Personaly, I really enjoy the art direction... I mean, I see how many people are moaning how it isnt like D2...well know what? You can still go play D2 and shut the f**k up...
That Guild Wars 2 login screen knocked up my wife. Must be the second coming!
whoever claims diablo 3 does not look dark enough should lower his alpha setting ^^
you clearly didnt read the post or you will know we are not talking about dark or bright colors....
TBH its so hard to keep track of this whole its not dark enough arguement. Take 10 different haters and you'll most likely get 10 different versions of not dark enough. Though i feel a select few are justified in their reasons why diablo isn't 'dark' enough.
Indeed. I've seen so many reasonings behind how D3 isn't dark or gritty enough, that I get confused at times. What I'd like some of these people to do is detail what they're looking for exactly when it comes to their definition of "dark and/or gritty". Perhaps then I can see it from their perspective instead of scratching my head, and wondering what the hell they're talking about.
Kyleran: "Now there's the real trick, learning to accept and enjoy a game for what
it offers rather than pass on what might be a great playing experience
because it lacks a few features you prefer."
John Henry Newman: "A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault."
FreddyNoNose: "A good game needs no defense; a bad game has no defense." "Easily digested content is just as easily forgotten."
LacedOpium: "So the question that begs to be asked is, if you are not interested in
the game mechanics that define the MMORPG genre, then why are you
playing an MMORPG?"
whoever claims diablo 3 does not look dark enough should lower his alpha setting ^^
you clearly didnt read the post or you will know we are not talking about dark or bright colors....
TBH its so hard to keep track of this whole its not dark enough arguement. Take 10 different haters and you'll most likely get 10 different versions of not dark enough. Though i feel a select few are justified in their reasons why diablo isn't 'dark' enough.
Indeed. I've seen so many reasonings behind how D3 isn't dark or gritty enough, that I get confused at times. What I'd like some of these people to do is detail what they're looking for exactly when it comes to their definition of "dark and/or gritty". Perhaps then I can see it from their perspective instead of scratching my head, and wondering what the hell they're talking about.
Codify it? Are you Sheldon Cooper?
Yes! How did you know? How bout this then. An example of some sort that'll give me an idea of what said folks are looking for.
"For the Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast, And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed: And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill, And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew still!" ~Lord George Gordon Byron
That is all I can base anything off of thus far and the dark, shady fields in D3 just feel a heck of a lot darker for me than the open fields in D2 with amazons running around in it.
Goatmen are less "darker" than any mob I've seen in D3.
The entire atmosphere in town is a whole lot more sinister as opposed to a somewhat happy go lucky feel in D2...people change into mobs in town in D3 which is pretty cool. Life sucks in D3 for the townsfolk.
The colors and shading are enhanced...which I honestly feel people view as a negative since they dared to add more color to different things as opposed to outdated pixels shading them in D2.
We have seen a portion of D3 and I honestly feel like D3 will be pretty close in all its acts to act 5 in D2 (opinion), aside from the desert themed act which will be similar to D2's.
I understand what people mean when they say Diablo and Diablo II were "darker". It was partially due to the limitations of PC's and the game engine. There were more shadows and less was drawn on screen because it kept framerates up. I think the major complaint with D3 is the art style which is less realistic looking than previous games and more cartoonish - Warcraft III style mixed with Diablo. It doesn't bother me because it works well overall, but I find the atmosphere of the game isn't as creepy as previous games. Maybe it's because I'm getting older and have seen so much over the top gore and stuff in video games and have played games like Bioshock with some of the creepiest atmospheres in gaming since I play the first two.
The game follows the same animation details as D2. Also monsters are more detailed than D2. Only thing is that it has more pixels and Better graphics. Still looks dark. If this doesn't look dark to you, I don't understand how D2 can.
It's probably going to be hard to describe to people that don't understand visuals / aesthetics, but I'll give it a shot..
For one (and I know this is difficult) but try and bear in mind that we are comparing a game that is just about to come out, with a game that has been released since 2000. (Diablo II)
In the creative world there is a 'look' that is kind of a default 'go-to' look when we run out of ideas. This look is used because it sells. Not because it works, but because it's been engineered through years & years of trial & error to show that people will buy it. This is the same look that D3 uses, a look that a lot of big budget projects use. It's basically 'candy', or over-contrasting / over-saturating everything to an absurd lvl. You can do this w/ almost anything and it will automatically look 'good' to most people. However, there are countless projects that can be shown as examples of why this look isn't good for everything. For example, could you imagine if the lord of the rings movies had this look all the way through? It would be absurd. It is a style choice, and when you're in a spot where you either don't know or don't care how your project looks, just up the contrast & the saturation & call it a day. To put it bluntly, it's just lazy art direction.
Now, before I go further, I will say that the animations are pretty top notch. This has always been one of Blizzard's strong points, and is one of the areas where they have stayed strong over the years. That said:
Diablo is really meant to be a dark & grim environment. While the graphics are technically better without a doubt (higher res textures, 3d environments w/ more polygons), the look is a complete 180 from it's predecessors. It basically trivializes the atmosphere of the game. The game doesn't feel dark, or dangerous anymore. It feels like skipping through a field w/ delicious looking corpses randomly spread around, that you just happen to be attacking. Combine that w/ all the other aspects of the game that have been trivialized, and the game really does feel like a joke.
To give an example (although a crude one), it could be like comparing the difference between this:
From top -> bottom, you should be able to see how we start w/ the more dark & eerie game and get closer with each one to this oversaturated playland look given in torchlight 2. The difference being, torchlight 2 isn't really meant to be this dark & dreary RPG. It's playful. Diablo is supposed to be the exact opposite. It's supposed to be dark, dreary, and serious.
Don't get me wrong, I do expect a lot of people will have fun w/ the game. I just don't think it stays true to the series.
What?! That's not even close to Diablo 2 style.... It's just a Diablo clone gameplay wise. The theme is nothing close.
You obviously didnt watch the video. It plays nothing like D3. Has an entirely different combat system and for each class. You'd have to watch more than just a minute of the video to understand that.
Is it just me or is NCSoft really mixing it up these days?
You beat me to that response. Also I have said time and time again that NC Soft is hands down the best mmo company out there.
Lineage Eternal, Guild Wars 2, Wild Star, Lineage 3, Blade & Soul and rumored ArcheAge publisher. Otther mmo companys may bring out 1 game every 6 years but nobdoy does it like NC Soft does.
I see what you mean with these pictures you included; however, these are screenshots. In game we'll see only within a light radius, so this might make the game a bit scarier. With that said, I wish they did make it all around eerier like path of exile. I've never heard of this before, but some of the pictures I'm looking at are really what the diablo lore is all about.
What?! That's not even close to Diablo 2 style.... It's just a Diablo clone gameplay wise. The theme is nothing close.
You obviously didnt watch the video. It plays nothing like D3. Has an entirely different combat system and for each class. You'd have to watch more than just a minute of the video to understand that.
Is it just me or is NCSoft really mixing it up these days?
You beat me to that response. Also I have said time and time again that NC Soft is hands down the best mmo company out there. Lineage Eternal, Guild Wars 2, Wild Star, Lineage 3, Blade & Soul and rumored ArcheAge publisher. Otther mmo companys may bring out 1 game every 6 years but nobdoy does it like NC Soft does.
They do make great MMOs.. now if only they could properly manage them aswell. Though giving them credit for publishing a good game is kinda pushing the whole 'best mmo company' thing or atleast including those games into their portfolio.
Aori I think its mainly NC West that needs to do better on managment. I am willing to bet that NC Soft Korea is much more professional then NC Soft West.
Blizzard is just trying to sell the game to its WoW fans.
So, D3 is just that, WoWiablo.
Actually that is incorrect. More than a few of the old team is working on D3 in lead/senior roles. I get no WoW vibe from D3, i do get the diablo vibe
You're not being honest with yourself, because you think what I'm saying is negative. You must feel that batting down my supposed negativity will somehow prove your madness.
To get "no wow vibe" from Diablo 3... you would have to be the most obtuse person to ever walk the surface of Earth.
And I don't believe that you are that person.
Every step that leads into the game itself is an exact clone of World of Warcraft, from the Launcher to the moment you choose your character. Exactly the same.
The character models, from their hairstyles down to their animations are precisely the same as World of Warcraft.
I understand that you don't like someone saying something that you think is negative... about a game you like.
PoE is darker and or grittier? Only people who never got out of Act 1 say that. The second you hit the bright jungles of act 2 with the moneky's running all over the place it's like they forgot dark and gritty ever existed.
Also, spammy mana based combat in PoE is not as good as the multiple resource system of D3. Classes really don't feel unique in PoE, any class can use any gem and any gear type if you have the stats. So other than their starting position on the passive skill tree, there's little between each class.
Though I'm not trying to say PoE is a bad game, it's not, it's a great game. But it isn't on D3's level.
You do realise we where talking about the graphics art styles and the theme.. not the gameplay.
Well I addressed the art style first, and said that as soon as your out of act 1, any semblance of darkness is gone. And what exactly is PoE's theme? Because, I have been in beta a while and became a supporter when they opened the support packages, but so far there is little in the way of story or coherent tone in the theme. If there is one, it needs to be pointed out to me as I don't see it.
Comments
Personaly, I really enjoy the art direction... I mean, I see how many people are moaning how it isnt like D2...well know what? You can still go play D2 and shut the f**k up...
That Guild Wars 2 login screen knocked up my wife. Must be the second coming!
Codify it? Are you Sheldon Cooper?
Epic Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAigCvelkhQ&list=PLo9FRw1AkDuQLEz7Gvvaz3ideB2NpFtT1
https://archive.org/details/softwarelibrary_msdos?&sort=-downloads&page=1
Kyleran: "Now there's the real trick, learning to accept and enjoy a game for what it offers rather than pass on what might be a great playing experience because it lacks a few features you prefer."
John Henry Newman: "A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault."
FreddyNoNose: "A good game needs no defense; a bad game has no defense." "Easily digested content is just as easily forgotten."
LacedOpium: "So the question that begs to be asked is, if you are not interested in the game mechanics that define the MMORPG genre, then why are you playing an MMORPG?"
Yes! How did you know? How bout this then. An example of some sort that'll give me an idea of what said folks are looking for.
"For the Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed:
And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew still!"
~Lord George Gordon Byron
For me personally...
Act 1 of D3 is DARKER than act 1 of D2.
That is all I can base anything off of thus far and the dark, shady fields in D3 just feel a heck of a lot darker for me than the open fields in D2 with amazons running around in it.
Goatmen are less "darker" than any mob I've seen in D3.
The entire atmosphere in town is a whole lot more sinister as opposed to a somewhat happy go lucky feel in D2...people change into mobs in town in D3 which is pretty cool. Life sucks in D3 for the townsfolk.
The colors and shading are enhanced...which I honestly feel people view as a negative since they dared to add more color to different things as opposed to outdated pixels shading them in D2.
We have seen a portion of D3 and I honestly feel like D3 will be pretty close in all its acts to act 5 in D2 (opinion), aside from the desert themed act which will be similar to D2's.
<EDITED: SPELLING ERROR>
I understand what people mean when they say Diablo and Diablo II were "darker". It was partially due to the limitations of PC's and the game engine. There were more shadows and less was drawn on screen because it kept framerates up. I think the major complaint with D3 is the art style which is less realistic looking than previous games and more cartoonish - Warcraft III style mixed with Diablo. It doesn't bother me because it works well overall, but I find the atmosphere of the game isn't as creepy as previous games. Maybe it's because I'm getting older and have seen so much over the top gore and stuff in video games and have played games like Bioshock with some of the creepiest atmospheres in gaming since I play the first two.
It's probably going to be hard to describe to people that don't understand visuals / aesthetics, but I'll give it a shot..
For one (and I know this is difficult) but try and bear in mind that we are comparing a game that is just about to come out, with a game that has been released since 2000. (Diablo II)
In the creative world there is a 'look' that is kind of a default 'go-to' look when we run out of ideas. This look is used because it sells. Not because it works, but because it's been engineered through years & years of trial & error to show that people will buy it. This is the same look that D3 uses, a look that a lot of big budget projects use. It's basically 'candy', or over-contrasting / over-saturating everything to an absurd lvl. You can do this w/ almost anything and it will automatically look 'good' to most people. However, there are countless projects that can be shown as examples of why this look isn't good for everything. For example, could you imagine if the lord of the rings movies had this look all the way through? It would be absurd. It is a style choice, and when you're in a spot where you either don't know or don't care how your project looks, just up the contrast & the saturation & call it a day. To put it bluntly, it's just lazy art direction.
Now, before I go further, I will say that the animations are pretty top notch. This has always been one of Blizzard's strong points, and is one of the areas where they have stayed strong over the years. That said:
Diablo is really meant to be a dark & grim environment. While the graphics are technically better without a doubt (higher res textures, 3d environments w/ more polygons), the look is a complete 180 from it's predecessors. It basically trivializes the atmosphere of the game. The game doesn't feel dark, or dangerous anymore. It feels like skipping through a field w/ delicious looking corpses randomly spread around, that you just happen to be attacking. Combine that w/ all the other aspects of the game that have been trivialized, and the game really does feel like a joke.
To give an example (although a crude one), it could be like comparing the difference between this:
Path of Exile
Diablo III
Torchlight 2
From top -> bottom, you should be able to see how we start w/ the more dark & eerie game and get closer with each one to this oversaturated playland look given in torchlight 2. The difference being, torchlight 2 isn't really meant to be this dark & dreary RPG. It's playful. Diablo is supposed to be the exact opposite. It's supposed to be dark, dreary, and serious.
Don't get me wrong, I do expect a lot of people will have fun w/ the game. I just don't think it stays true to the series.
You beat me to that response. Also I have said time and time again that NC Soft is hands down the best mmo company out there.
Lineage Eternal, Guild Wars 2, Wild Star, Lineage 3, Blade & Soul and rumored ArcheAge publisher. Otther mmo companys may bring out 1 game every 6 years but nobdoy does it like NC Soft does.
I see what you mean with these pictures you included; however, these are screenshots. In game we'll see only within a light radius, so this might make the game a bit scarier. With that said, I wish they did make it all around eerier like path of exile. I've never heard of this before, but some of the pictures I'm looking at are really what the diablo lore is all about.
Good call!
Aori I think its mainly NC West that needs to do better on managment. I am willing to bet that NC Soft Korea is much more professional then NC Soft West.
You're not being honest with yourself, because you think what I'm saying is negative. You must feel that batting down my supposed negativity will somehow prove your madness.
To get "no wow vibe" from Diablo 3... you would have to be the most obtuse person to ever walk the surface of Earth.
And I don't believe that you are that person.
Every step that leads into the game itself is an exact clone of World of Warcraft, from the Launcher to the moment you choose your character. Exactly the same.
The character models, from their hairstyles down to their animations are precisely the same as World of Warcraft.
I understand that you don't like someone saying something that you think is negative... about a game you like.
But, don't be obtuse, it doesn't serve you well.
I played open beta week end (at least tried to connect ^_^)
My critic is only about the cartoon style. Not the animation, not the colors, not the effects, all is perfect for cartoon Style...
To me Diablo 1 and Diablo 2 is not "cartoon" style at all, or maybe i didn't play the same game as you.
I prefer Path of Exile style as example for a Diablo but i guess the 3D warcraft cartoon style has also contaminate their designers leader
Well I addressed the art style first, and said that as soon as your out of act 1, any semblance of darkness is gone. And what exactly is PoE's theme? Because, I have been in beta a while and became a supporter when they opened the support packages, but so far there is little in the way of story or coherent tone in the theme. If there is one, it needs to be pointed out to me as I don't see it.