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1eyedking Graphics =/= Art Direction

1eyedking

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OK, there seems to be a lot of confusion about this one lately so I thought I would make a thread explaining my view upon the subject because really, from what I've seen here on General RPG Discussion, some people just do not get it.

The best way to nail the definition in my opinion lies in first explaining the general idea, followed by clear examples that show said concepts at work.

General Idea
Art direction in a game is all about design decisions and thinking in the gameworld's terms. Creating it original and coherent, making up factions with believable political agendas, an atmosphere (high fantasy, realistic, violent, grimdark, etc.) that suits the story/development of the game, interesting locations, item descriptions, visual aesthetics (armor design, weapon design, etc.), architecture, music and a myriad of other things that are mostly purely theoretic. It's stuff you can describe on paper, and probably draw or write. It doesn't include other important stuff such as level design (from a navigational standpoint), rulesets, difficulty, etc. Doesn't get worse with age.

Graphics are what the engine makes of the visual part of the art direction. This is the basic stuff. Texture quality, lip-synch, motion blur, (amount of) animation detail, bump-mapping, dear "old" bloom, polygonal models' complexity and a bunch of other rendering-related things. It's how visually real an impression they can make out of the paragraph above. They get worse with time as new technologies are developed.

Examples
Good art direction, bad graphics: Thief*
The game has a unique setting (Hammerites, Pagans, Keepers, etc.) with personality-charged parties that behave logically. The level of writing in the game is one of the best out there (not only is it believable, but some of the Hammer chants and Pagan verses make for very good poetry, actually). Characters are interesting - hell, you can emotionally bind yourself to even the guards. Enemies chatter about their daily chores, but in an interesting way - trivial everyday problems abound, the epic part of the game happens behind shadows. Or actually in them: The theme of being an invisible thief is explored to extremes as you're allowed to eavesdrop on conversations, take a look at stuff that wasn't supposed to be found, and get involved in things that to the common world are plain out of sight. All the time you're getting this mixed feeling that your presence in the game is gameworld changing and nonexistent at the same time; stupendously done indeed. Brosius goes the safe route and delivers eerie music that for a fantasy stealth game could have been done in a thousand of bad ways. Even then, it's great quality and speaks volumes of his taste.

(*: On top of this the gameplay is unmatched. Sorry I just had to say it - Thief is truly a masterpiece.)

As for the graphics, they are...well, bad. At least today. Washed textures, low polygon count, no lip-synch (mouths don't even open - thankfully?), no fancy effects whatsoever: Thief has aged very badly and this is partly to the game being in first-person perspective (this is mostly an observation and not a critique on perspective choice).

Good art direction, good graphics: Fallout
The HUD and interface is just tasteful: everything from the inventory, character screen, to the log are designed within the gameworld's terms (talk about immersion...). Add to this the fact that it has a unique retro-futuristic comic book design, complete with Monopoly inspired figurines, Blade Runner pistols, and an art deco vibe and you've got one hell of a setting. Factions are logical and their outlook upon the world is befitting, and their themes are well characterized. Music is without doubt 50% of game's atmosphere since Mark Morgan made an effort of including industrial sounds, beeping noises, keyboard clatter, sirens, fanfare, water drops and other gameworld-appropriate stuff to his tracks, enhancing the verisimilitude and experience greatly. Good writing that at times showcases the harshness of a post-apocalyptic world, though some say it was an excuse for saying the F-word a lot.

Graphics are good because they are 2D in isometric form, which means a fixed zoom setting, which in turn means solid quality textures that don't get blurry from getting too near or look like a repeated mosaic when looked from afar. Talking heads were very detailed 3D models that have aged perfectly; no proper lip-synch but who cares.

Bad art direction, good graphics: Dragon Age
Graphics are of course debatable, and with time they'll lose their "appeal". The art direction, however, is downright atrocious. Weapons look physically impossible and make you wonder how in hell would a blacksmith forge such an abomination, and where the hell would the thing's gravity center move to if the blade were to take one more turn. Swords are unbelievably wide and flashy effects abound instead of more tasteful runes, or something that makes more sense or is practically conceivable. Really, who in his sane mind would walk around with a sword caught on fire on his back? Armors are no exception, complete with laser visors, humongous shoulderpads that serve no purpose in medieval platemails. In fact, most armor in the game looks like it couldn't have happened such as leather armors looking like a patchwork of metallic plates of dull brown color. Fans tastelessly attribute the lack of talent in design to the game's "magic world", a world where blacksmiths and mages get together and somehow make the Blood Dragon Armor happen, which is in direct contradiction to both the outlook on mages of the general population and the grim landscape it supposedly is painted on. And this is another point of grudge: the world is supposed to be grimdark, yet poor people have enough time to take care of their hairs, forge rococo swords, and wear design clothes? I mean really, design clothes in a supposedly medieval setting? No thought was placed in the gameworld whatsoever. Nothing makes sense.

The music lacks personality in every point. The track that plays in Ostagar could very well have been played on any other town/location of the game that the player wouldn't have noticed a change; it's so generic, bland and uninspired that it fits practically anywhere - and sounds like it could be placed on many other high-fantasy games, for that matter. All "themes" share this characteristc, actually. And don't get me started on Leliana's song.
 

1eyedking

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You may know the difference raco, but lots of others do not. Always remember: RPG Codex is not a learning animal.

Also this is one of those posts I always wanted to make so that in posterity whenever a dumbfuck labels me or anyone who appreciates art direction in games as a graphics whore I can refer him here.
 

DraQ

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Apart from going on tangents about stuff unrelated to graphics and art direction (music, gameworld logic), and implication that 2D iso=>autogood graphics (see many indies and Arcanum), I don't sense much retardation.

So, how is recovery going, 1eyed?

Also, I'm a bit surprised with no oblibians.
 

Phelot

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Interesting, but I wouldn't group music, sound, story, etc in with the art direction. To me, art and graphics are two different things, which it obviously is to you, but I don't think it's necessary to group all the other things you mentioned in with art.

The art, to me anyway is the actual textures, the character's faces and design, how creative the art is, how stylish.

The graphics is all the raw stuff. Anti-aliasing, bitmap, lighting effects, etc etc. To me, this is the lease important, though to most modern games it takes precedent. Graphics should compliment the art, not mask it or distort it. I shouldn't be looking at white washed faces or walls and I should be able to make out that my character is wearing armor, not some sort of glowing plastic dress up.
 

1eyedking

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DraQ said:
Apart from going on tangents about stuff unrelated to graphics and art direction (music, gameworld logic), and implication that 2D iso=>autogood graphics (see many indies and Arcanum), I don't sense much retardation.
See why I made the post, raco? Some dumbfucks still do not get it. Art direction goes beyond graphics and that was my point. It encompasses aesthetics, and because most dimwits such as this guy immediately think aesthetics = visual, they almost instantly associate it with graphical design (which in turn isn't graphics themselves) and leave all of the other good stuff out of the bag.

Graphics are only a technical subset that make some of the things in art direction happen. Art direction is the bigger picture of the game, how all the smaller designs merge into a cohesive whole and transmit an imagination-fertile experience, but those small things isolated themselves don't make for art direction in a game, kind of like saying oxygen is water because water is made of it.

Example
Medal of Honor: Allied Assault has a passable (as in "doesn't completely suck) soundtrack, but as for the art direction in general the quality is pretty standard (though mostly because it took a realistic route).

DraQ said:
Also, I'm a bit surprised with no oblibians.
Make a search for "Dragon Age" and replace with "Oblivion" and it still makes sense save for a couple of names.
 
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Sceptic

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^ what phelot said.

I'm not sure I agree with your definition of art direction. Maybe I'd call it design direction instead. Then again for some reason when thinking of art direction I always think of graphical art direction and I think this specific distinction makes a better contrast with graphics as you describe them. Graphical art direction would include things like aesthetics, the look of the architecture, the choice of palette and lighting (but not their quality - that would be graphics) and so on. Everything you said about Thief applies. An even better example in my opinion: The Dig. The art direction is fucking gorgeous, with beautiful alien lanscapes, vistas, wonderful architecture, and of course all the rest of the stuff you mention (music, sound, etc). Graphics themselves: ugly pixellated shit.
 

Lockkaliber

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Anyone who has any reason to disagree with 1EK on this matter, is by default a graphics whore.
 

1eyedking

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Sceptic said:
Everything you said about Thief applies. An even better example in my opinion: The Dig. The art direction is fucking gorgeous, with beautiful alien lanscapes, vistas, wonderful architecture, and of course all the rest of the stuff you mention (music, sound, etc). Graphics themselves: ugly pixellated shit.
Well but you see, The Dig had good art direction, which means it had its bearings straight for passable architecture, good music, and a passable story. You can safely call it a game with passable art direction. This is no coincidence.

Most games, if not all games, that have good visual design excel in most of (if not all) the other aspects as well. PS:T (well, maybe not that much), StarCraft, C&C, Stronghold, Arcanum, HoM&M, The Witcher, Diablo - they all have good music, good story, atmosphere and coherent world design as well. It all tends to a cohesive whole.
 
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Zomg

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Uhh I'm pretty sure graphics and art direction are the same thing retard
 

DraQ

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1eyedking said:
DraQ said:
Apart from going on tangents about stuff unrelated to graphics and art direction (music, gameworld logic), and implication that 2D iso=>autogood graphics (see many indies and Arcanum), I don't sense much retardation.
See why I made the post, raco? Some dumbfucks still do not get it. Art direction goes beyond graphics and that was my point. It encompasses aesthetics, and because most dimwits such as this guy immediately think aesthetics = visual, they almost instantly associate it with graphical design (which in turn isn't graphics themselves) and leave all of the other good stuff out of the bag.
I already have a word for everything, so let "everything" mean everything and "art direction" mean art direction, m'kay?
 

Destroid

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The art design does not encompass the setting and history of the gameworld.

It encompasses everything that is sensory to the player, the audio and visual aspects of the game.

Of course, most modern games are pretty much on the level technically (DX features poly count etc) but some of them look like ass and some look great. This is where the design comes in. I agree that most people would say the graphics are bad when they are talking about the design rather than the technicality, but I wouldn't say they are wrong for doing so (although of course, they are talking about the visuals only not the music or other audio).
 

denizsi

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Achievement Unlocked: Pseudo-Intellectual! :thumbsup:

Art direction as a term as has always been about the management of visual aspects/aesthetics and nothing else. Music, setting, lore etc. You are just making shit up now.
 

Elwro

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1eyedking: putting political aspects of faction design into art direction since 2010.

Apart from that, great post with very good examples!
 

Black Cat

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@ Denizsi

"Art direction as a term as has always been about the management of visual aspects/aesthetics and nothing else."

Aesthetics?

"Aesthetics (also spelled æsthetics or esthetics) is a branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty, art, and taste, and with the creation and appreciation of beauty.[1] It is more scientifically defined as the study of sensory or sensori-emotional values, sometimes called judgments of sentiment and taste.[2] More broadly, scholars in the field define aesthetics as "critical reflection on art, culture and nature."[3][4] Aesthetics is a subdiscipline of axiology, a branch of philosophy, and is closely associated with the philosophy of art.[5] Aesthetics studies new ways of seeing and of perceiving the world.[6]"

"aes·thet·ic or es·thet·ic (s-thtk)
adj.
1. Relating to the philosophy or theories of aesthetics.
2. Of or concerning the appreciation of beauty or good taste: the aesthetic faculties.
3. Characterized by a heightened sensitivity to beauty.
4. Artistic: The play was an aesthetic success.
5. Informal Conforming to accepted notions of good taste.
n.
1. A guiding principle in matters of artistic beauty and taste; artistic sensibility: "a generous Age of Aquarius aesthetic that said that everything was art" (William Wilson).
2. An underlying principle, a set of principles, or a view often manifested by outward appearances or style of behavior: "What troubled him was the squalor of [the colonel's] aesthetic" (Lewis H. Lapham)."


"Aesthetics may be defined narrowly as the theory of beauty, or more broadly as that together with the philosophy of art. The traditional interest in beauty itself broadened, in the eighteenth century, to include the sublime, and since 1950 or so the number of pure aesthetic concepts discussed in the literature has expanded even more. Traditionally, the philosophy of art concentrated on its definition, but recently this has not been the focus, with careful analyses of aspects of art largely replacing it."

Thank you for backing 1EyedKing point, I'm sure he's grateful. :3
 

Mangoose

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Another thing is that animation quality/direction is just as important as texture/poly quality in graphics. Too often (at least in the RPG genre) animation quality is almost totally ignored, but the developer and/or publisher still markets its game as graphically immersive.
 

Glyphwright

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Visuals are art.

Writing is art.

Ambient/soundtrack/dialogue are all art.

Art direction is a sublime term which refers to the convergence all of these elements into a single entity - the way the game is perceived by the player's imagination.

The game's combat system and point allocation are parts which concern reflexes and planning, for example. And the term graphics does not underline the meaning behind textures, models and animations - merely their objective quality. Which is the least meaningful aspect of a video game, no more than shiny bait to lure in the weak-minded.


P.S. The Codex really is full of morans.

P.P.S. Amazing post, 1eyedking, would read again. 10/10
 

Hory

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Game mechanics are art too. Chess has particularly beautiful mechanics.
 

Risine

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Well, no art direction means same generic art direction followed by all those not using specific art direction, giving you the feeling to have already played the game thousand times before.
Just something I don't get in your explanation : Dragon Age = good graphics ???
I probably missed some hidden option, this game is at the level of 2003-2006 middle/top graphics games.
 

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