Which has better graphics?

tpicarella · July 2005

Now before people go off on the differnce of the looks between EQ2 and WOW, just answer what you feel is a better look. I am just curious of what people are after as far as a cartoon look or realism. If it was up to me I am not sure what I would like.

Nihilanth · July 2005

In all honesty, my favorite graphically is EQ2. Although I do like WoW's almost cartoonish look (its unique and its got a lot of style), I've always prefered a more realistic look to games. Another thing I like about EQ2 graphics is the spell effects, they kick some royal ass.

Vald · July 2005

In short EQ2.

shae · July 2005

While I certainly like the looks of all the games you listed, I think it basically boils down to personal taste. I really like the arcade'ish look of WoW but at the same the sort of "false realism" of EQ2 but in the end I think WoW wins it overall for me.

With a really imaginative look, a great diversity for textures, wonderfuly bright colors, lots of different creatures and bad guys (and good guys ), I just really love the look and feel of WoW that come s along with all the aspects when you bring up graphics as a topic. So my vote goes to WoW but with EQ2 a close 2nd.

Scaris · July 2005

Originally posted by shae
While I certainly like the looks of all the games you listed, I think it basically boils down to personal taste. I really like the arcade'ish look of WoW but at the same the sort of "false realism" of EQ2 but in the end I think WoW wins it overall for me.
With a really imaginative look, a great diversity for textures, wonderfuly bright colors, lots of different creatures and bad guys (and good guys ), I just really love the look and feel of WoW that come s along with all the aspects when you bring up graphics as a topic. So my vote goes to WoW but with EQ2 a close 2nd.

The character textures are abit lacking in WoW though. I love the style of the terrain and landscape, some of it is just awesome. But if you aren't look at the toons from afar the overall quality of the graphics goes really down hill to me with WoW.

shae · July 2005

Originally posted by Fadeus

The character textures are abit lacking in WoW though. I love the style of the terrain and landscape, some of it is just awesome. But if you aren't look at the toons from afar the overall quality of the graphics goes really down hill to me with WoW.

Yup, very true. I really wish WoW would have gone all out with the character textures, much the same way they did with some of the bigger city's. The atmosphere, I feel at least, in some of the city's are just amazing and the graphics really do the engine justice.

It would have been nice to see them mix it up the characters too, I mean other then small facial differences and hair color, can you really tell the difference between one night elf to the next. Shame really because they obviously have some extremely talented artists in their shops.

battleaxe22 · July 2005

Both are awesome.. But i would prefer wow since it runs way better then eq2 ::::28:: .....btw my system doesn't suck ::::07::

Wickes · July 2005

Kind of a tough comparison really, since "better" is in the eye of the beholder.

Personally, I cant stand saturated color cartoonishness so WOW is out for me. For stark realism and overall graphic quality, EQ2 wins hands down. But I do think EQ2 could have incorporated a bit more flair and artistry, and, maybe, just a bit more "fun" into its graphics. Thats where GW comes in. GW took a realistic approach and added a lot of flair and artistry. Sure, the overall graphic quality cant match EQ2 - it doesnt have the number of polygons or whatever and that detracts in extreme closeups - but overall its just great to look at. There are many times in EQ2 that I stop to look a a view and just say "wow", but there are about three times as many such times for me in GW. GW often looks simply astonishing - Id give their artists the clear nod.

I also downgrade EQ2 a bit for the "fireworks". When grouping half the time I have to scroll out to 3^rd person view just so I can see whats going on due to all the spell fireworks and such. Thats fine outdoors but gets to be a pain in the butt in close quarters. IMO they went overboard on that. It all looks great when youre soloing or duoing but once you get a number of people in a small area its just way too much.

Im also going to give GW points for looking great and running smooth as silk on practically any computer you can find.

But then EQ2 gets points for having just about the most incredible looking armor I could ever imagine. Some of the stuff looks simply ungodly. You feel like you could just reach out and touch it. Real metal doesnt look as metallic as some in EQ2. And some of the textures are astonishing. (and I do not have a high end card)

But I ramble ..........

GW gets the slim edge from me.

Ceticarr · July 2005

Originally posted by battleaxe22
Both are awesome.. But i would prefer wow since it runs way better then eq2 .....btw my system doesn't suck

Have to agree with this one, both are awesome, they're just totally different.
I'd personally vote for EQ2 cause I just love the high details of characters which are really lacking in WoW.

Can't really comment GW cause I haven't played it yet and saw its graphic just on screenshots. ::::16::

Saigonshakes · July 2005

I love WoW's style. Some of the cities are just a blast to run around in and see the sights. I would have to give the edge to Eq2 though because it seems more immersive to me. I think it's easier to get into a game that has more realistic graphics. I've played GW for a bit and that is certainly no sluch eithier. All in all though my choice would have to be Eq2.

Anofalye · July 2005

Graphicwise, WoW is a little like if you compare Civilisations games with others games...it was done with love and very nicely, but it is not even on the same scale.

I dunno for GW, didnt even try it.

EQ2 graphics are very nice, I have to see a MMORPG that is as nice...of course I am biaised toward CoH for many reasons, but I will admit that EQ2 are as good as graphics could be for a MMORPG.

Blayze3404 · July 2005

Originally posted by Wickes

"...But then EQ2 gets points for having just about the most incredible looking armor I could ever imagine. Some of the stuff looks simply ungodly. You feel like you could just reach out and touch it. Real metal doesnt look as metallic as some in EQ2. And some of the textures are astonishing. (and I do not have a high end card)..."
But I ramble ..........
GW gets the slim edge from me.

Couldn't agree more with you Wickes. I have played all three and frankly EQ2 does have some incredible textures. I mean if you set the graphics to maximum the game itself warns that those settings won't even work on most high-end PCs...Heh i play with a mixture of Max and high settings, and aside from the occasional 2 second or so FPS loss when i turn the camera view quickly, i don't suffer from the memory hog EQ2. The armor in EQ2 does look incredibly real...chain armor looks cool even if it's just chain...and heck even a fully plated out dwarf looks menacing, with extremely detailed designs on the armor and whatnot. The only thing that irks me a little bit about EQ2 is the way most of the toons look like D&D barbie dolls, sort of plasticy (if that's a word lol).

WoW's graphics to me, fit right in with the Warcraft universe. I think they may have wanted a living Warcraft 3 feel, and i think the graphics engine does good on that aspect. Trees and such don't move however if you're a stickler for environmental effects. I think the bright, colorful (fabric softener commercial-esque) graphics fit in well with the Warcraft scene. Although a lot of people complain that those graphics tend to attract kiddies...(but then again every game has it's "kiddies", Guildwars being the worst, sometimes you feel like you should just Roleplay in an AOL chatroom Rhy'Din style, seens how you'll find ingenious names like YouMyMama420 rummaging about in both.)

Guildwars, has some breathtaking scenes itself, with light blooms and nicely modeled characters and such. But you will find people who look just like yourself...maybe it's a pre-searing thing, but i personally saw someone who chose the exact model settings i did....a.k.a a blonde haired, tom cruise in Legend, looking fellow.

Overall, i think all 3 games have graphics that suit their lore, setting, etc etc. It's a crazy thought, 20+ years ago we we're gawking over Nintendo and Sega, and pounding away at the one button Atari controller and now we're seeing reflections of yourself in people's armor, heat that actually shimmers, pixel shading etc.....imagine the game's in a year or 2, we're in for some oo's and ah's.

spydermr2 · July 2005

Short answer: EQ2.

Long answer: I kind of liked WoW's glazed-cartoon look, but after a while it starts getting... flat. EQ2's obviously pushed hard on the realistic-looking graphics side of things (assuming you've the graphics horsepower to turn up the settings).

GW. Again, I've heard some people go into shock at how "great" it looks. To me, it looks good but nothing extraordinary. And not particularly detailed up-close.

Absolutely certain that this thread will get tons of replies, since "look" is entirely a subjective experience.

burrek · July 2005

From an artistic standpoint I must say that Guild Wars has the best graphics. The landscape is astonishing and often seems like looking at a painting from the XVIIIth century. The composition, color value, light manipulation, and contrast are really great giving it a very artful look. Added to that it runs on just about any machine just like WoW. The downside is that most of the time you spend zoomed out and the game would actually work better with an isometric view. The character customization is limited and what they have looks like EQ1. The armor design is great... but there is only 4 armor meshes for each profession.

WoW has, just like GW, a very stylized and vibrant look. It has some great environment thanks to the vivid colors. What wow lacks, just like GW, is detail and character diversity.

EQ2 on the other hand has the opposite approach. Although it does try to create some interesting light effects that you can sometimes see in forests and interiors, it is nowhere close to the artistry of GW. Same goes for landscapes, although I do admit that if they had added more bloom to the sky and give the sun a stronger glare things would look a lot better than GW. Where EQ2 shines is the character detail. Although some of the textures do lack in terms of design, the pixel shaders and various maps applied to EQ2 textures, as well as the realistic, volumetric shadows make it a winner.

(I must agree that the amount of sparks and spells that start flying in group combat is annoying because it does force players to go into 3rd person)

To summarize: EQ2-best graphics technology, GW best artists, WoW... ummm... looks like a nickelodeon(is that the name?) cartoon.

Vardenfell · July 2005

I would say EQ2 if you have a good pc. It looks real. But the pc requirments are so damn high to enjoy fully. Then if i look to guild wars, i'm stunned. That game gives so good graphics and that even on "slow" pc's. Incredible how they managed to do that.
Wow is more a cartoon style, but it still looks cool. I like the graphics of all these games. But EQ2 is just the best looking game imo.

hercules · July 2005

EQ2 hands down if you got a powerful system with say a X850xt or the new 7800 card.

Looks amazing then.

Ravenmgs · July 2005

Graphics wise, EQ2 wins hands down. Art wise, Guild Wars hands down. WOW seems like they just tried to cut cornors in all deparments.

Ambrial · July 2005

I felt like I was playing a cartoon game with WoW! hehe

Jodokai · July 2005

I've never played GW, but the armor in EQ2 is incredible. When I made my Iksar Shadow Knight and he got his Crusader Armor, I was amazed at the amount of detail. I have a pretty high end system (used to have until I fried my Mobo...Soon it will be higher end )but I normally kept the settings pretty low (I prefer performance to pretty pictures when playing). When I got the armor and turned everything to max, I was blow away.

I will say that I'm disappointed with the human type skins (Elves, Humans, Barbarians, Dwarves) as it does look just like plastic.

Ryker · July 2005

I think EQ2 has the best graphics with Lineage2 in second and WOW in third.

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