Graphics

[stealth_nsk]

Let's make a separate thread to discuss graphics.

1. Units.

I can't say for sure without looking at the game in dynamic, but overall I like the new style. It resembles Blizzard games a lot and for the reason - Blizzard is making the best visuals for top-down games. Important thing here is how distinguishable units are from the top and in this regard things like huge weapons are important. The more units differ, the bigger zoom you may have without loosing strategic control. Anyone remember, how awful Civ4 zoom was?

2. Cities.

What I like in district system a lot os graphical part. Now each building in the city is visible on the map and Wonders are really visible. That's huge bonus.

 

[Edish]

I know, i know... graphics isn't why we play CIV... But come on... This looks horrid... Great Lighthouse 2/3:s higher than the mountain range? A city has the same size as a market square. There is no sense of proportion what-so-ever.

The palette is from a iPhone-game. I want dark and gritty, not a child cartoon.

Also - more gamey aspects like putting tiles in specific places for adjacency bonuses? Really? Is that how we build cities?

Played every CIV since the first, this is the first time (except played 4 for a long time before 5 got playable) i feel really nervous...

 

[stealth_nsk]

Ever seen a Civilization game with proportion in graphics?

 

[Edish]

Of course not, but this is taking it way to far... It does not look like a integrated city. It looks lika a city clamed up with small houses, and then a market with gigantic houses next to it. Totally different proportions. And then a great lighthouse with the base of the entire city...

But, was taken agast at first. Will now recoup and come back more positive.

 

[Lord Tirian]

I know, i know... graphics isn't why we play CIV... But come on... This looks horrid... Great Lighthouse 2/3:s higher than the mountain range? A city has the same size as a market square. There is no sense of proportion what-so-ever.

Eh, Civ games never did proportions well. Being proportional would be impossible to do properly, because it would make buildings impossible to see at the same time as the larger terrain. Even Civ5 used aerial photograph scale and used it for the whole world. Best to realise that Civ maps are more like a general's map in a command centre, sort of a miniature diorama and Civ6 gets that look right. Not a fan of the oversaturated colour palette and blurry textures either, though.

I don't think adjacency bonuses are overly game-y. There are a lot of real-world examples of why location matters and it's a bit step forward from single-tile cities representing sprawling metropolises with massive influence (e.g. London).

As long as they have bigger maps than Civ5, you can even see that as "zoomed in" version of the previous Civ maps. Would help a lot with the drawbacks of 1UPT, too.

 

[Edish]

Eh, Civ games never did proportions well. Being proportional would be impossible to do properly, because it would make buildings impossible to see at the same time as the larger terrain.

I know. But i want cities that looks like cities! Not small collections of large random houses with a static graphic for a market with even bigger houses and GIGANTIC wonders next door.

 

[Edish]

With the exception of the Pyramids and maybe something else, the wonders does not need to be GIGANTIC. Easy visual identification on a map should not be more important

Just think if cities could look like this with the pyramids, instead of that what we'll seem to get...

 

[Lord Tirian]

I know. But i want cities that looks like cities! Not small collections of large random houses with a static graphic for a market with even bigger houses and GIGANTIC wonders next door.

These are early game cities, though, and I wouldn't be surprised if they just plopped down some tiles in a map editor to show off the graphics.

Too early to tell at the moment, but bigger cities might look very different, just compare a fresh city in Civ5 with a single wonder with a late-game one, where all merges together.

 

[Edish]

These are early game cities, though, and I wouldn't be surprised if they just plopped down some tiles in a map editor to show off the graphics... just compare a fresh city in Civ5 with a late-game one.

Good point - however, the proportions will only make that problem worse, as we have seen in previous games. I think they solved it beautifully in Civ4 with the evolution of the cottage to a full town... that is a city growing organically, getting bigger and bigger.

 

[Camikaze]

Moderator Action: Merged two similar threads.

One thing that I think it's worth noting about the colour scheme is functionality. Some people seem to be saying that it reminds them of a mobile game, but mobile games use that sort of colour scheme with clear contrasts in order to clearly distinguish between different things on a small screen. The same principle applies to any screen though; it's simply less of a problem with a better resolution. But it can still be a problem in need of a functional solution.

 

[Edish]

One thing that I think it's worth noting about the colour scheme is functionality

I always wanted CIV to move in the opposite direction. Sprawling cities over multiple tiles where you can hardly see individual houses or markets or whatnot because the scale is more reasonable. Like watching from a plane. Where large capitals feels sprawling and uncontrolled. Instead we get something that can best be described caricature. Palmtrees the height of mountains... Palette imported from the Teletubbies...

 

[kaltorak]

This looks horrid... Great Lighthouse 2/3:s higher than the mountain range? A city has the same size as a market square. There is no sense of proportion what-so-ever.

Are you beeing serious? So you want proportion in civi graphics? Ok, lets not see anything but mountains, lakes and big cities.

I don't know why this even needs to be said, but those things are out of proportion so we can see them.

 

[Edish]

Are you beeing serious? So you want proportion in civi graphics? Ok, lets not see anything but mountains, lakes and big cities.

I don't know why this even needs to be said, but those things are out of proportion so we can see them.

You could continue to read before you flame...

"Of course not, but this is taking it way to far... It does not look like a integrated city. It looks lika a city clamed up with small houses, and then a market with gigantic houses next to it. Totally different proportions. And then a great lighthouse with the base of the entire city..."

 

[Lord Tirian]

The same principle applies to any screen though; it's simply less of a problem with a better resolution. But it can still be a problem in need of a functional solution.

There are other problems, though. One of the reasons why mobile games need a lot of contrast is because they are being played on mobile devices, which are often taken to a lot of different lighting conditions, e.g. sunlight.

What makes for distinct colours on a 5-inch screen in the sun is eye-searing on a 27-inch monitor indoors taking up a large chunk of my field of vision. The oversaturation actually makes it actively unpleasant to look at for me, one of the reasons why I have such a strong opinion.

Browsing the screenshots on my phone? Yeah, that actually looks alright. Problem is that I'm not going to be playing on that.

 

[Greasy Dave]

I have to say, I REALLY dislike the graphic style. It's a step towards the cartoonish Civ Rev and away from Civ V.

What I've read about the game play changes sounds really cool. Ed Beach did such a great job with BNW, so I'm optimistic it'll be more of the same.

My one regret is this awful cartoon visual style.....but that's just pure subjectivity. I recognise others will like it.

Makes me sad though.

 

[darko82]

It looks quite nice.

 

[RohirrimElf]

Graphics are indeed hugely dissapointing. It kills the great admosphere we had with civ 5 and turned it into a browser game.

Still liking everything else i`ve read about the game. So i`m still hyped. Considering hopefully the difficulty is not damaged by this teeny/simplified art design.

 

[Synth]

Easy visual identification on a map should not be more important

I completely disagree. Civ is, first of all, a game. Easy visual identification makes for a better gameplay, so it should be prioritized.

 

[Naokaukodem]

Beside the style of the graphics, they are clearly not requiring a PC upgrade.
I see two reasons why Firaxis adopted such graphics :
1) Appealing to a larger audience, technically-wise (more computers are compatible)
2) Throwing away any velleity of realism. The game will be just another gamey board game with a couple of rigid arbitrary mechanics, with absolutely no epic feeling... Civ5 2. Or Civ4 3. Without me.

 

[Edish]

I completely disagree. Civ is, first of all, a game. Easy visual identification makes for a better gameplay, so it should be prioritized.

Do I need pyramids or Great Lighthouses that rival cities in size to see them? Nah... It's browser graphics