Review by long time Ultima Dragon "Sergorn Dragon"

Maybe my eyes are bad i don't know but to me pretty well everything on that list is better graphics/looks better then Sota and that is not to say Sota is horrible or looks bad.

But as for the other stuff I do agree for the most part I've said it in another post as much as I love the game and it's the only game that has held onto me, me and my brother feel like it is still in beta and we sometimes wonder what have they done in these 5 years. I been playing for 4 months + and alot of things just seem so incomplete,unpolished,I had a hell of a time doing some of the courage,love,truth quests just because of quests not completing or bugging out even had to spend 45 minutes plus to get a bloody NPC to get up the stairs because it couldn't move past the first step etc..

I sometimes think to myself why is episode 2 even being talked about/worked on when episode one/the game should be perfected.

And just to throw out there I will continue to play as this game has endless potential!

 

I agree there are some games on there that are impressive... like Far Cry... but Overwatch? and Far Cry can't be run on 90% of the PCs out the max visual. It's the DATED GRAPHICS reference I don't understand... liked compared to what? I have played or have half of the games on the list installed currently on my PC and I have a newly built this year water cooled rig with 1080 graphics so I'm like... huh? What is he comparing it to?!

A lot of the review I have said myself, but the game has infinite potential... I own a town, I'm going to be building dungeons... the graphics ref... is just puzzling to me.

Captures from same PC at same res:





Is it really that superior? Or just different style of graphics?

 

... and got a list that features some games that came out in 2013 and even they have a more pleasing aesthetics (subjective) and higher (and consistent) visual fidelity.

If you want to look at what 2018 has to offer, look no further than GodofWar 4 and Monster Hunter World (console version or PC, it doesn’t matter) and you’ll get a pretty good idea.

For slightly older games, look at Dark Souls 3, Total War: Warhammer, Black Desert Online, Destiny 2.

... then there’s GuildWars 2...

When it comes to texture quality, lighting, shaders, emotive animations and overall look, I’d say that SotA is more in line with games like the original release of Skyrim. SotA has a better colour palette (which helps tremendously) but Skyrim has better character art. Skyrim is now a 7 years old game.

Is this a bad thing? Not in my book but I’m not going to pretend that the visuals hold up to today’s standards either.

It also depends on what you consider “comparable”. If you mean that SotA holds up to these standards, I don’t know what to tell you.

Yes! The global illumination alone on the first picture makes a world of a difference!

Look at the bottom left corner of SotA’s picture and notice how the grass is jarringly standing out from the ground with completely different tones.

The church-looking building has no signs aging. No cracks, dents or variation in the stone.

 

Graphics are not the current issue with the game.

 

I think that it the different art style but I think Overwatch has better polish in the end if you can understand what I mean but if you were to compare it to a similar game underworld ascendant to me looks little better then Sota from videos and art I've seen and they are both from the ultima world tho in the end this can all be cut done to a persons personally preference I guess.

 

Yeah, I currently have Destiny 2 and Guild Wars 2 installed... and those both look inferior, and not just my opinion, visitors have commented. I never compare console to PC because I have programmed for both and know the differences and limitations on them. It's not that some game s LOOK better, it's the dated reference. If the game looked like DDO or LOTR I could understand, but the game doesn't have DATED graphics in comparison to the new games. Different... yes... dated though? I mean I'm, comparing the graphics to similar genre games like ESO, Guild Wars 2, etc.

 

I can get you on the polish part of it, but in comparison dated? This is what I think of when I think dated:

 

I think a issue is maybe we are using dated in the wrong sense its not to say that the game looks like its from 2000 but its also not what it could be with the unity engine either but in essence its dated I think darkstar said we aren't even at the latest unity release or something idk if that changes graphics and all that aswell as this isn't really my field of expertise.

 

But even in that sense, Like in Destiny 2 this is as close as you can get to a character model



SOTA at a quick capture of the same



Then zoomed in



It's not SOTA that comes out looking dated IMHO. Destiny backgrounds look like the painted backdrops that they are... versus SOTA.

 

You’re hung up on one particular word. It just means “old”. Now, if you’re looking at it as “old fashioned”, yes, there’s a lot of micro details missing that is akin to what was seen in earlier days (2003-ish) of gaming.

If Destiny 2 and GuildWars 2 look inferior compared to SotA, then you’re either fooling yourself or not running those games at maximum graphics.

People are comparing games to games. Even if you’re comparing it to other MMOs, SotA still falls short.

Give me your best SotA screenshot (I won’t provide it to avoid bias), and I’ll one up you with another game’s screenshot (featuring similar visual elements) and I’ll break it down to you from an artistic and technical standpoint.

 

Already done... See above....and taking screenshots from different PCs does not equate. Some systems are better than others. You need to compare them on like systems to get a fair comparison, which I did, at max graphics for both games.

 

Stop taking screenshots in the rain!

 

This is an often told story, but it is not true. Project Eternity (now Pillars of Eternity) made 3.986.929 $. Project Eternity was my first KS a few months before SotA. SotA made more money after KS, but nobody knows how much money Obsidian Entertainment made with the sale of the released game

 

and if you want my BEST screenshot from SOTA, this one I'm particularly proud of, from last release.... https://www.shroudoftheavatar.com/f...s/release-55-screenshot-video-gallery.132209/

 

Let’s discuss graphics over and over and over and over and over and miss the actual issues.....

 

LOL... I just opened up both games... snap snap for compare... I cannot predict the weather! Well in Destiny2 I can... It never changes Must be those superior graphics!

 

Okay. So what I'm asking....

 

My friend from here is currently playing it... he doesn't seem too impressed. Is it any good?

 

I remember years ago that was mentioned by the devs a few times - that their graphics quality target is Skyrim.

For a small studio, I think they that have to make games that look "good enough" and rely on innovative game-play mechanics to compete with the big boys. To be honest, I would rather have seen Shroud adopt a less realistic art style. Seems like too much time/money is spent on making sure the blades of grass blow in the wind correctly. I can look out my window and see grass, use those resources to give me more interesting monsters (even if they look cartoony) to kill.

 

Just want to say that this taints the entire story, maybe worse than the wonky quest system.

If they would just make a charming dialog UI it would change the entire feel of the game.