Graphics & Gameplay

The question of graphics and their impact of gameplay can take us all over the board. Realism, animation, fluidity of frame-rate and fun are all related in some way or another, and are all tied into the process of identification that I have come quite fond of over the course of this semester.

Final Fantasy X-2 continues the tradition of Final Fantasy aesthetic, characters sporting doe eyes and soft, angular faces . Female and male characters share similar traits, and each game carries over game aesthetics and storyline, that the player can identify with throughout. What I like the most about the graphics in Final Fantasy X2 is that the cinematics (or cut scenes) are 'shot' in the same graphics as regular game play instead of shifting over to a more realistic quality found in most games. I cannot count the times that I have been blown away by beautiful graphics in the introductory cinematics only to be plopped into the game world as a polygonic avatar who walks more like a well oiled robot than a fluid moving character.

By keeping the same graphics, the player is able (at least I was) to maintain the 'suspension of disbelief' instead of being jarred between passive viewing and active playing recognizable by sharp contrast in graphics.

But graphics as representation of a fictional world - Final Fantasy's graphics are consistent in creating a rich, and beautiful environment that enhances the gameplay instead being a veil, created to hide poor mechanics [Jenkins, 2002]. Personally, at times, I found the graphics distracting, as I wanted to spend more time exploring what was behind the bushes or around a corner. Instead, I was abruptly thrown into battle, which sharply reminded me that I was not on a sightseeing tour in a beautiful foreign land, but a high summoner on a purposeful mission.