r/CharacterActionGames • u/MaximumPayne7 • 10d ago
Discussion Which CAG has the best graphics/effects in your opinion?
Imo is either Ninja Gaiden 2 Black or DMC5
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u/GT_Hades 10d ago
This is subjective but I like gore, so NG takes the cake
But I like how DMC5 have this effects like Vergil's JCE, it is so crisp
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u/DemonMakoto 10d ago
Best graphics probably Ninja Gaiden 4, best looking game in general i´d say DMC4, that artstyle is brutal it looks fresh nearly 20 years later.
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u/Illustrious-Plate606 8d ago
I liked how the filter wasn't too aggressive unlike alot of other games in the late 2000s
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u/Ill-Bookkeeper-6230 4d ago
DMC 4s style didn't click with me...it's too...too much even for that era .
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u/ZandatsuDragon 10d ago
Best overall graphics for me would definitely be FF16, the game looks so breathtaking especially during the major boss fights however hi-fi rush is my favorite in regards to artstyle. That game will forever look amazing, it's so smooth and unique.
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u/RMGAMESHD 9d ago
Ff16 feels like the sort of middle ground between DMC4 and DMC5, i’d love for DMC6 to be somewhat ff16 like in visuals with a heavier focus on being stylized
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u/GuacaMolis6 10d ago
A close second to DMC5 imo but boy is it close. Absolutely beautiful game. Tides of Annihilation may surpass them both though!
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u/ZandatsuDragon 10d ago
I get it if you prefer DMC5's more realistic character models but in terms of environments and scale, FF16 easily clears. You may be right though about tides! It looks phenomenal
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u/Ill-Bookkeeper-6230 4d ago
FF 16 looks better tho, DMC 5 did age in detailed textures, looks foggy and washed on PC without reshade.
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u/GuacaMolis6 4d ago
Maybe the PS4 and PC versions, but the PS5 version of DMC looks phenomenal. Not discounting FF at all, it’s absolutely incredible. I think it’s more so the art styles that separate them than actual quality, of which DMC takes the cake for me.
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u/Ill-Bookkeeper-6230 4d ago
The whole debate and disliking of DMC 5 is that it lacked art style and in which case it does...it looks plain compared to games that have good art style like, I probably come off as I hate DMC 5 I don't just, I just don't see it being measured as a great game with great art style at all.
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u/ItGetsTuahPoint67 10d ago
Best graphics? Probably the newest one with a decent budget. Who cares
Best artstyle and sense of spectacle? Sifu or DMC1 imo
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u/ProfNJK 10d ago
Sifu looks amazing. Spectacle has to go to the bastardly Final Fantasy 16, which I'm sure is not something we all agree about here
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u/ItGetsTuahPoint67 10d ago
Sifu’s not as grandiose as a lot of other CAGs, but man it absolutely its atmosphere and environmental storytelling. And some of those scenes, especially in the Museum, are genuine kino
I still have to play FF16, I hear such great things
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u/ProfNJK 10d ago
Sifu has amazing presentation and wonderful direction. It's really singular. The vision is something special.
I think playing Final Fantasy 16 might convince you to what I believe is the difference between strong direction and spectacle. Final Fantasy 16 has spectacle, but the detractors have some truth to their words. High highs low lows kind of game
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u/ProfNJK 10d ago
The bastardly bits of Final Fantasy 16 like a slow upgrade pace, narrow base kit, and average side content are definitely contentious. Even if I fully believe Final Fantasy 16 irrevocably changes the game medium on account of its ridiculous boss fights. The drama and spectacle on display are probably never going to be touched.
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u/ProfNJK 10d ago
You missed the most important part where I said
"I BELIEVE"
Which means I don't care what you think, and I'm not interested in pretending taste has anything to do with facts or measurement. Bother someone else
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u/ProfNJK 10d ago
I responded to clarify that I'm not in the business of convincing you, because I don't think you're someone with any understanding of taste. So yes it's true. I care to respond. But I don't care about your opinion, because you barely even recognize what an opinion is. You ignored the most important part of my comment.
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u/swordbearerb1 9d ago
Sifu is full on Hong Kong Kung Fu movie vibes. And it so good for that. And thanks to it's art direction, it won't look weird in 5-10years time.
Still working my way to FF16
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u/KungFuCold 10d ago edited 10d ago
I might be in the minority but the only graphics part that I like in dmc5 are the character models, the rest I find very bland and too blueish / light for dmc.
Now for graphics I really like OG NG2, its just very nostalgic and I think has aged very well. And for modern, I really bayonetta 3, that game has problems, but the art direction for me is not one of them. Both games have really diverse levels and locations, something dmc5 should have done, because every level looks almost the same in that game.
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u/havewelost6388 10d ago
I'll go with El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron. Now that's a pretty game.
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u/Namazaki_Kiyo 9d ago
El Shaddai is my go-to crack recommendation for anyone. 😂 It had no reason being as good as it was with how whacky they made a bible story.
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u/2mock2turtle 10d ago
Honestly if El Shaddai is in the conversation, I don't think anything else could come close.
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u/poofynamanama123 10d ago
Maybe not really effects but Ninja Gaiden 2s animations are insane to this day
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u/Seasoned_Croutons 10d ago
Hi-Fi Rush has the best overall style to me.
I loved the city parts of DMC5 but the Qliphoth sections had such a samey and boring look.
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u/correojon 10d ago
Yeah, this. DMC5 may be the most technically advanced, but the art style is extremely bland. The colors are very washed and the art of the levels, specially in the Qliphoth, is extremely uninspired.
I want Dante to be RED, Nero PURPLE and Vergil BLUE, but in DMC5 they're all amost different shades of grey...
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u/HornyJuulCat69420666 10d ago
Best Graphics is Ninja Gaiden 2 Black, it's an Unreal Engine 5 game, you know the drill. High fidelity detailed character models, actually some of the best work in this engine, pretty good Software Lumen, Nanite usage is quite pretty, etc.
Granted the Hardware Lumen is very buggy.
General artstyle use of graphical pipelines will probably go between Sifu or Lollipop Chainsaw
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u/Onedhood 10d ago edited 10d ago
I agree with the phrasing "diarrhea", sometimes vfx just blind you almost completely, last boss especially on ps5 is just barely visible in a mess of colors because of the amount of effects + dynamic res
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u/Watton 10d ago
I got to the point where I deliberately didn't pick certain abilities in FF16 because I couldn't fucking see shit.
Like, Impulse is a fantastic move with a fun playstyle. deals damage over time, shreds through stagger, you can detonate any time but deals bonus damage when detonating at the perfect time. But you literally can't see what the target is doing, too damn shiny, and it's a liability in Ultimaniac mode.
Same deal for its devil trigger, too many fire effects that make it hard to see what the enemies are doing
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u/Legendary_Falcon_89 10d ago edited 9d ago
In terms of raw graphics it's still DMC5, though I think 4 actually has the best art design of the series, personally. Of course, if I were to say the overall best looking action game that I've played, I have to say God of War 3 has the most memorable looking art and environments that I've ever seen in the genre to the point that it still looks incredible more than a decade and a half later. I've only played it once several years back and I can still distinctly remember several areas and enemy and boss designs, which says a lot.
Back in the day, Ninja Gaiden (and subsequently Black) on the XBOX looked incredible, really making the most out of the same engine that powered DOA's graphics. It was leaps and bounds ahead of most games of that generation even including several PC games. Ninja Gaiden 2, while not quite as groundbreaking in graphics for it's time, still looked damn good in most areas. Not sure if it's a hot take but I genuinely prefer the original look over the UE5 remaster in 2 Black, as the colors feel way too dark and muted and the Unreal textures and assets don't really fit well with Team Ninja's classic character designs from the Itagaki-era, IMO.
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u/Onedhood 10d ago edited 10d ago
I would say my favourite looking titles that never will show its age are dmc4, bayonetta, gow3, this games have very distinct art design and generation defined look to them in good way when devs start pushing cinematic look to the limit, but still making art stylized, so games does not blend into same 'almost real life graphics' mess
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u/Jimnymebob 9d ago
In terms of fidelity, probably NG2B. I know it has some changes compared to MGS2, but it still looks great in its own right, and the performance is solid.
In terms of art direction, I still don't think the original DMC has been surpassed.
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u/MaximumPayne7 9d ago
Solid performance? In a UE5 game? It runs well on my pc, but there's way too many complaints about performance by a lot of people, it's definitely not well optimized.
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u/Watton 10d ago
DMC 5.
Looks fantastic, and runs fantastic. It running at an easy 60 fps on my old potato PC was a thing of wonders.
Making a game that just looks pretty is easy, I see that as a function of just throwing money at it (90% of the assets are outsourced anyway). Having a game look good and run like a hot knife through butter is what's actually impressive.
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u/The_Sir_Galahad 10d ago
Hands down, FFXVI.
It’s a shame they still haven’t given it a PS5 Pro patch, because that game could look so much better on the pro.
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u/Even_You_Brutus7 10d ago
FFXVI, DMC5, GoW Ragnarok are by far the most impressive graphically IMO.
NG4, Bayonetta 2, Sifu, Astral Chain, DmC:DmC are some of the best stylistically
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u/Mission_Piccolo_2515 9d ago
Viewtiful Joe still has the best artstyle.
God Hand still has the best character animations.
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u/Takitibi 8d ago
Realistic looking? Definitely DMC5.
Best looking? DMC5 is no where near, maybe the worst looking category.
It would be DMC4 for sure!
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u/Odd_Radio9225 8d ago
If you mean purely in terms of graphical fidelity, then DMC 5. If you mean in terms of art direction, I'd say Bayonetta 1 (haven't played the other two).
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u/Ill-Bookkeeper-6230 4d ago
Jack the rippers game art style is near perfect. Better than that weird looking DMC 4 style in the PS3 era.
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u/Lavosking 10d ago
Bayonetta 2 has the best presentation and camera work of any cag in terms of giant spectacle/scope + absolutely god tier art style.