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I've experienced photorealism in games, even on last-generation hardware - but only in certain scenes. The PS3 / Xbox 360 open-world crime-drama game Sleeping D
by mortenjorck 11y ago
I've experienced photorealism in games, even on last-generation hardware - but only in certain scenes. The PS3 / Xbox 360 open-world crime-drama game Sleeping Dogs, for instance, genuinely looks like a movie in certain areas, on foot, at night, when the weather cycle has gone to rain. On the other hand, driving, during the daytime, in the Central district looks more like a Dreamcast title.
The big challenge I see is not photorealism, but consistent photorealism. In the Sleeping Dogs example, the game's engine is optimized for its iconic scenes of rain-slicked Hong Kong backstreets, but the tricks it uses don't hold up well in other contexts.
- elihu 11y agoI think you're right, that the question isn't "is this game photorealistic?", it's "in what contexts can this game achieve photorealism?" For a long time, the game industry focused on higher resolution, more polygons, and higher framerates. I think now maybe there's more emphasis on textures, lighting, and physics. The trouble is, if you don't have a physically-accurate global illumination solution or physically-correct reflection, refraction, and shadows, there are many contexts in which "photorealism" is unattainable. For instance: shining a flashlight around a dark room, seeing your reflection in a shiny car, turning lights on and off and opening and closing doors in a dark building at night.