Ok, obviously I'm very late to this, but...just my two cents, having been a Telltale fan since Bone:
It's not that Telltale fans have a "preference for cartoony graphics". It just so happens that the vast majority of games Telltale worked with starting up and at the peak of its popularity were derived from comics/cartoons/animation.
They're very capable of doing more "realistic" graphics as they've shown with Jurassic Park and the CSI series they used to do.
That being said, people have to understand that Telltale's obviously designed L&O Legacies first and foremost as a casual/IOS style project with a lower budget than other projects.
In fact, the art style kinda reminds me of the last L&O game(s) that were released on BigfishGames (they're absolutely awful hidden object-style games focused around the Criminal Intent spinoff).
So...Not only is the art style partly a stylistic/monetary choice, but a case of necessity as well. After all, it's been clearly marketed as an IOS game, which means the capability of the various devices had to be kept in mind unless they wanted to limit their market only to A5 devices (iPhone 4S, iPad 2) which would be ill-advised and even then you wouldn't get Crysis 2 or L.A. Noire.
Having played through the fourth case, the graphics really don't bother me. In fact, they're kind of fitting after you get used to them.
The voice actors on the other hand....don't get me started.
Ok, obviously I'm very late to this, but...just my two cents, having been a Telltale fan since Bone:
It's not that Telltale fans have a "preference for cartoony graphics". It just so happens that the vast majority of games Telltale worked with starting up and at the peak of its popularity were derived from comics/cartoons/animation.
They're very capable of doing more "realistic" graphics as they've shown with Jurassic Park and the CSI series they used to do.
That being said, people have to understand that Telltale's obviously designed L&O Legacies first and foremost as a casual/IOS style project with a lower budget than other projects.
In fact, the art style kinda reminds me of the last L&O game(s) that were released on BigfishGames (they're absolutely awful hidden object-style games focused around the Criminal Intent spinoff).
So...Not only is the art style partly a stylistic/monetary choice, but a case of necessity as well. After all, it's been clearly marketed as an IOS game, which means the capability of the various devices had to be kept in mind unless they wanted to limit their market only to A5 devices (iPhone 4S, iPad 2) which would be ill-advised and even then you wouldn't get Crysis 2 or L.A. Noire.
Having played through the fourth case, the graphics really don't bother me. In fact, they're kind of fitting after you get used to them.
The voice actors on the other hand....don't get me started.
Yes in Law & Orders case I cant really speak because Im only a small fan and I think the art style is ok, but in bttf it is ment to be treated as part 4 and to be blunt the art style just does not look right, I dont care about graphics usually but being a huge bttf fan I just cant think of it as a part 4 because it does not look like one, Enviorment and cars etc are perfect but characters look like dumb actors who dont know how to act.
I just hope now that some of telltale's games are getting better art styles telltale will upgrade bttf to the jurassic park art style, if they do I will rest my case and promise I will not argue about there art styles anymore.
Like you said and I agree most game they use to make are based on comics and cartoons so thats fine but bttf is not so it should look right.
As an oldschool gamer, I don't give a damn about aesthetics, but the character designs do have some serious rotoscoped-looking Uncanny Valley issues, which as a big fan of L&O I'm willing to suppress the gibblies over. I've had issues with rotoscoping ever since I saw Ralph Bakshi's Lord of the Rings as a kid.
Been under a rock and didn't know about this game till the email today. From looking at the trailer the art style looks fine. Not sure if I'll get the game as I was never really into L&O (CSI or any other law drama like that)
I think the graphics look fine, now that I got the game, but as good as they are, they don't seem to "fit" L and O. It's water and oil - you need both, but mixing together is just odd.
What we need is more like salt and vinegar. Works well next to each other.
Ironically, if they went this route with BTTF, it would have totally worked.
I think the graphics look fine, now that I got the game, but as good as they are, they don't seem to "fit" L and O. It's water and oil - you need both, but mixing together is just odd.
What we need is more like salt and vinegar. Works well next to each other.
Ironically, if they went this route with BTTF, it would have totally worked.
No way it works ok for Law & Order but for bttf I strongly disagree!!
It's probably right for the price tag and the smaller screens it is meant for. The only way to have it better around the same price is probably using traditional 2D, but that may turn out to be more costly.
Because this is absolutely ridicilous.
When is TTG going to learn and actually implement some proper graphics and animations into their games?...
:
:
... The graphics aspect is so important in a computer game that in many cases, it determines whether it becomes a success
or failure. And it is one of the most contributing factors to replay value and how drawn you as a player get into the game.
:rolleyes: BACK TO THE ORIGINAL POST
Hey caeska, as a fellow-fan that values stellar artwork and graphics in my media entertainment I feel your pain. But I've come to the conclusion that story based-games do not warrant them. Sure it would be nice if I was watching a television program, but I am playing a game.
What is important when playing a story-based game? 1) Story is important; I want to be immersed in the story. I want to be able to follow the plot and make informed decisions. 2) Interface is critical; It should be consistent in operation. I don't want to have to guess how to do something. The interface should not be a guessing game. And 3) the Graphics just need to not get in the way of these two items. Unfortunately, it sounds like the Law & Order graphics do this for you. I respect that.
As a former developer and artist of software-based titles, I can tell you tremendous compromises are made in Research & Development, especially when developing large scale titles such as this. And for the purposes of this discussion, let's just say large scale is defined as any app greater than 20 MB in size. (Downloads greater than 20 MB require WiFi to directly download to your iDevice from iTunes.)
The Pilot Episode of Law & Order: Legacies chimes in at 160 MB. That's eight times (8x!) the size of the defined large-scale 20 MB limit. Just off the top of your head, what percentage of that 160 MB do you think is dedicated to the rich media graphics & audio? I don't work for Telltale, but an educated guess is 90% of the title is rich media.
When rich media is encoded for publication and game play, it goes through compression algorithms to save space. The art style use of rotoscoped pastel-shaded animations lends itself quite nicely to tight compression which actually allows for EVEN MORE animation. If a detailed (denser) graphic/animation style was used, the final compressed data would not be nearly as tight, and it would force the developers to make another compromise to include a smaller subset of animations in the episode, or increase the final app size exponentially.
Now this is not to say that Telltale should not be working on developing or licensing better compression algorithms or that they should stop improving their graphics, that's what Research & Development departments & Design Teams are for, but I have to think that Telltale made the right compromises in striking a balance between rich media and story-telling when making this title. After all Telltale has been doing this for how long?
From what I have seen, TellTale was going for a comic book style look to the game. I have a friend who is a HUGE fan of the shows (mostly SVU) and she LOVES the art style used in the game.
Super awesometasic graphics do NOT always equal a great game. For example, people say Final Fantasy VII is the best game in the series (my personal favorite was FFVI), but the graphics look terrible in comparison to Final Fantasy XIII, yet people still love VII. Why? It isn't because of the fanboys, rabid though they may be, it is because it was an awesome overall experience that still stands up today. Same goes for my personal favorite. The graphics are only a small part of the experience and should only factor into a review or opinion of a game for about 10-15% of the factoring about how "good" a game is. Taking that into account, these games are great because they are alot of fun and engaging to play and will likely be a future classic to come.
Super awesometasic graphics do NOT always equal a great game. For example, people say Final Fantasy VII is the best game in the series (my personal favorite was FFVI), but the graphics look terrible in comparison to Final Fantasy XIII, yet people still love VII. Why? It isn't because of the fanboys, rabid though they may be, it is because it was an awesome overall experience that still stands up today. Same goes for my personal favorite. The graphics are only a small part of the experience and should only factor into a review or opinion of a game for about 10-15% of the factoring about how "good" a game is. Taking that into account, these games are great because they are alot of fun and engaging to play and will likely be a future classic to come.
Well we never said we wanted next-gen close to real life graphics, just something which does not look cheap anyway telltale are perfectly capable of using good graphics, now in Law & Orders case im not going to comment but if anyone says the bttf art style was perfect I will strongly disagree.
Also I will repeat I dont have some sort of illness which makes me really hate cartoon graphics like everyone is trying to imply in fact my favourite games have either cartoony or bad graphics, it is just a fact they are not movie based games so they dont need to look right in a certain sense.
I find the character designs very unsettling. The same Uncanny Valley feel I get with LA Noir, Mass Effect 3, Japanese robots, Ralph Bakshi's Lord of the Rings, & that Felix the Cat movie. Motion capture & rotoscoping give me the proverbial jibblies for no reason at all.
Comments
It's not that Telltale fans have a "preference for cartoony graphics". It just so happens that the vast majority of games Telltale worked with starting up and at the peak of its popularity were derived from comics/cartoons/animation.
They're very capable of doing more "realistic" graphics as they've shown with Jurassic Park and the CSI series they used to do.
That being said, people have to understand that Telltale's obviously designed L&O Legacies first and foremost as a casual/IOS style project with a lower budget than other projects.
In fact, the art style kinda reminds me of the last L&O game(s) that were released on BigfishGames (they're absolutely awful hidden object-style games focused around the Criminal Intent spinoff).
So...Not only is the art style partly a stylistic/monetary choice, but a case of necessity as well. After all, it's been clearly marketed as an IOS game, which means the capability of the various devices had to be kept in mind unless they wanted to limit their market only to A5 devices (iPhone 4S, iPad 2) which would be ill-advised and even then you wouldn't get Crysis 2 or L.A. Noire.
Having played through the fourth case, the graphics really don't bother me. In fact, they're kind of fitting after you get used to them.
The voice actors on the other hand....don't get me started.
No, it's not called logic. It's called 'Pataphysics. Look it up. It's right up your alley.
Yes in Law & Orders case I cant really speak because Im only a small fan and I think the art style is ok, but in bttf it is ment to be treated as part 4 and to be blunt the art style just does not look right, I dont care about graphics usually but being a huge bttf fan I just cant think of it as a part 4 because it does not look like one, Enviorment and cars etc are perfect but characters look like dumb actors who dont know how to act.
I just hope now that some of telltale's games are getting better art styles telltale will upgrade bttf to the jurassic park art style, if they do I will rest my case and promise I will not argue about there art styles anymore.
Like you said and I agree most game they use to make are based on comics and cartoons so thats fine but bttf is not so it should look right.
so your saying I cant be right because you dont agree with what im saying...
Biased much?
Case in point: I haven't said that, but you've just proven what I said.
Anyway, the truth of the matter is: I don't remember being this cross-eyed when I was 14, but there you have it.
So we're DONE HERE.
What we need is more like salt and vinegar. Works well next to each other.
Ironically, if they went this route with BTTF, it would have totally worked.
No way it works ok for Law & Order but for bttf I strongly disagree!!
:rolleyes: BACK TO THE ORIGINAL POST
Hey caeska, as a fellow-fan that values stellar artwork and graphics in my media entertainment I feel your pain. But I've come to the conclusion that story based-games do not warrant them. Sure it would be nice if I was watching a television program, but I am playing a game.
What is important when playing a story-based game? 1) Story is important; I want to be immersed in the story. I want to be able to follow the plot and make informed decisions. 2) Interface is critical; It should be consistent in operation. I don't want to have to guess how to do something. The interface should not be a guessing game. And 3) the Graphics just need to not get in the way of these two items. Unfortunately, it sounds like the Law & Order graphics do this for you. I respect that.
As a former developer and artist of software-based titles, I can tell you tremendous compromises are made in Research & Development, especially when developing large scale titles such as this. And for the purposes of this discussion, let's just say large scale is defined as any app greater than 20 MB in size. (Downloads greater than 20 MB require WiFi to directly download to your iDevice from iTunes.)
The Pilot Episode of Law & Order: Legacies chimes in at 160 MB. That's eight times (8x!) the size of the defined large-scale 20 MB limit. Just off the top of your head, what percentage of that 160 MB do you think is dedicated to the rich media graphics & audio? I don't work for Telltale, but an educated guess is 90% of the title is rich media.
When rich media is encoded for publication and game play, it goes through compression algorithms to save space. The art style use of rotoscoped pastel-shaded animations lends itself quite nicely to tight compression which actually allows for EVEN MORE animation. If a detailed (denser) graphic/animation style was used, the final compressed data would not be nearly as tight, and it would force the developers to make another compromise to include a smaller subset of animations in the episode, or increase the final app size exponentially.
Now this is not to say that Telltale should not be working on developing or licensing better compression algorithms or that they should stop improving their graphics, that's what Research & Development departments & Design Teams are for, but I have to think that Telltale made the right compromises in striking a balance between rich media and story-telling when making this title. After all Telltale has been doing this for how long?
Peace,
-TJ
Super awesometasic graphics do NOT always equal a great game. For example, people say Final Fantasy VII is the best game in the series (my personal favorite was FFVI), but the graphics look terrible in comparison to Final Fantasy XIII, yet people still love VII. Why? It isn't because of the fanboys, rabid though they may be, it is because it was an awesome overall experience that still stands up today. Same goes for my personal favorite. The graphics are only a small part of the experience and should only factor into a review or opinion of a game for about 10-15% of the factoring about how "good" a game is. Taking that into account, these games are great because they are alot of fun and engaging to play and will likely be a future classic to come.
Well we never said we wanted next-gen close to real life graphics, just something which does not look cheap anyway telltale are perfectly capable of using good graphics, now in Law & Orders case im not going to comment but if anyone says the bttf art style was perfect I will strongly disagree.
Also I will repeat I dont have some sort of illness which makes me really hate cartoon graphics like everyone is trying to imply in fact my favourite games have either cartoony or bad graphics, it is just a fact they are not movie based games so they dont need to look right in a certain sense.