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Digital Foundry's Best Game Graphics of 2021 - PC, Xbox, PlayStation - Another Amazing Year!

Arioco

Member


Thanks to Topher Topher for taking the time to make the list for those who can't watch the whole video.

Here is the list:

Demos:

Matrix
RTX Marbles

Games (in order):

Kena: Bridge of Spirits
Resident Evil Village
The Ascent
Metroid Dread
Deathloop
Guardians of the Galaxy
Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition
Forza Horizon 5
Returnal
Lego Builders Journey
Ratchet and Clank A Rift Apart
 
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Tripolygon

Banned
Ratchet being their number one pick is not surprising. Like I have always said it is the first game that has truly given the next-gen only vibe. The level of detail and lighting on display is stunning and the art direction is beautiful.
 
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Topher

Gold Member
I agree. Ratchet and Clank was certainly the most impressive graphical display of all the games I've played this year. Want to see a game that really pops on LG C1 OLED? This is it.

Here is the list:

Demos:

Matrix
RTX Marbles

Games (in order):

Kena: Bridge of Spirits
Resident Evil Village
The Ascent
Metroid Dread
Deathloop
Guardians of the Galaxy
Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition
Forza Horizon 5
Returnal
Lego Builders Journey
Ratchet and Clank A Rift Apart
 
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I agree. Ratchet and Clank was certainly the most impressive graphical display of all the games I've played this year. Want to see a game that really pops on LG C1 OLED? This is it.
Looks even better on an ambilight OLED.
Just my opinion.

wD9j90m.gif
 

Tripolygon

Banned
Yeah, R&C and Returnal have been the biggest ‘wow’ games for me this year, for different reasons, but there are some other really impressive looking games in that list.
Returnal looks good but I'm more impressed with the audio design of the game. It is a showcase for Tempest Engine when Mark Cerny was talking about being able to do HRTF for hundreds of sounds. Returnal is doing it for every particle being shot out you see on screen.
 

Black_Stride

do not tempt fate do not contrain Wonder Woman's thighs do not do not
Cant wait to see what Housemarque can do with Unreal 5 engine, it was there lead programmers first time using unreal engine 4 iirc, and there first crack at triple A as a studio.
They finally have a budget to actually make a AAA game.
Its gonna be insane what they do next.
And legit people need to stop pixel counting.....that number is basically useless.

Returnal looks absolutely stunning and people being reductive and saying the game is only 1080p really is a disservice to how good the game actually looks.
With UE5 and TSR they shouldnt even bother trying to hit 4K.
Just give us 60fps stunning as fuck! And maybe a 120fps mode too.
 

DenchDeckard

Moderated wildly
Returnal looks good but I'm more impressed with the audio design of the game. It is a showcase for Tempest Engine when Mark Cerny was talking about being able to do HRTF for hundreds of sounds. Returnal is doing it for every particle being shot out you see on screen.

There is that boss fight in returnal that is simply an audio visual masterpiece. I couldnt believe what I was witnessing. Jaw dropping stuff. Probably the biggest moment in a game that stuck with me this year.
 

kyoji

Member
They finally have a budget to actually make a AAA game.
Its gonna be insane what they do next.
And legit people need to stop pixel counting.....that number is basically useless.

Returnal looks absolutely stunning and people being reductive and saying the game is only 1080p really is a disservice to how good the game actually looks.
With UE5 and TSR they shouldnt even bother trying to hit 4K.
Just give us 60fps stunning as fuck! And maybe a 120fps mode too.
Agreed but it will be the studios 2nd triple A game (returnal is there first) its been said many times already, and while it might not be the ‘biggest’ in terms of scale etc. ala a god of war, gran theft auto, halo etc. its still on the smaller side of triple A.

So yeah i totally agree its going to be nuts to see what they can do from here on out now that they can let there nuts hang even more, and they said that they want to go even bigger than returnal.
 
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I think Kena should def be higher, without a doubt above Dread.

But i think its a pretty accurate list otherwise from what I’ve played
 

FrankWza

Member
"Another Amazing Year"
I would call it ok, but amazing? Nah.
I guess any game awards so far this year should have an asterisk next to it? Good to know.
R&C is the best looking game of this year. The best RT reflections I've ever seen
How many RT reflections have you seen? One?

I agree, it's an amazing looking game but not thanks to RT implementation.
There’s a period after the first sentence he wrote. And why would he only see one game with RT when he has a choice of a few? Insomniac alone has more than one.
 

ReBurn

Gold Member
I think Kena should def be higher, without a doubt above Dread.

But i think its a pretty accurate list otherwise from what I’ve played
Only the last 3 games presented were ranked. Metroid wasn't presented as higher or better than Kena. They pointed that out at the start of the video.

I also think it's a pretty accurate list. R&C is definitely the most beautiful game I've played this year.
 

FrankWza

Member
No surprise with rachet topping the list, still the best looking game I’ve ever seen, returnal audio design & dualsense implementation was what really set it apart, best audio design I’ve heard in a game with 3d audio & headphones.
Agree all around. Returnals graphics and visual tech part isn’t as obvious because it’s more about how much is going on at once and it’s not just a matter of resolution. They cover that in the video and I’m glad they did. The 1080p line gets thrown around without context….It’s a next gen game.
 

kyoji

Member
Agree all around. Returnals graphics and visual tech part isn’t as obvious because it’s more about how much is going on at once and it’s not just a matter of resolution. They cover that in the video and I’m glad they did. The 1080p line gets thrown around without context….It’s a next gen game.
Its why im glad they added a photo mode, with photo mode you really get to appreciate the amount of details in the enviroments/selene & enemies amidst all of the chaos on screen
 

SlimySnake

Flashless at the Golden Globes
lol amazing. Yes a year full of underwhelming cross gen games in amazing. These are the people in charge of dissecting graphics in this industry….. no wonder we are in such a shit state.

They actually brought up deathloop. Just shut down the channel already. They have jumped the shark.
 
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