Comparison
So here are 4 screens to show what I’m talking about. If you’d like to drop a comment on which you prefer, that would help me a great deal! Please note that the ‘Sharpen Filter’ is what was used for these latest batch of screens.
UPDATE: I’ve discovered the problem. All screenshots of environments up until this date have been taken from the Editor itself in Real-Time mode. The reason for this is because in-game, I cannot change the time cycle so the sun will pass overhead on its own. By taking screens directly from the Editor, I can dictate the time of day and have more control over the screenshots.
And so to test, I took some in-game screens and it would appear as though the problems are no longer existent and the visuals are much more smooth and clean. The ‘Muddyness and Noise’ are gone and so from here on, all future screen captures will from in-game only.
Comments are closed.
LONG NGUYEN | Digital Artist & Game Designer 
Hello again, Long
Perhaps it’s my monitor but I can’t seem to detect any noticable improvements gained by filtering. Personally I think your game aesthetic ‘feels right’ at lower, more ‘gritty’ resolutions.
Have you seen Jonathan Blow’s speech on “Fundamental Conflicts In Contemporary Game Design”? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_aREO4OcZg
The questions he’s posing are the ones I feel you could usefully consider for this project:
IMO the overall look, map design etc. are of far less importance (and potential interest for the player) than the underlying ‘Dynamical Meanings’ of the game – which are directly suggested through its Mechanics (as Blow suggests) – but which are in direct conflict with Story..
Don’t hesistate to contact me if you’d like to discuss this further
Sincerely, Rob Dylan
Thanks for the link Rob! Though I don’t agree with everything Jonathan says and I wasn’t a huge fan of Braid (Thought it was interesting) he does make some excellent and valid points.
Rather than the story told through text and dialog, the most meaningful elements in your “Out Of Hell” were the sense of player isolation / vulnerability, and an opressive mood of ambient doom
While I don’t think Braid is a particularly memorable game, I think Blow’s concerns over a player’s investment of time is a vital issue for modern game design
Specifically, how its meanings – which Blow suggests may be neatly and more efficiently *implied* through game mechanics – directly impact the gamer’s quality of life
That is, removal of inconsistencies or distance (‘ludonarrative dissonance’) between narrative and game play mechanics make for a meaningful player experience – as opposed to a forced or fake one..
In any case, good luck with your project – do call me if you need any help
Sincerely, Rob
I think your best bet is giving us options to turning on filters like in most games. The Anti-Aliasing Filter looks the best and you should also give the Anisotropic Filter a go. You would definitely find upgrading your GPU will significantly increase the potential for image quality and frames per second average.