Do visuals influence what games you play?

[PainForge]

In light of a new Killer Instinct being shown at E3 and the communities mixed reception of what's been previewed so far, I thought I'd take the time to ask everyone something I've had on my mind for a while.
Do visuals and or audio influence what games you play or want to become proficient at?

For example, it could be a costume design, how a scene is lit, how well objects in a scene compliment one another, sound effects, the overall tone or feel of a game, etc. Do you play games with good balance and depth but don't like looking at or listening to them, or vice versa? Do you prefer one game over another from the same genre? If so, why? I'm curious to know if there is a consensus here.

If you ask me though, I'd say it's all equally important.

 

[IceNine]

It would have to be extremely unappealing to turn me off. I say this on the basis that it's not happened to me yet, but I can imagine something positively grotesque or absolutely shoddy turning me off. I'm really tolerant of this kind of thing.

 

[Vulcan Hades]

Not that much tbh. I mean my 2 favorite games right now are probably the most awful looking: SFxT and Injustice.

On the other hand, I love the visual style of many other fighters like 3S, Persona, Skullgirls and KOF but I could never get into those games.

 

[MorbidAltruism]

Yes. They play a role. It isn't a determining factor... more like a contributing factor (in regards to whether or not I will make the purchase).

 

[Sasuga]

I try to not let it be a factor but I can't be sure if that is the case. I love injustice but I was never a DC fan. I play this game solely for the mechanics, at least that is what I feel more or less. I find Batgirl one of the least interesting characters and she has a horrible costume. But I like her playstyle. Less power, more speed, that's what I like. So based on this I am more inclined to think that the mechanics are the most import aspect of a good game for me. But surely, I wouldn't be playing it if it were just hitboxes moving on the screen.

I play a lot of female characters. I don't really know if it's because they look nicer or that it is the general play-style that have. Killer Frost has a really masculine playstyle, imo. Don't like her for that reason. Harley Quinn is the best female character in injustice, imo and I love her because of that. She takes more brains and less brawn. I will never play Superman for that reason.

For SFxT, I play Lili who has a really feminine play-style imo. Also Cammy and Juri in the SF series. I really don't think their appearance is the biggest factor. It's interesting, though.

One thing I always liked about MK were the sound effects. The hit impact sounds and the screaming. Lots of energy, so to speak. Sort of like loud music, which I like also.

 

[Jelan]

Only if I find something I really don't like. KOFXIII for example looks so bad I just couldn't force myself to play it at a gathering. And Battlefield 3, that game is just ugly. That's pretty much my whole list of games that were so unappealing visually I just couldn't play them.

 

[MorbidAltruism]

Only if I find something I really don't like. KOFXIII for example looks so bad I just couldn't force myself to play it at a gathering. And Battlefield 3, that game is just ugly. That's pretty much my whole list of games that were so unappealing visually I just couldn't play them.

I need to do a double take... Battlefield 3 ugly? You are definitely in the minority there.

 

[Jelan]

I need to do a double take... Battlefield 3 ugly? You are definitely in the minority there.

I know :3 .

 

[ProudDisciple]

All about gameplay for me, if it happens to have appealing graphics thats just a plus.

 

[Killzone]

I don't understand people who are bitching about the visuals of Killer Instinct. To me they're perfectly fine and I don't even know what else they could do with the style of the game. MK9 is not the way to go. Something more colorful is (like SF4 and now Killer Instinct). Killer Instinct is over the top and the visuals are fitting.

But then again, I personally never cared about the visuals. If it came down to naming you few of the games I had the most fun with, I wouldn't name you MK9, but Super Smash Bros (on the N64) instead. I wouldn't name Call of Duty, but Counter-Strike 1.5 instead. Zelda instead of Darksiders and so on, and so on.

Gameplay, innovation, colors, fun > visuals

PS: The Shit-Box One sucks and so does the new Killer Instinct concept with the microtransaction-characters.

 

[ICE_C0LD_ZERO]

Yeah more like a contributing factor. Graphics and presentation play a big role but in the end it's all about the gameplay.
Of course some games are really painful to look at and their bad presentation really takes away from the overall experience. For example I totally loved and played the hell out of Dragon Age Origins but it's graphics were worse than PS2 at times...
Another garbage game/series that people seem to care solely for it's graphics is Crysis. Played the first one and it was one of the most boring, dull and generic games I played

I am fine with how Killer Instict looks, keep in mind that it's a digital title. It also seems to take inspiration from SF and not MK this time, and I really enjoyed SF4's visuals

 

[cpmd4]

Visuals (not necessarily next-gen graphics), sound, story and characters all affect how I feel about a game, not just gameplay. However, gameplay is definitely the biggest factor. Whereas the first four things I listed don't make or break a game for me, gameplay does.

 

[CrimsonShadow]

Killzone you probably wouldn't understand if you weren't around for the old one... The original KIs were known for being some of the best-looking games in the arcade at the time of release. It was one of the major things that stood out about the game in addition to the over the top gameplay and combo system. You can't shake the fact that KI established itself as a graphically innovative franchise, and that anyone who remembers this will expect a new KI to carry on the tradition.

Personally it's not the most important aspect of the game to me -- but if you can't understand why it's being brought up, do some homework on KI and the company that made it and you'll understand.

For younger people, the best thing I can compare it to is if a new Crysis came out down the road with subpar graphics. Regardless of the gameplay you'd still expect people to comment.

 

[ICE_C0LD_ZERO]

Yeah Rare was delivering in the graphics department back then. I was blown away with Donkey Kong Country when I first played it

 

[Killzone]

Personally it's not the most important aspect of the game to me -- but if you can't understand why it's being brought up, do some homework on KI and the company that made it and you'll understand.

I've been around, when Killer Instinct was the shit. Unfortunately there were never any arcades in my country, but I got the games when they came out on the console and even then the games were visually impressive.

But now you talk about that "graphically innovative franchise" like it's Crysis, or Uncharted. No son, it's an over 15 years old game, which runs on nostalgia and nostalgia only.
Back then in the days Zelda was the shit in terms of graphics and I can count every single polygon on the main character - even from Zelda games nowdays.

And in case you didn't realize it, Killer Instinct is only there, because Micro$oft saw an opportunity. You complaining about the graphics of the game is as silly as it get can. It should be obvious even to a smartass like you that they're trying to profit from the game as much as possible (and that not even in terms of good publicity, but mostly money) and not to please the fans, since if they really wanted to please the fans, they would have taken a different approach.
The visual appeal of the new Killer Instinct is the least of your wories, son.

 

[CrimsonShadow]

I've been around, when Killer Instinct was the shit. Unfortunately there were never any arcades in my country, but I got the games when they came out on the console and even then the games were visually impressive.

But now you talk about that "graphically innovative franchise" like it's Crysis, or Uncharted. No son, it's an over 15 years old game, which runs on nostalgia and nostalgia only.
Back then in the days Zelda was the shit in terms of graphics and I can count every single polygon on the main character - even from Zelda games nowdays.

And in case you didn't realize it, Killer Instinct is only there, because Micro$oft saw an opportunity. You complaining about the graphics of the game is as silly as it get can. It should be obvious even to a smartass like you that they're trying to profit from the game as much as possible (and that not even in terms of good publicity, but mostly money) and not to please the fans, since if they really wanted to please the fans, they would have taken a different approach.
The visual appeal of the new Killer Instinct is the least of your wories, son.

When did I complain about the graphics? You asked why, I explained why.

And being old doesn't change the fact that people remember that game as one of the most graphically impressive of its generation. They innovated in the arcade hardware and the game was known for it. Broken as the gameplay was, it looked amazing. This fact won't change, so I don't understand why people are confused when they hear others mention the graphics.

 

[Killzone]

When did I complain about the graphics? You asked why, I explained why.

Even though there was a questionmark, I didn't ask a question. I was complaining about people complaining, but thanks for the concern though!

And being old doesn't change the fact that people remember that game as one of the most graphically impressive of its generation. They innovated in the arcade hardware and the game was known for it. Broken as the gameplay was, it looked amazing. This fact won't change, so I don't understand why people are confused when they hear others mention the graphics.

Normally I would agree with you and everyone else who bitches about that, but we're not getting Killer Instinct 3 here. We are getting ... Well, we're getting what we're getting and the expectations need to be lower in this case.
That means that the complainers need to think one step further. As I said it, the visual presentation is the least of our worries, because we're now at a point, where I personally say: "Rather no Killer Instinct game, than the shit we're getting now" and I could make a statement like that without ever seeing the game, but simply reading about it and the shitty ass decisions Microsoft came up with in terms of it.

 

[Vulcan Hades]

Yeah I remember the precise day when they brought this big ass mystery box to my local arcade and unveiled Killer Instinct for the first time. Everyone instantly gathered around it. I was still playing MK2 Reptile at the time, and I didn't turn around until they plugged the machine and I heard the awesome announcer voice and music. I was instantly in love lol. I remember rage quitting from MK2 just to play me some KI. The graphics were revolutionary at the time.

 

[AZ MotherBrain]

Usually characters and story are the main thing that get me into a game or a book as well. I usually pick characters that I can relate to usually by his/her personality, history, or even appearance. One of the reasons why I love NRS and Atlas fighting games is the amount of time they spend on making great story lines and character development. Something I think Capcom needs to take notes on.