Poll: For Civ VII, which art direction style do you prefer?

[Quoth the Raven]

The results of this poll really show how the graphics of Civ 6 split the community.

 

[queenpea]

The results of this poll really show how the graphics of Civ 6 split the community.

Yes, I'm very surprised by the results.

I was expecting more votes for photorealism, and, if I were to guess, I would probably say that VII will head that way as well (at least when it comes to leaders), if only to mark a clear stylistic departure from VI.

 

[Bonyduck Campersang]

For leader animations, what would you think about rotoscopy?

 

[Eagle Pursuit]

For leader animations, what would you think about rotoscopy?

What about Don Bluth style cell-shaded animation?

 

[Bonyduck Campersang]

What about Don Bluth style cell-shaded animation?

I can't say, I don't know much about animation. I mentioned rotoscopy because I just remembered an anime-style rotoscopic animation of students leaving a classroom, it looked very smooth and lively. I think rotoscopic animation with flat but bright tones and stlylised (but not too cartoonish) depiction would look really good.

 

[9gkj548hkm20vk79dj689bnj4]

something where I can see hills clearly unlike Civ 6,
and where I can see resources clearly unlike in Civ 5,
and where I can actually see ANYTHING on the user-interface clearly unlike Civ 4.

 

[kryat]

I voted stylized.

I think while the early versions of the leader models in Civ6 did look a little too exaggerated (esp Teddy), the character models generally were in a really good place toward the end of development, as many have said, the character models don’t look dated. Civ5’s have aged pretty badly. I think it was a great idea to have a 3D modeled leader against an image background, since that really improved performance. Talking to Monte in 5 with old hardware was painful since it tried to render his throne room with complex fire and shadows in real-time. I might would like to see a shift in background portraits to feature the art style of that civ though, and maybe have it evolve through history like they did with the music.

The map’s style is one that I think needs a bit of an overhaul one way or another. It’s not bad in 6, but it can feel a bit empty in some places. The woods in particular don’t feel dense enough. I’ve gotten used to it, but the decreased vegetation took a while to get used to, though I believe this was the transition to 3D rendered minor features. Civ5’s style strikes me as a bit monochromatic. It lacks the vibrancy we see in 6. Maybe have more variation in the trees that transition from deciduous to coniferous the closer they are to the poles or mountains. And maybe also some more variation in mountain height and form. The variation between the Rocky Mountains vs the Appalachians is something that’s always struck me.


As has been iterated a few times here though, make the map readable, especially hills/flat and grass/plains.

 

[pokiehl]

I hope they add more visual flair to make the map feel alive. Seasons. Trains going across your railroad tracks. Maybe miniature people walking around. Birds flying.

And of course, the return of different art styles for separate continents.

 

[queenpea]

I hope they add more visual flair to make the map feel alive. Seasons. Trains going across your railroad tracks. Maybe miniature people walking around. Birds flying.

And of course, the return of different art styles for separate continents.

I've been playing a lot of Victoria 3, and I find so much joy just watching the little trains come in and out of town. It's not even done particularly well, but it certainly adds to the atmosphere.

 

[Thormodr]

I hope they add more visual flair to make the map feel alive. Seasons. Trains going across your railroad tracks. Maybe miniature people walking around. Birds flying.

And of course, the return of different art styles for separate continents.

Victoria 3 has done a very good job in that regard. You can visually see the progress of your nation. Zeppelins, too. ❤

Different looking continents would be nice. I can support that.

 

[Pistol90]

I was 100% against CIV6 art style in the begining, was really disapointed when I saw those first screenshots.

But now, I voted for Stylized

There is one advantage of stylized art style, and that is it does not get old

CIV 5 look really bad graphicly for todays standards, but CIV 6 looks the same as in 2016.

 

[Bonyduck Campersang]

I was 100% against CIV6 art style in the begining, was really disapointed when I saw those first screenshots.

But now, I voted for Stylized

There is one advantage of stylized art style, and that is it does not get old

CIV 5 look really bad graphicly for todays standards, but CIV 6 looks the same as in 2016.

I suppose it's a matter of taste. I've just returned to Civilization V after 2-3 years of VI, and the graphics hold up perfectly well.


In any case, I think you're confusing graphics with art style.

 

[Vandlys]

I hope they add more visual flair to make the map feel alive. Seasons. Trains going across your railroad tracks. Maybe miniature people walking around. Birds flying.

And of course, the return of different art styles for separate continents.

This, and preferably everything a tad smaller so it's easier on the eyes. After the modern era the came just becomes a tax on the eye in my opinion.

 

[reddishrecue]

I voted cartoonish... However, I had an exception where the leader appears in civ 5 in a realistic background and not a black background like it does in civ6.

 

[Quoth the Raven]

I was 100% against CIV6 art style in the begining, was really disapointed when I saw those first screenshots.

But now, I voted for Stylized

There is one advantage of stylized art style, and that is it does not get old

CIV 5 look really bad graphicly for todays standards, but CIV 6 looks the same as in 2016.

I cannot fathom how people can say Civ 5 looks bad. I think it is still the best looking Civ game.

 

[Abaxial]

I thinjk it depends on whether you are talking about leaders, map or units. I would not like to see Civ 5 leaders again. But I gripe about the way in Civ 6 an infantry unit has only four men. Civ 5 had eight if IRC. Four does not look like a millitary unit.

 

[Pistol90]

I cannot fathom how people can say Civ 5 looks bad. I think it is still the best looking Civ game.

Well if you look at civ 5 water, terrain textures, poligon numbers in units, smoke/shadow/volumetric effect

Everything is outdated today, but in time of release I also think it was good looking.

Cartonish/Stylized games cannot really have bad graphic in time because they never had good/realistic graphics.

 

[Bibor]

There’s certainly a lot of room between detailed descriptions or depictions of war crimes, and comical caricatures that just make a mockery of the things that happened.

History contains both our greatest achievements and our most depraved cruelties. A informative history of the world, should not shy away from any of these things, but the details of it and the way it is presented, should take the age of the audience into account.

The Civilization series is an entertainment product, not a history book or documentary, so it has a very different function. But since the theme is history, a lot of people will have preconceptions about the way it is going to be presented. Some will be fine with a comical and light-hearted approach, but for others this will feel wrong.

While I do think elements of light-heartedness and comedy can fit well in the game, I prefer the dominating feeling to be serious and dignified. Some romanticism and idealism, mixed with the harsh reality which is often very far from those.

But one thing that could have been very nice was having a jester as a recurring figure throughout the game. A figure that if the feature was turned on, would mock your aspirations, those of your rivals and many things which were going on in the world. With the high amount of possible things happening in such a game, it would be hard to do well in a way that did not feel to repetitive, and eventually, most people would probably turn it off. But if it was done well, and had a lot of work put into it, I think it could have become well loved part of the game. Like the advisors panel in Civ 2 it could have changed appearance from a courtly jester in medieval times, to a protest singer or a standup comedian in modern times.

From literature to computer games, all the greats shares one feature – coherent narrative that builds its own universe, based on history to a point it doesn't interfere with the general idea behind the story it's trying to tell.

Railroad Tycoon introduced me to the concept of stocks and how railroad helped connect various industries.
Colonization gave me a pretty good introduction to added value of work, and how productivity and flexibilty of individuals (and a society) is critical for success. Sans slavery.
Pirates was a fantasy adventure that tought me at least the geography of the Caribbean and how sailing winds work.
SMAC tought us how regardless of where we go, we take our baggage with us, and the only way forward is, well, forward.
CIV4 tought us that choices are important, but ultimately just different, not necessarily worse.

I'm not sure what grand stories Civ 5 and Civ6 are trying to tell. At least GS tought us how impactful natural disasters can be on our societies. They skipped earthquakes, though, for some odd reason.

Unlike Civ5's graphical story, which is coherent in itself, the franchise, or its authors seem to be lacking in the narrative department. Now that Jake Solomon is out, I guess it's going to be even more pronounced.

 

[planetfall]

The poll questions are not ideal. The art should support game play and NOT be an end in itself. First run at civ6 in years, is the game fails more than civ3, and that is saying a lot. civ4 and civ5 art supported the game play. Yes it was not always pretty but it was easy to understand. If it's messy to the art developer, put back the user option for the feature. There used to be a option to turn grid on/off and to show resources on/off or the old issue of single unit graphics vs multiunit force graphics. Multiunit is more real like, but it interfers with game play. Back to the basics: any art that interfers with play is not good. My tech bosses always had the same motto: LESS IS MORE. Maybe the game developers can adopt that and improve the game play. Just a thought.

 

[pokiehl]

Unlike Civ5's graphical story, which is coherent in itself, the franchise, or its authors seem to be lacking in the narrative department. Now that Jake Solomon is out, I guess it's going to be even more pronounced.

Huh? Jake Solomon isn’t credited on a single Civ game. What does he have to do with anything?