazy vagina monster...man sign me up! Funny how much the water stands out too...
hopefully it looks better in motion.
dude, seriously, you made your point; you don't like the new style. We get it. Why do you keep carrying on like this? Is it personal for some reason?
Overall impression is 'okay', but what part of this was supposed to be exciting that Afro Samurai, Valkyria Chronicles, and Team Fortress 2 haven't already done better?
Have to agree with this. In fact, I only realised how much it looked like Afro Samurai when you mentioned it.
I wouldn't mind so much but the cover looks great; and then you see screenies and its just a sandbox Prince of Persia with guns and jeeps rather than an in-game Scanner Darkly. I mean, its not even celshaded, they just added outlines.
'Concept Art Style' sounds like a buzz word to me; something that'll appear on a bullet point on the back of the box. It is really obvious that this aesthetic change was made because this game was going to be released into the sea of extremely similar games. I dunno if its different enough to warrant a purchase; when I saw a video of the original I skipped on immiediatly without even giving it a 'meh'. Hope I'm wrong and its surprisingly great (great multiplayer would probably be important to its success)
I can understand where you are coming from Zombie; probably natural to be defensive of your 'baby'. Hopefully we'll all be wowed by the end result. Is it coming out to consoles as well as PC? Is it gonna be at E3?
I really don't get the PoP or TF2 comparison here. I can understand the wayward masses making a comparison since neither of those nor Borderlands is photo-real but I would expect more from artists. Afro Sam, ok, I can see that and even made the same comparison when I saw the direction we were going but it really doesn't look anyting like PoP and looks absolutely nothing like TF2.
the 3rd to the last shot looks they imported the characters into TF2's Dustbowl...So it's kind of hard not to see a resemblance between the two games...
Not sure why you're so over-defensive of it Astro, just because you worked on it doesn't make it perfect or put it above scrutiny. Why do my criticisms bother you so much? You and others said wait till you see more...I saw more and it was more of the same. I'm sorry if that offends you.
it really doesn't look anyting like PoP and looks absolutely nothing like TF2.
I would agree; I see no TF2 similarity whatsoever,not in the character designs nor the texture treatment; but as far as PoP goes, the way textures are handled is quite similar.
the 3rd to the last shot looks they imported the characters into TF2's Dustbowl...So it's kind of hard not to see a resemblance between the two games...
That's a bit of a stretch. I mean, ok, they both have dust so I guess I can see where you are coming from
Not sure why you're so over-defensive of it Astro,.
I just don't understand why you are so over-critical of it. Like I said, if you don't like it, that's fine, that's your opinion and you are entitled to it, we get it. The couple of people who feel the same of you have stated as much as well, but you seem to feel the need to continuously nitpick every single screenshot that comes out. Frankly, you just come off as being a hater.
Seriously, I can nitpick ANY game to death; HL2, COD4, Gears, etc. But the fact is that doesn't take away from them being fantastic games overall and frankly I don't see the point in nitpicking a bad UV seam or low resolution texture when the game looks fantastic as a whole. It's about seeing the forest instead of the trees.
some people like stylized stuff. some ppl like real lookin stuff.
Personally I like it. I would love to see some variation in the line thickness, but o well. Its a nice take on the average post-apoc/sci-fi looking games. Its not for everyone, but no game is going to please the whole consumer base. I'm pretty sure the average gamer will appreciate this style more and be less of an art critic if the gameplay can back it up. I can't wait for a demo to see for myself to how well it all reads in motion.
I think if you want to compare this game to any other one visually it would be crackdown. Very similar. semi realistic textures but with outlines around characters and the like. people tend to dismiss this look as "cartoony". I think they are missing the point. To me there is a huge differance from cartoony and it looking like a LIVING comic book. Personally i love the style. can't wait to see some gameplay footage.
redesign looks pretty solid, I was impressed by the magazine cover, less so by the screenshots. The texture treatment definitely reminds me of the recent PoP, and Afro Samurai.
The primary thing that bugs me is the black outline, very distracting imo. Would be cooler if some of that effect was drawn on the interior of the character, rather then just the silhouette and if the line thickness could be varied a little more.
All I did was a very light desaturate (maybe %10 or so) to the TF2 Shot. Of course it's not 1:1; but to say they're totally dissimilar is a little silly. I'm not saying they ripped off TF2, that'd be stupid, I'm just saying hey there are some artistic similarities.
tf2 looks awesome.. whats the problem if it did look the same
yea, seriously. Thanks for all of the OVERWHELMINGLY POSITIVE responses, guys. I guess I shouldn't let the opinions of a few naysayers bother me, no matter how misguided or tactless they may be.
I like it! I had zero interest in the old look, way to generic for me. I would love to see this taken to the next step and add the likes to any hard creases/folds like you find in comics. All and all i want more.
I've been trying to put my finger on why a couple of naysayers have managed to irritate me so much amid all of you who love the new style. I guess the only thing I can come up with is I find the few negative comments that there have been to be completely tactless and downright rude. I'm not saying I expect people to lie and sugarcoat their responses if they honestly don't like it, and if you don't honestly like it then feel free to say so. However, is a little bit of courtesy too much to ask? You can simply state that you don't care for the new style and move on without feeling the need to try and tear down every single screenshot that gets posted or make comparisons and statements like "what is special about this that other games haven't already done better?" Is it absolutely necessary to piss all over the parade?
Am I being defensive? Damn right I am. I have invested a significant amount of time and effort into this game and am very proud what myself and my peers have done. I'm pretty sure most of you would feel the same way and understand exactly where I am coming from.
What's the point in just saying "I dont like it." and nothing more, that's rude. Feedback without reason is valueless. It IS the nice thing to do to say what makes me not like it, if I didn't care I wouldn't. How would I say what I said "better" ?
"I really dont like x y and z, but man I sure am glad you're trying and by the way did I mention rainbows?"
I'm not going after you or anything that you have specifically done with any of my comments towards the game, I'm just pointing out things I dont like, and why I dont like them. If you agree, great, if you dont, great. Tell me why you dont agree too, I love that. Life is meaningless without some good debate.
Having your own opinion is all well and great, but what you've been doing is obvious trolling. Its easy to see if anyone bothers to read all of your posts here. You keep reiterating the same points. As soon as someone comments that they like the style, you are quick to jump back in and let everyone know how much you dislike it. We get it, you do not like the look of the game, that is fine. But why the need to cause endless attention to your opinion?
Oh, and now the name calling, is it? Yea, now I'm convinced that this is something personal with you for whatever reason. You're just pretty much a troll, period. Go ahead and continue to reply with your trolling, I'll just add you to my block sender's list so I will no longer need to hear your nonsense.
What's the point in just saying "I dont like it." and nothing more, that's rude. Feedback without reason is valueless. It IS the nice thing to do to say what makes me not like it, if I didn't care I wouldn't. How would I say what I said "better" ?
Well, first off, this wasn't posted in PnP, and no one really gives a shit about your completely tactless and non-constructive feedback. Secondly, even if you had some valid points, I am completely powerless to change it, even given your "invaluable" input.
Seriously, maybe we should hire you as our art director or something. You obviously are a credible source to be critiquing the artistic style of a game ... oh, and who the fuck are you and what have you done exactly, again?
I like the new art style, I heard about it at a few gbx gatherings and wanted to see it. It looks much better than the previous style, so what if it looks toony, its artistic creativity right?
A game could look like shit and have amazing game play, graphics aren't everything.
Can't we all just be happy that these talented folks tried something different?
The thing that impressed me most is that the team had created this cool looking game with a more realistic style, then went back and completely overhauled to make it that much more unique (in my opinion anyways).
Shouldn't we be more worried about... THE SWINE FLU!?
Replies
......the style ( especially the pic broome posted ) reminds me of that mtv code hunters short.
The style isn't for everyone, that's obvious. Only thing I personally care about is that the style is for me. This game wasn't on my radar, but now it is.
It's so goddamn nice to take a break from grays and browns every once in a while.
Oh, obviously not for everyone. The overall response has been very positive, however. If someone doesn't care for it, that's fine; you can't please everyone. But when someone nitpicks the hell out of a single screenshot of a game that isn't even relatively close to release, it just comes across as hating to me.
Anyhow, glad you and the vast majority of my fellow Polycounters seem to like it, Jesse. It's a lot of fun to play as well
I couldn't have said it better. I'm liking the new style.
I couldn't be more pleased with the majority of the responses here to the new direction, particularly considering this is a community of artists
Hey those guns in that case are still the old stuff, right?
I might *know a guy* who knows a thing or two about making some guns, if you get my drift.
** Flame post edited!
Yea, looks like it.
Not exactly, you know someone who is looking for work or ... ?
http://kotaku.com/5234759/borderlands-a-new-look-at-gearboxs-new-look
I like!
dude, seriously, you made your point; you don't like the new style. We get it. Why do you keep carrying on like this? Is it personal for some reason?
Have to agree with this. In fact, I only realised how much it looked like Afro Samurai when you mentioned it.
I wouldn't mind so much but the cover looks great; and then you see screenies and its just a sandbox Prince of Persia with guns and jeeps rather than an in-game Scanner Darkly. I mean, its not even celshaded, they just added outlines.
'Concept Art Style' sounds like a buzz word to me; something that'll appear on a bullet point on the back of the box. It is really obvious that this aesthetic change was made because this game was going to be released into the sea of extremely similar games. I dunno if its different enough to warrant a purchase; when I saw a video of the original I skipped on immiediatly without even giving it a 'meh'. Hope I'm wrong and its surprisingly great (great multiplayer would probably be important to its success)
I can understand where you are coming from Zombie; probably natural to be defensive of your 'baby'.
Not sure why you're so over-defensive of it Astro, just because you worked on it doesn't make it perfect or put it above scrutiny. Why do my criticisms bother you so much? You and others said wait till you see more...I saw more and it was more of the same. I'm sorry if that offends you.
I would agree; I see no TF2 similarity whatsoever,not in the character designs nor the texture treatment; but as far as PoP goes, the way textures are handled is quite similar.
That's a bit of a stretch. I mean, ok, they both have dust so I guess I can see where you are coming from
I just don't understand why you are so over-critical of it. Like I said, if you don't like it, that's fine, that's your opinion and you are entitled to it, we get it. The couple of people who feel the same of you have stated as much as well, but you seem to feel the need to continuously nitpick every single screenshot that comes out. Frankly, you just come off as being a hater.
Seriously, I can nitpick ANY game to death; HL2, COD4, Gears, etc. But the fact is that doesn't take away from them being fantastic games overall and frankly I don't see the point in nitpicking a bad UV seam or low resolution texture when the game looks fantastic as a whole. It's about seeing the forest instead of the trees.
It's refreshing to my eyes in a sea of photo real games.
Personally I like it. I would love to see some variation in the line thickness, but o well. Its a nice take on the average post-apoc/sci-fi looking games. Its not for everyone, but no game is going to please the whole consumer base. I'm pretty sure the average gamer will appreciate this style more and be less of an art critic if the gameplay can back it up. I can't wait for a demo to see for myself to how well it all reads in motion.
really?
I think it's just an over generalization of two styles that have a similar trait: hand painted textures
Might as well go the extra mile and say it rips off WoW too.
How about Vagrant Story?
The primary thing that bugs me is the black outline, very distracting imo. Would be cooler if some of that effect was drawn on the interior of the character, rather then just the silhouette and if the line thickness could be varied a little more.
(I miss Vagrant Story
you guys should have just 'Katamaried' it up.
All I did was a very light desaturate (maybe %10 or so) to the TF2 Shot. Of course it's not 1:1; but to say they're totally dissimilar is a little silly. I'm not saying they ripped off TF2, that'd be stupid, I'm just saying hey there are some artistic similarities.
I can easily take anything and draw an outline around it and make comparisons.
Altering an image to match invalidates the comparison.
because like the highlander I guess... in the end, there can be only one
yea, seriously. Thanks for all of the OVERWHELMINGLY POSITIVE responses, guys. I guess I shouldn't let the opinions of a few naysayers bother me, no matter how misguided or tactless they may be.
Am I being defensive? Damn right I am. I have invested a significant amount of time and effort into this game and am very proud what myself and my peers have done. I'm pretty sure most of you would feel the same way and understand exactly where I am coming from.
What's the point in just saying "I dont like it." and nothing more, that's rude. Feedback without reason is valueless. It IS the nice thing to do to say what makes me not like it, if I didn't care I wouldn't. How would I say what I said "better" ?
"I really dont like x y and z, but man I sure am glad you're trying and by the way did I mention rainbows?"
I'm not going after you or anything that you have specifically done with any of my comments towards the game, I'm just pointing out things I dont like, and why I dont like them. If you agree, great, if you dont, great. Tell me why you dont agree too, I love that. Life is meaningless without some good debate.
Oh, and now the name calling, is it? Yea, now I'm convinced that this is something personal with you for whatever reason. You're just pretty much a troll, period. Go ahead and continue to reply with your trolling, I'll just add you to my block sender's list so I will no longer need to hear your nonsense.
Well, first off, this wasn't posted in PnP, and no one really gives a shit about your completely tactless and non-constructive feedback. Secondly, even if you had some valid points, I am completely powerless to change it, even given your "invaluable" input.
Seriously, maybe we should hire you as our art director or something. You obviously are a credible source to be critiquing the artistic style of a game ... oh, and who the fuck are you and what have you done exactly, again?
You stay classy, Sandbag
A game could look like shit and have amazing game play, graphics aren't everything.
The thing that impressed me most is that the team had created this cool looking game with a more realistic style, then went back and completely overhauled to make it that much more unique (in my opinion anyways).
Shouldn't we be more worried about... THE SWINE FLU!?