Now I just want to make a quick statement for the first half of my post as to whether or not people think the concept art of GW looks better than GW itself. Personally I happen to think the concept art looks 10000x times better.
Second half of the post!!! Okay, so heres my debate. I think the concept art of GW in general has a much darker appeal; much more dramatic almost R-rated. By that I mean I think the concept art had to be brought down a rating to around PG-13 to what GW actually is. I mean if you don't believe me, I think the Kurzicks are a great example. http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=74118 <-- Look at all the Factions concept art is all through out there, and its funny because theres a general curve towards the end of the thread of "lighter" more kiddy artwork. Perhaps producers telling them to soften things up? Blue and yellow bubbles instead of blood?
http://www.discoverguildwars.com/ http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=83394 <-- Go there the concept art is ABOUND!
When has anything in GW ever looked this gross? http://www.conceptart.org/forums/att...d=11649848 90
Giant eyeballs!? That actually look real? (Sorry those glossy marbles don't do justice)
http://www.conceptart.org/forums/att...d=11649864 30
All I'm trying to say is that if what I think is true, we might just have baby turtle mounts with bubbley eyes in GW2. http://entertainment.upperdeck.com/A...WoW/turtle.gif
So I think the community needs Anet to know if they like a darker more mature GW2, or a funnier cartoony GW2.
Concept Art vs Reality of GW
Nevin
Metal Herc
I have to agree with you. The concept art is amazing. It has a distinct and very dark and sinister feel to it. I think alot of the feel was lost in the translation from the art to the game. I would love if GW2 somehow manage to stick closer to the concept art.
Holly Herro
That last one is World of Warcraft.
Macks Mistress
I have to say when I first glanced at the art book that came with factions collecters I was completely gobsmacked. Some of the best artwork I have seen in the industry.
It is a shame they had to tone down the detail and overall sinster feel.
It is a shame they had to tone down the detail and overall sinster feel.
Pleikki
Art is amazing idd.
stiffler
Thats the beauty of concept art, it is not restricted to the confines of the current game format, it's a way the artist can show his talent off. It's then up to the development team to take the ideas and put it into game, which is where a lot of the charm is lost unfortunatly. BTW, I totally love the concept art book from Nightfall.
Operative 14
I've always felt like the actual working models in the game did poor justice to the concept art (no offense intended at all to the developers, I know how incredibly hard that must be to translate a 2D pencil sketch into a 3D working model).
I've always loved images like This, This, This, This, This, and This. Their sense of epic grandeur really made it look like a truly astounding game, it's a shame it so hard to translate into the gameplay. And I think, in part, that is why the sinister and dark feeling that the OP pointed out is missing from the game; the dark grandeur exhibited in those works is lost because the very fine atmospheric detail imparted in the drawings is missing in the final product.
What ends up in the game usually seems much less grand, much more subdued compared to the concepts. I would really hope that this year we've been kept in the dark about GW2 has been exclusively devoted to making incredibly detailed and graphically astounding models and landscapes that are equal to what's shown in the concept art.
I've always loved images like This, This, This, This, This, and This. Their sense of epic grandeur really made it look like a truly astounding game, it's a shame it so hard to translate into the gameplay. And I think, in part, that is why the sinister and dark feeling that the OP pointed out is missing from the game; the dark grandeur exhibited in those works is lost because the very fine atmospheric detail imparted in the drawings is missing in the final product.
What ends up in the game usually seems much less grand, much more subdued compared to the concepts. I would really hope that this year we've been kept in the dark about GW2 has been exclusively devoted to making incredibly detailed and graphically astounding models and landscapes that are equal to what's shown in the concept art.
shoyon456
id have to agree with this, this is something i haven't considered for gw2 because anet's quality is so high anyways but...
YES, comparing concept art with what is in gw, it seems that special parts and the rawness has been torn out of it and replaced with an old Shrek animation.
I'm wondering if this is part of the plan for gw2, to make the game as compelling as its' concept art?
YES, comparing concept art with what is in gw, it seems that special parts and the rawness has been torn out of it and replaced with an old Shrek animation.
I'm wondering if this is part of the plan for gw2, to make the game as compelling as its' concept art?
DutchGun
Well, yeah, of course the concept art looks better than the real game. The concept artists don't have to make things out of a finite number of polygons, textures, and lights. Of course, for GW2, the world artists will be able to get much closer to the concept art, what with improved poly counts, better shaders, bigger textures, and all that goodness. I suspect the gap will close a bit.
Gli
Of course, when employing dozens of concept artists each with their own particular style, a lot of the individuality in the concept art is going to get lost when bringing it all together in-game in any cohesive way.
Surena
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by DutchGun
Well, yeah, of course the concept art looks better than the real game. The concept artists don't have to make things out of a finite number of polygons, textures, and lights. Of course, for GW2, the world artists will be able to get much closer to the concept art, what with improved poly counts, better shaders, bigger textures, and all that goodness. I suspect the gap will close a bit.
|
Barbie
Well it's hard to keep it low-poly while very detailled at the same time.
newbie_of_doom
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Holly Herro
That last one is World of Warcraft.
|
Concept art is way better imo, but I cant complain cause my videocard fails anyway.
tmakinen
In my opinion the conversion from concept art to in game models has been very good. Artists are allowed (and expected) to 'go wild' and produce all kinds of stuff and the actually implemented models are then picked with certain criteria including technical feasibility and consistency of design. Some of the hulking machines and sprawling cityscapes in the linky look absolutely awesome but bear closer resemblance to the universe of Star Wars than that of Guild Wars, IMHO.
My main design related gripe with the current game is the inadequate use of the Z axis, and this is largely caused by the limitations of the GW engine. With some notable exceptions like Sorrow's Furnace, the world of Tyria is terribly flat. I wouldn't love anything more than to scale some vertigo inducing vistas like those seen in the concept art, and I have high hopes for GW2. I want to see stuff fly, fall and smash to pieces
My main design related gripe with the current game is the inadequate use of the Z axis, and this is largely caused by the limitations of the GW engine. With some notable exceptions like Sorrow's Furnace, the world of Tyria is terribly flat. I wouldn't love anything more than to scale some vertigo inducing vistas like those seen in the concept art, and I have high hopes for GW2. I want to see stuff fly, fall and smash to pieces
Buster
Great art work as always. I can't wait to see what GW2 is going to look like.
Kashrlyyk
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Barbie
Well it's hard to keep it low-poly while very detailled at the same time.
|
CyberMesh0
It's no secret that Anet has some of the best concept artists in the industry. The problem is that even the best digital artists can't always duplicate the same effect in a 3D landscape. Nonetheless, I think we also have some of the best digital artists- how many other games can come so close?
phan
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Holly Herro
That last one is World of Warcraft.
|
MithranArkanere
I've only really accurate modeling to artwork in a couple of games...
I think Granado Espada and Lineage are two of them.
But, hey. They try sometimes, like when they remade the Prophecies henchmen to be closer to artwork.
I think Granado Espada and Lineage are two of them.
But, hey. They try sometimes, like when they remade the Prophecies henchmen to be closer to artwork.
ShoGunTheOne
i see some interesting things here:
Urgoz anyone?
Dervish Envoy?!?
Mallyx in a not-so-ape-like form
and i am also seeing new Professions such as Lancer. Fistfighter, Duel Wielder(maybe they're just daggers=Kanaxai)
Urgoz anyone?
Dervish Envoy?!?
Mallyx in a not-so-ape-like form
and i am also seeing new Professions such as Lancer. Fistfighter, Duel Wielder(maybe they're just daggers=Kanaxai)
Gwmaster
and all we got is the crappy sunspear armor http://www.angelfire.com/wa2/xia/ima...izardarmor.jpg
http://www.angelfire.com/wa2/xia/ima...izardarmor.jpg
Shadowmere
I think it's only natural that the concept art is going to wow you more than the game itself, as has been said earlier, lots of the off-the-wall designs in the concept art simply can't be recreated in the game itself, largely due to technical limitations. As games get more and more advanced the gap between concept art and final product will get shorter and shorter, however it's going to be a while.
Even games amazingly beautiful and advanced games like Mass Effect still had many incredible concepts discarded due to technical limitations (remember the Rachni? Yeah, the concept artists wanted them to be able to glow, but instead we got a brown skin)
Even games amazingly beautiful and advanced games like Mass Effect still had many incredible concepts discarded due to technical limitations (remember the Rachni? Yeah, the concept artists wanted them to be able to glow, but instead we got a brown skin)
Nevin
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Operative 14
I've always felt like the actual working models in the game did poor justice to the concept art (no offense intended at all to the developers, I know how incredibly hard that must be to translate a 2D pencil sketch into a 3D working model).
I've always loved images like This, This, This, This, This, and This. Their sense of epic grandeur really made it look like a truly astounding game, it's a shame it so hard to translate into the gameplay. And I think, in part, that is why the sinister and dark feeling that the OP pointed out is missing from the game; the dark grandeur exhibited in those works is lost because the very fine atmospheric detail imparted in the drawings is missing in the final product. What ends up in the game usually seems much less grand, much more subdued compared to the concepts. I would really hope that this year we've been kept in the dark about GW2 has been exclusively devoted to making incredibly detailed and graphically astounding models and landscapes that are equal to what's shown in the concept art. |
Things like Anvil Rock in the Shiverpeaks, HoM, the bottomless pit, those are all a nice start... But each one could look even better, have even more WOW factor. Yes this is purely a debate over eyecandy, but with the graphical processing power of today; its a shame to not let a vision directly translate into reality.
The big problem I think GW has is, Anet is trying to keep the software well basically hardware friendly. Theres a reason you're able to run GW on the same comp that you were running Half Life 1 on back in the day. But you see, Anet is going about it all wrong. Why just cattier to one side of the spectrum? Sure they're the bulk of your buying market, but still! Theres lots of hardcore gamers out there with decked PC's to impress. What I'm trying to say is, GW should look GREAT on low and medium settings, and look even nicer on High. That way the casuals can enjoy a nice frame rate and all that; But what about a VERY high setting? The highest graphical settings should be uber- atleast on par with Unreal Engine III lighting/physics/effects. Don't pull an Age of Conan or Oblivion either, graphical effects do not make things that are already ugly, any prettier.
Blind Gardian
What disappointed me the most was how big our characters are compared to most things in gw. On the art the people look mini, but in game we look like giants. Oh well, none the less a wonderful game.
Aera Lure
If only the game could look like the concept art. My my. The game does look pretty good, but pales greatly to that of the concepts. I'd be all for it, but in my limited understanding of conversion to game models, the problem is weight of both textures and pixel/point counts on models. I'm not sure anything could be done to get the rich textures seen in concept art active in game unless the performance bar was significantly raised. I'd be all for it though.
NinjaKai
I have to agree aswell. I love the game. But when comparing the concept art to the game my expectations were a little broken.
Nevin
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by ShoGunTheOne
and i am also seeing new Professions such as Lancer. Fistfighter, Duel Wielder(maybe they're just daggers=Kanaxai)
|
http://www.angelfire.com/wa2/xia/ima...aleBart001.jpg
The Bard.
Bryant Again
You make the Turtle Mount out to look like it's a bad thing ; )
IlikeGW
Well there's probably an inability to translate everything to a game engine. It's one thing to draw, it's very different to get something lit in 3D looking just how you want, you have to settle somewhere, and lose some of the sense of constant dramatic effect in drawings.
That doesn't explain why they added the snarky, fruity rabbit people though. Hmm...
That doesn't explain why they added the snarky, fruity rabbit people though. Hmm...
Nightow
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Nevin
|
Aeon221
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Nevin
|
The Bart.
Bryant Again
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Aeon221
Look closer.
The Bart. |
But I will agree: A whole lot in GW seems "kiddified". Even WoW is more nasty and gruesome. Level a guy in Tirisfal Glades, there's a couple being hunged that hangs there for eternity. Nasty stuff. It'd be awesome to see things become much more dark and gruesome in GW2.
Nevin
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Aeon221
Look closer.
The Bart. |
Really though I mean I understand the limitations of the dev team of Anet and what not, and how they can't make things look so "epic". But I feel people are overlooking my point. My point isn't that it has to look super amazing like Crysis, Gears of War 2, or CoD4- although it'd be nice. My point is that GW should be darker and simply more mature. Diablo II was a mature game for its time, and walked the line of controversy for it's day. There was rape, murder, demons, all that great stuff.
I'm being an idealist about this regarding sales however. Its what people like, and I don't care if it means GW2 getting a rated M on the cover of the game. Look at God of War, that game is brutal and gruesome but the majority of people who play it are teens who buy it with an older sibling, friend, or parent.
Really the only people I see being hurt by GW are those rare "Father&Daughter" accounts or things like that I've seen around every once in a while. By that I mean usually a parent with their very young child playing (5-10 years old), but half the time they share accounts to begin with. So no lost sales there, and hell chances are they'd go for WoW over GW anyways.
Bryant Again
I understand what you mean, Nevin. I do think that Guild Wars would be able to walk a finer line in regards to being a bit more adult oriented with it's teen rating. It'd be much cooler if it was walking the line of teen and mature, rather then the line of teen and the E rating.
The Unknown Reaper
If you want a game with those graphics,play Real Life.
Concept Art is the base where GW came from,it's the sketches where everything comes from.If you'd have those graphics in-game,lmao,you're gonna need one hell of a video card. And btw,they just reform the concept art to what looks best ingame.If you'd put such art in a game with graphics like WoW , it would look like ... something not that pretty.With GW they reform it.
Concept Art is the base where GW came from,it's the sketches where everything comes from.If you'd have those graphics in-game,lmao,you're gonna need one hell of a video card. And btw,they just reform the concept art to what looks best ingame.If you'd put such art in a game with graphics like WoW , it would look like ... something not that pretty.With GW they reform it.
Punio4
What I miss from the concept art?
Grand locations.
Mesmer with a rapier.
Jora with a bad ass Guts-like sword.
Grand locations.
Mesmer with a rapier.
Jora with a bad ass Guts-like sword.
Randvek
You know what I miss the most from concept art?
Utopia.
Utopia.
enxa
Concept art is just that - concept art.
2D images of such detail are nearly impossible to implement in 3D with todays technology. That is why there is such a huge difference between concept art and 'reality'.
2D images of such detail are nearly impossible to implement in 3D with todays technology. That is why there is such a huge difference between concept art and 'reality'.
Super Igor
UNFORTUNATELY (!!!)
GW Concept Art =/= GW Skill Art!!!!
FACT (!!!)
[skill]"Retreat!"[/skill] < enlarge.
~Super Igor~
GW Concept Art =/= GW Skill Art!!!!
FACT (!!!)
[skill]"Retreat!"[/skill] < enlarge.
~Super Igor
~
creelie
Honestly I think the translation from concept art to in-game rendering is pretty good in GW. A lot of the time players zoom out so everything is vague moving blobs of color and flashes of light, but if you take the time to get in closer there is a ton of detail. Also, concept art is 2D sketches of things caught in a moment of extreme awesomeness - in-game renders have to be 3D and move around, so right there a considerable amount of atmosphere is lost, to say nothing of the many graphic shortcuts GW takes to be such a fast and bad-comp-friendly game.
Also, thanks for the links! Conceptart.org is such a great site.
Also, thanks for the links! Conceptart.org is such a great site.