Epic Games back on the map with PC-exclusive Fortnite

[Azrael the cat]

The thing I don't like about these modern cartoony action games is that the visual design often has no real personality. It's bright and happy but also disgustingly generic. Team Fortress 2 did it right, but in its wake came a slew of games that were either direct ripoffs of it or just didn't have quite enough thought put into the art direction, resulting in a lot of ridiculously ugly and unlikable characters. The environments aren't that bad, but seriously, why do all the characters have sandals and pants that don't go past their knees? Why do their faces look like they've been smashed with a shovel a few times? Nothing about this game's visuals says "this is something unique or special or different." It just looks like a thousand other games that have the exact same art style that seems to be a hodgepodge of influences mixed together without any real thought applied.

This, I'll agree with. It seems to go beyond gaming though - it's been a problem with cartoons ever since animation went 3D. I just think that artists haven't really got an idea of how to get a distinct visual style in 3d animation - it's all about avoiding uncanny valley, and not much room for the kind of distinctiveness you'd get with cell-shaded cartoons (not saying people should go back to drawing individual slides again, but there's definitely been a loss of distinctiveness).

 

[Gerrard]

Alpha test application

Funny how all the sliders already were in the correct positions.

 

[Echo Mirage]

So what happened to this game after it got shipped off to Potato?

 

[TheGreatOne]

No wonder the mainstream gaming industry is such shit these days. Borderlands aside they picked literally all of the most popular contemporary games. You know you're dealing with gaming experts if they recognize all of those titles. And they didn't even bother to include the upcoming Unreal Tournament. I guess it would be too much to expect that your applicants recognize the game you're working on at the moment.

Fucking Kwans and their comic style fetishes.

Have you ever even seen a comic book? This stylized fugly visual tyle looks like 2000s flash animation. In contrast many American comics have realistically proportioned characters and art styles, some times coupled with grim dark aesthethic. That's the polar opposite of this poor man's Psychonauts/TF2.
Besides those stylized Blizzard/Valve (and other such) games are just as popular in Europe. Some of 'em were even developed here: Fable, Beyond Good and Evil and Dishonored to name a few (not to mention casual games like Clash of Clans).

 

[Gerrard]

They also have Skyrim under "which of these game series" instead of Elder Scrolls. Tells you a lot about target audience.

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2015-06-24-bulletstorm-dev-people-can-fly-regains-independence

Epic Games Poland has been unAnschlussed and now becomes People Can Fly again.