Live action, hand drawn, CGI, Pure Text

[Dragon]

Let me start off by saying, this is my very first time posting in this section of the forum, woooohoooo! Now with that said, not to long ago I journey into the world of the RAGS engine (and a few others I can't remember) in search of my games and to see how deep the rabbit whole goes and something I have noticed after playing a few games, (just to name a few; wife trainer, the original superpowered, Drunken cowboy, Spell for all) I noticed that there seems to be a trend of using Live action photos instead of hand Drawn or even CGI, or just text!


So my question is, which do you all prefer to see? Personally and this is just my own opinion, I have a bias for 2d being a wannabe illustrator myself. I have nothing against 3d models when they are done well. to put it bluntly... I hate 3d models when they are anime style, 3d model always looks so cringe-inducing when they try to imitate anime. Something like the Chibi stuff I can see getting a base due to the simplification of the design, but the more normalized anime stuff not so much. It actually takes me a minute to get used to the using of more realistic models in engines like RPG maker, especially when the models themselves don't match well or even at all to the character's portrait or sprite. I was also a game design student for 3 years, so I understand the work that goes into making an actual model from scratch... that is assuming one didn't just grab a base model from the program and just edit it.

Still, though, UV mapping is a *beep*

Live action photography... unless those photographs were taken by the creator or someone the creator highered directly for the game... I personally can't help but view this action as a more lazy approach. I understand the time it takes to go out and find the images, trust me I know the pain of looking (and making my own) for reference and resource images for an illustration. But it just feels like an out to me on that aspect.

So which do you all prefer?

 

[Skeleton Man]

3D models always, ALWAYS revolt me. They usually look like cheap stock assets at worst or early PS1-quality messes at best. If I see a 3D model on something like an RPG maker game, I uninstall and walk away. Unless they're modelling gods like whatever madmen did the Guilty Gear Xrd models. They deserve a fucking medal.

Live action photos, I honestly haven't seen much of that at all in my (admittedly limited) experience. I suppose it depends on how well it's implemented but considering the low budget works we're talking, you can usually expect bottom-of-the-barrel quality which is a pretty big turn-off in my books. Maybe I just have unreasonably high standards for games.

When it comes to making an appealing and consistent art-style, it's kinda hard to beat hand-drawn/computer drawn 2D work. Failing that? Don't bother with any. Imagination can work much better than cheap, poorly made 3D models or google image searched mishmashes of portraits. As long as the writing is detailed and descriptive, I'm fine with filling in the visuals with my brain.

 

[Kesil]

I liked CoC's first iteration: all text, some pixel figures (there's a reason why I haven't changed my avatar) and a character viewer which kept track of the Champion's transformations. Plus it allowed me to play the game without people asking me what was that and use my imagination when it came to deal with the looks of certain characters (the perks of catching'em all).

3D figures tend to horrify me thanks to uncanny valley and I can't stand real life images when it comes to fantasy. 2D is a mixed bag.

 

[Akhter13]

RL photos have the problem that I am projecting myself on to someone else. Why I like fantasy is "No Minotaurs/Goo-Girl/whatever were harmed in the creation of this".

I think the 3D thing was covered by Kesil

I nearly voted for text only, but decided against it because I like location art even if it is only background. It adds flavor and and reduces the need for long location descriptions. As for portraits: in general it is nicer to just imagine [not least because your mind will normally edit out off-putting details]. The only time I would demand portraits is if the races in the game are hard to describe [for all of you who want a diner date with a Mi-Go].

 

[balitz Method]

Yeah, that whole "uncanny 3D models with RPG Maker" trend is about as offputting as it gets. I get that not everyone wants to use the default animu style of RPG Maker characters but those 3D models always look super goofy. Any and all attempts for them to look sexy just crashes down that inherently thin barrier between comedic and erotic.

Always prefer drawn material or mostly/all text. Even with the photo trend I can't say I'm a fan just because I've never liked the aesthetic of porn and that's always where people get those pictures.

 

[Charm]

My first choice in erotic gaming has been text as well. My imagination will be by far, weirder, wilder and to the "T" than any illustration, image/CGI pack and certainly any photograph could be. Give me plain old flavor text and let me run with it.

My second choice would be illustrations/art by hand/tablet/scanned - whathaveyou. Because if I have trouble imagining as above, a well contrived artist's illustration will usually set me on the right path in my noggin. :>

EDIT: Well, you know, because I am an idiot and make mistakes. ;>