Why do racing games have the best graphics?

[spacefunk]

I don't buy racing games. I don't rent racing games. Basically I wouldn't cross the street to play a racing game. But I'm not ripping them or anyone who does enjoy them, just not my cup of tea. But I see the commercials and they look closer to their real life counterparts than any other games. Why is this? I assume at least football games if not the other major sports genres sell more games so why don't they get the graphical attention that racing games get?

[TCrouch]

Re: Why do racing games have the best graphics?

My guess would be that cars and scenery are generally easier to model and make higher quality models out of relatively low-polygon frames. You can make a car resemble a real car a hell of a lot easier than you can make a human being, for instance.

Have you ever looked at the human models in a racing game? Ugly, to put it mildly. Cars are just easier with their angular lines and reflective sheen...it's easy to make a car pretty. Make a model, throw a high reflection on all surfaces except tires, and bam...realistic image (unless the model sucks).

[TCrouch]

Re: Why do racing games have the best graphics?

My guess would be that cars and scenery are generally easier to model and make higher quality models out of relatively low-polygon frames. You can make a car resemble a real car a hell of a lot easier than you can make a human being, for instance.

Have you ever looked at the human models in a racing game? Ugly, to put it mildly. Cars are just easier with their angular lines and reflective sheen...it's easy to make a car pretty. Make a model, throw a high reflection on all surfaces except tires, and bam...realistic image (unless the model sucks).

[mgoblue]

Re: Why do racing games have the best graphics?

also, cars don't move (at least most things on them don't visibly move)...People move when they run, modeling human movement makes you take tradeoffs...you can model great, but it costs cpu and memory time, or you can take a lesser quality but keep costs down. Also, with football there are 22 players on the field at once, with more complicated movements, compared to a racing game where you have 5 cars on the screen at a time, sometimes up to 20 or more, but usually a fewer number of cars.

[mgoblue]

Re: Why do racing games have the best graphics?

also, cars don't move (at least most things on them don't visibly move)...People move when they run, modeling human movement makes you take tradeoffs...you can model great, but it costs cpu and memory time, or you can take a lesser quality but keep costs down. Also, with football there are 22 players on the field at once, with more complicated movements, compared to a racing game where you have 5 cars on the screen at a time, sometimes up to 20 or more, but usually a fewer number of cars.

[dave360]

Re: Why do racing games have the best graphics?

There's no motion captures for a car I guess hehe.

[dave360]

Re: Why do racing games have the best graphics?

There's no motion captures for a car I guess hehe.

[Skyboxer]

Re: Why do racing games have the best graphics?

Nascar 2005 Race for the Cup evened things out though.
It's very UGLY imo!!

[Skyboxer]

Re: Why do racing games have the best graphics?

Nascar 2005 Race for the Cup evened things out though.
It's very UGLY imo!!

[b_assassin]

Re: Why do racing games have the best graphics?

Nascar 2005 Race for the Cup evened things out though.
It's very UGLY imo!!

I don't necessarily think that N05 is a good graphic comparison to any games other than Nascar and maybe Indy Car games. If you stack it up against those, it doesn't look so bad, especially when you consider that they have 43 cars out there at once, with reflections, particle effects and trackside objects to boot. The other "pretty" racing games I can think of usually have fewer cars racing, leaving more available overhead for making the game look as snazzy as possible (in my uninformed, non-technical opinion).

[b_assassin]

Re: Why do racing games have the best graphics?

Nascar 2005 Race for the Cup evened things out though.
It's very UGLY imo!!

I don't necessarily think that N05 is a good graphic comparison to any games other than Nascar and maybe Indy Car games. If you stack it up against those, it doesn't look so bad, especially when you consider that they have 43 cars out there at once, with reflections, particle effects and trackside objects to boot. The other "pretty" racing games I can think of usually have fewer cars racing, leaving more available overhead for making the game look as snazzy as possible (in my uninformed, non-technical opinion).

[Skyboxer]

Re: Why do racing games have the best graphics?

I don't necessarily think that N05 is a good graphic comparison to any games other than Nascar and maybe Indy Car games. If you stack it up against those, it doesn't look so bad, especially when you consider that they have 43 cars out there at once, with reflections, particle effects and trackside objects to boot. The other "pretty" racing games I can think of usually have fewer cars racing, leaving more available overhead for making the game look as snazzy as possible (in my uninformed, non-technical opinion).

43 cars or not, it's ugly. And I think the graphics would have been much better had it been programmed for XBOX first.
I know the 43 car on track causes problems freeing up for graphics, I'm just saying it's ugly

[Skyboxer]

Re: Why do racing games have the best graphics?

I don't necessarily think that N05 is a good graphic comparison to any games other than Nascar and maybe Indy Car games. If you stack it up against those, it doesn't look so bad, especially when you consider that they have 43 cars out there at once, with reflections, particle effects and trackside objects to boot. The other "pretty" racing games I can think of usually have fewer cars racing, leaving more available overhead for making the game look as snazzy as possible (in my uninformed, non-technical opinion).

43 cars or not, it's ugly. And I think the graphics would have been much better had it been programmed for XBOX first.
I know the 43 car on track causes problems freeing up for graphics, I'm just saying it's ugly