Home General Discussion

What has impressed you about games and movies?

polycounter lvl 14
Offline / Send Message
mdeforge polycounter lvl 14
I was listening to a Games Industry Mentor podcast on Technical Design at work this week and it got me excited about doing something in UDK over the summer. One of my biggest take aways from the podcast, besides "build something," was to make something that would wow the employer and create excitement over how I achieved something.

This got me thinking... what has made my jaw drop in games and movies in the past? What has made me wonder how they did it or made my balls tingle because of how epic it was? I'm interested in hearing about what has knocked your socks off in either movies or games and why.

One of the first things I thought of was the Bioshock Infinite trailer. I've seen my fair share of flying cities but never before had I seen a hook rail system connecting different parts of it. When I saw that the main character jumped out onto the railing with nothing but sky underneath him I was thoroughly impressed and could feel a shot of adrenaline surge through me at the thought of falling. And then what does the character do? HE DOES A MID AIR JUMP TO THE NEXT RAILING. Ahhh! I was sold!

Portal... does this really even need an explanation? Fucking genius game. I hear the whole indie dev team got picked up, which I also hear is pretty rare. Valve really took the idea of thinking with portals to town. There is definitely a sense of technical achievement there, you know, behind all the rest of the awesomeness.

Mirrors Edge. Yes please!

Zelda games. Technical wise, there's not too much going on. The dungeons/temples are just a combination of torches that need lighting, switches that need to be pressed, etc. But the puzzles are engaging and at times, epic. I'll never forget the water temple or defeating majora. I guess on that note, the three day time system was pretty neat.

Some of the moments in COD:MW2 and BO where there are some special cinematic/game play elements. For instance, almost falling off the side of the mountain while ice climbing and your partner grabbing you. I guess this isn't much of a technical achievement compared to portals or parkour, but it's still a pretty big hook to who ever is playing it.

Honorable mention to the Half Life series.

In terms of movies, the technical achievement behind Avatar (love it or hate it) was incredible. The amount of detail was unreal and the flying scenes were epic.

Star wars. Enough said.

The third pirates movie (At Worlds End) where they are having a giant pirate ship fight in a huge ass maelstrom.

Neo dodging bullets in The Matrix. Bullet time in general.

Thoughts?

Replies

  • haiddasalami
    Offline / Send Message
    haiddasalami polycounter lvl 14
    Yup the maelstrom. Bad fucking ass, looked into how they did it to and was pretty simple (if you're into dynamics and all that stuff :P)
  • Skillmister
    Offline / Send Message
    Skillmister polycounter lvl 11
    Avatar was incredible for the amount of detail on show. Also my jaw was on the floor for alot of the 2nd transformers movie. The part where everything was joining together was just crazy
  • mdeforge
    Offline / Send Message
    mdeforge polycounter lvl 14
    Yup the maelstrom. Bad fucking ass, looked into how they did it to and was pretty simple (if you're into dynamics and all that stuff :P)

    I think I've seen that. Great stuff!
    Avatar was incredible for the amount of detail on show. Also my jaw was on the floor for alot of the 2nd transformers movie. The part where everything was joining together was just crazy

    Good one! Yeah, forgot about that huge thing. Watching them transform is cool in general, but watching them create one big thing was even greater! I still wonder how they did that... so crazy.
  • skylebones
    Offline / Send Message
    skylebones polycounter lvl 10
    For me it was the very first time I saw the Dinosaurs in Jurassic Park as a kid. That's the exact moment I knew I wanted to be a 3d artist.

    Something not visual, but story wise was playing Planescape: Torment. The depth of story in that game blew my mind. Super creative writing. I still hold that up as the best story in a game I've played to date.
  • danr
    Offline / Send Message
    danr interpolator
    30 minutes of a jovial drunken parlour game ending in a 10 second extreme bloodbath in Inglourious basterds

    thats how you do cinema
  • mdeforge
    Offline / Send Message
    mdeforge polycounter lvl 14
    That scene where the water starts vibrating in the car do to the foot steps of the T-Rex is definitely epic. Good one!

    I think Final Fantasy 8 was the first time I considered making video games. Before I played that game, I hadn't played any RPG and was blown away at how emotionally attached I got to the story and the characters.

    I just looked that Planescape game up. It looks good! I'll have to try and track it down somewhere.
  • glottis8
    Offline / Send Message
    glottis8 polycounter lvl 9
    I was just looking at the replay of ocarina of time, and i think there needs to be more recognition to what nintendo has done with innovation. I mean mario 3, to mario world to mario 64 all revolutionized the way we play and see video games. Companies still use some of the elements from those games. So that is an option. To see how to present and introduce elements.

    Final Fantasy cinematics where the reason i wanted to become a video game artist.

    [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GemT2kn1TC0[/ame]

    I know uncharted is talking about the use of 3d. Helping the player judge how far is a jump, in cover to be able to see around cover with the camera. To me that is pretty cool. But then.. you have the cinematic experience that Uncharted 2 had, and now 3 looks even more epic. All of the demo they showed in the boat was amazing. having the boat in real simulated water where you don't know whats gonna happen or how your characters are gonna move and play is just mind blowing. Looking at the boat tilt sideways and everything falls sides and you hit the water and see him come in through the cinematic camera was awesome.

    [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwywuVzrJTg[/ame]

    I was mermerized by the new Bioshock trailer! the colors and the presentation were amazing! I really never cared for the bioshock franchise, but they do know how to make an awesome trailer. I remember the trailer for the first one i always thought it was one of its kind. Never had i seen a first person view trailer that made me shiver of how well it was put together.

    [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lmw78t8NgIE[/ame]

    Metal Gear was always a big one for me. Having snake crawling through the tunnel at the last part, with all his suit exploding and tearing only to have the most epic final battle against revolver ocelot.

    [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfShYfB0640&playnext=1&list=PL4E321A6ACDF90B0C[/ame]

    God of war... so many epic moments. Just the 1st 20 mins of the 3rd one makes me have goosebumps.

    [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsbtgyRObXo[/ame]

    amm.. i could keep going :P
    hmmm...
  • mdeforge
    Offline / Send Message
    mdeforge polycounter lvl 14
    I wish I had a PS3 because Uncharted definitely looks like it would have made my list.

    I think creating a game with moments like these are great, but they mean nothing if there isn't a solid foundation to go off of. Not only that, but I believe a good designer will let the player experience instead of just showing the player all of these things. Imagine if you were shown how to use a portal gun instead of just using it, or if you simply stood near the railings in Bioshock Infinity and it did all the fun stuff for you.

    When Master Chief set the alien up the bomb (Zero Wing reference) in the "Return to Sender" part of Halo 2, I couldn't help but smirk.

    Aeriths death in FF7 and the ballroom dance scene, space scene and the Garden vs. Galbadia scene in FF8 were pretty big moments as well. But those are more story oriented.
  • mdeforge
    Offline / Send Message
    mdeforge polycounter lvl 14
    Completely agree on Naruto. I don't think a lot of people give it the chance it deserves. My kid brother, a jock for gods sake, made fun of it for the longest time. Now he can't stop watching it... Shippuden is amazing.

    LOTR: YES! So many epic moments!

    WAT. Project Offset is really dead? Man... I remember watching their vids in awe. That one where the sky changes and the winds pick up is really good. I wonder how they did that?
  • Calabi
    Offline / Send Message
    Calabi polycounter lvl 12
    Akira, the whole thing was epic, like nothing I'd ever seen before. It was all drawn by hand and yet looks so real.
  • Skillmister
    Offline / Send Message
    Skillmister polycounter lvl 11
    Oh yeah LoTR, love those films so much. I could sit down and watch all 3 in a row no problem, with all 3 PoTC after :D Might have to do that...
  • haiddasalami
    Offline / Send Message
    haiddasalami polycounter lvl 14
    Stradigos wrote: »
    Completely agree on Naruto. I don't think a lot of people give it the chance it deserves. My kid brother, a jock for gods sake, made fun of it for the longest time. Now he can't stop watching it... Shippuden is amazing.

    although I dont watch any anime, the effects in the latest naruto games (think it was on ps3) look downright impressive.
  • Peris
    Offline / Send Message
    Peris polycounter lvl 17
    god of war 2. Blows my mind still what they pulled off on a ps2, and all at 60 fps
  • Mir
    Offline / Send Message
    Mir polycounter lvl 6
    Half-Life. It sparked my interest in games.

    Bioshock gave me chills when i played it the first time and the second time i played it i knew i wanted to make game environments for a living.

    5 Centimeters Per second (Movie) : I love the artstyle in this movie.

    The elder Scrolls Oblivion: The feel of freedom and awesomeness in this game mindblew me at that time and also awesome mod community.
  • Mezz
    Offline / Send Message
    Mezz polycounter lvl 8
    Final Fantasy 6 changed my life so that games would always be more than games to me.

    When Final Fantasy hit the PS1, I was starting to think more and more about art in games. By FFX on PS2, I KNEW I wanted nothing more than to be able to design, create, move, SOMETHING to beautiful characters in video games.


    As for movies, many amazing Disney and Pixar films always have and always will inspire me.

    Also, Moulin Rouge--Turth, Beauty, Freedom, and above all else, Love
  • Pangahas
    Offline / Send Message
    Pangahas polycounter lvl 10
    Shadow of the colossus- fighting each one of those massive things are just epic..climbing one of them to find the weak spot pretty much sold it for me, the interactivity of that experience was one of a kind.Arguably one of if not the best PS2 game.

    oldies but goodies(family comp days)-contra(up2,down2 you know the drill :D),megaman(acquiring the boss' ability once defeated got me into it)I remember coming up with my own "(insert word)man" bosses.

    PC- Bioshock(would you kindly),Counterstrike/Halflife(got me into modding, made my first ever map using worldcraft then),Oblivion Elder scrolls-spent hours and hours playing this one, no turning off of PC for days.PORTAL!!!-the game mechanics,the story, the cake, the ending song,easily one of the greatest game ever made.

    Starwars- 2 words> classic, epic
    Matrix and LOTR trilogy
    Tron and Bladerunner
    Pixar and Disney films as well.special mention UP
    Spirited away
  • Av7xrocker97
    Watching the Pixar short film collection got me into 3d, and although avatar was all super hyped up on it's graphical achievement, I still thought that district 9's cg was better. I actually thought it was a better movie altogether :)
  • cochtl
    Offline / Send Message
    cochtl polycounter lvl 18
    What impressed me about games.......The fact that despite the hours, bad management, ridiculous contracts and publisher agreements, people still want to work in games development.

    LoL, seriously though, I've been impressed with naughty dog and sony santa monica; the GoW and Uncharted franchises are only getting better in visuals. I love the approach valve is taking with handling the digital games distribution and various business models, that sort of experimentation is pretty exciting to see coming from a company that is not a publisher. And tech wise, i am loving what udk and cryengine can do with DX 11. There's so much cool stuff that can be done nowadays with MANY different mediums that it's incredible.

    The era of the super franchise is upon us, but to beat dead horse, soo much cool stuff is coming along to test and try on different platforms... it so awesome, and impressive!
  • Andreas
    Offline / Send Message
    Andreas polycounter lvl 11
    [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIAHHGnpQ3c[/ame]

    When the two ships dropped off the side of the cruiser, pretty sure I suffered a brain-bleed from the awesome. Pity the rest of the film was cack.
  • Andreas
    Offline / Send Message
    Andreas polycounter lvl 11
    Nah its not weird, Serenity is sexalicious :D
  • TrevorJ
    Offline / Send Message
    TrevorJ polycounter lvl 14
    im sure im wayyy late on seeing this video, i really don't follow Assassins creed, but i found it awesome.

    [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqAli2r-5BU&feature=related[/ame]
  • pior
    Offline / Send Message
    pior grand marshal polycounter
    Andreas, really ? I thought that space scene was a complete mess!
  • BadgerBaiter
    Andreas wrote: »
    Nah its not weird, Serenity is sexalicious :D

    Love Serenity :D

    Just bought Firefly on bluray too.

    I love The Thing and Alien, I still watch them far too much.

    Was not hugely impressed by Avatar really... I hate 3d films, I think they are a complete pile of rubbish, story line was laughable... I liked the big bomber thing and the APU type things, but really... meh.
    Vegetation was nice though :)
  • Joshua Stubbles
    Offline / Send Message
    Joshua Stubbles polycounter lvl 19
    When I was a kid, Mortal Kombat wowed me with it's amazing digitized actors and gruesome fatalities. It really cemented my dream of creating games.

    Out of This World had the most amazing animation I'd seen in a game at that point. It made the entire experience more involved and real.

    Both Magic Carpet and Warhawk on the PS1 had a crazy feeling of freedom to me back then. Fly where you want, do what you want. It was an open experience like I never had before.

    Prior to Final Fantasy VII I had not been a fan of RPG games. This game was downright breathtaking in terms of scale, story, gameplay and music. It's the only game I've ever played to invoke real emotion. When Aeris died, I cried. Piano melodies stir up a lot of emotion for me and the slow notes they played during that sequence just got the better of me.

    Prince of Persia: Sands of Time blew me away with the epic scale of it's intro, insanely fluid animations and locomotion/combat. The music created for this game really set the tone for what was a truly amazing experience.

    This list can go on forever, so I'll just stop there, heh. There are way too many games that had amazing experiences for me.

    As for movies, it's usually a combination of a few things. Visual+audio queues often have a big impact on me, such as the "Recognizer" sequence in Tron Legacy, where the camera pans across the grid to take Sam to the armory. The deep electric tone of the music, the crackling sound of the Recognizers coming from the rear speakers moving forward and the amazingly contrasty visuals just struck a cord of awesome in me. Gave me goosebumps.

    The Matrix opened my eyes to a lot of things and gave me a big pool of inspiration to draw from back in the day. It was like no film before it and was the only movie I've ever seen where I was so spellbound that once I stepped out of the theater I walked right back in and bought another ticket.
  • dfacto
    Offline / Send Message
    dfacto polycounter lvl 18
    Wow moments in gaming:

    -First time entering the Diablo dungeon, with the great theme and with my warrior standing all badass in anticipation. (Wow because it was the first real game I played)

    -Mountain falling apart in the background in Crysis as you engange in a tank battle[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdDLlfeKSoE"][/ame] (wow because it was the first time seeing something so large and atmospheric incorporated into a game)

    -First time seeing critical hits in Fallout. Whaaaat!? Hell yes![ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMLbEAxjzj8"][/ame] (Brilliantly gorey)

    -Dam collapse in Split/Second vaulting me from last to first place the first time I hit it.[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1NvA7fFJOY"][/ame] (When this happened mid game while I was completely concentrated, it blew me away)

    -Anders blows up the Chantry. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXUOmvCS4_s"][/ame](Holy crap! This almost made up for him being a big whiny vagina the whole game. Almost)

    -The entire last half of ME2, minus that termi-reaper bullshit.[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_XTMzcLWt8"][/ame] (I finally felt I got the cinematic gaming experience I'd been waiting for.)

    EDIT: Wow, weird stuff happens with the youtube video function
  • R3D
    Offline / Send Message
    R3D interpolator
    The first time I played half life 2. Right after i defeated the Helicopter boss with the airboat, i got off on one of the sand bars and was looking around for where I can continue on my adventure. I then though I saw an NPC so I used the Suit Zoom to see what he was doing. It was the G-Man, he looked at me then walked around the corner.

    Insta-goosebumbs, and needless to say, that was the direction I needed to head in next. It was the first time a game made me feel part of a bigger picture, that all the decisions I was making were perhaps in a way, meant to happen.

    EPISODE 2 SPOILER WARNING

    Also in Episode 2 with the first encounter with the Hunter. As you approach the hill you startle some crows and if you follow them with the camera you can see the hunter look at you and then jump away.
    [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT-tV7zOEPU[/ame]


    The opening to portal 2 with the room being destroyed.

    As far as movies go,
    The Matrix with it's bullet time and philosophy
    Gladiator with dat ending
    Jet Li's Fearless with dat ending
    The flying scene in How to Train your Dragon
  • EMC3D
    Offline / Send Message
    EMC3D polycounter lvl 14
    Scale and Story.

    Crysis 2, Bad Company 2 .... Dragon age, mixture of scale in games where you can look up at stuff and be like whoa and then the bioware type story telling games where you has choices.
  • pior
    Offline / Send Message
    pior grand marshal polycounter
    Wooo Ryswick it was a complete spoiler BUT now I really want to play episode2 hehe! Thanks for the link :)
  • R3D
    Offline / Send Message
    R3D interpolator
    pior wrote: »
    Wooo Ryswick it was a complete spoiler BUT now I really want to play episode2 hehe! Thanks for the link :)
    My bad xD

    Also you can't call foul, the game has been out for 4 years already. Added in a spoiler warning anyways :P

    spoiler_alert.png
Sign In or Register to comment.