Sure, you have people who only look at graphics to determine if they will play a game or not. And yes, those people are idiots. But believe it or not, graphics really DO matter in video games. Here's why.

1. Growth. The better graphics get, the more serious people will take them, and also the more attention it will draw from people who normally do not play games, from creative entities who normally would not have thought about games and from companies who would not normally put money in games. Better graphics will make more people notice the industry and take games more seriously, and then they can find out how fun they really are.

2. Art. The more technology advances, the better the graphics get, and that means the more that can be put into a game to better express the vision that the game's creator(s) had in mind. Zombies just used to be brownish-green and slow-moving. Almost comedic. Now they are decaying, fowl-looking wretches with empty stares and visages bent and twisted from death and reanimation.

3. Fun. With the technology that goes into today's machines, shoddy graphics are just unexcuseable. What is the use of making big expansive levels if you can't make a game gorgeous enough to compliment a so-called masterpiece?

4. Evolution. "Tennis for Two" was introduced in 1958 so people touring the Brookhaven National Laboratory in Long Island wouldn't be bored to tears. In 1972, that game was released as Pong. That was 36 years ago. As an industry, you can't sit around and assume what worked last time will work this time. Even the uber-sequels change from game-to-game. Well, most of them anyway.

5. The Experience. Part of what makes any part of art fun, whether it be games, tv, paintings, music or movies is immersion. To be drawn into the work, taken from reality if for only a little while and being shown something beyond our own limited comprehension. While yes, the essential question "is the game fun?" will always be the most important one, but when an engulfing storyline and eye-popping visuals are thrown into the mix, then you have a true masterpiece.

I loved LoZ: Wind Waker and Viewtiful Joe. Sly Cooper was also a great game. But as far as realism goes, its like a wise man (or at least a wiseguy) named Dan once said; "How 'real'istic can you make an alien spaceship?"

Akontheorc wrote:Good graphics are great yet I still haven't seen a game that surpasses Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time in terms of overall greatness. Or Pac-Man...

Or Tetris. Actually, the console port Tetris Worlds actually looked pretty awesome. lol

if graphics really mattered that much, then why some gamers still play old games? they game could have the sh*ttiest graphics in the world now, but yet people still play it.

Train_of_Thought wrote:if graphics really mattered that much, then why some gamers still play old games? they game could have the sh*ttiest graphics in the world now, but yet people still play it.

I still play RE2, I still play Namco Museum (Galaga, Pacman...). Like I said in the top of the thread, gameplay will always be THE most important part. to play a game solely on graphics is ludicrous. For a while, the game that had my attention the most was a baseball game on Addictinggames.com.