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I've always figured that FF3was in some respect the best usage of SNES graphics all around, but in the EMU frenzy I had some months back, I downloaded one game that I forgot Nintendo had created which I believe just might top FF6 as far as graphics are concerned..

.. I'm speaking of Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island.. I have to admit it's 2003 and I'm still mesmorized by the cool animations in this game. The entire layout has depth for all background layers, the enemies all have a very lifelike feel, and the game is consistent with this typical style of animation which gives it it's own feel..

This is not to take anything away from FF6, as it is much better than Yoshi's Island all around, but hey, graphics wise, this beats many games on PS1.

Yoshi's Island does have quite superb and underrated graphics, especially in the Super-FX-assisted special effects department. The rotating wodden panels and the Fuzzy effect, especially. The animation was excellent, as well. It's a shame this didn't all carry over perfectly to the recent GBA port (which is still a great game, and has extra levels).

Cel shading for modern games seems to be getting quite popular at the moment but, for the most part, I don't think it works that well. If you want to know how to do cartoony graphics well, look at Yoshi's Island. Or, indeed, how to do platform graphics well. Have you noticed that a lot of new GBA platformers look worse than 16-bit equivalents through being too cartoony? Sonic Advance springs to mind. Yoshi's Island, there's a benchmark for designers. I feel I could say the same of a lot of modern 2D games: they just aren't as pretty as the ones made in the era when everything was that way. And it's not just rose tinted spectacles. 2D graphics seem to be something of a lost art.

In some ways, I like the old graphics better than the new ones.
With the old ones, the characters are sharper and their features more defined. The new ones are a little more realistic, but just with proportions. 16-bits wins my vote because the sprites are more visually appealing than 8-bit, and more realistically defined than both 8-bit and 3D.
I have a Yoshi's Island cartridge, and yes, the graphics are fantastic. The gameplay is pretty cool, too.

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I can remember when Donkey Kong Country came out and everyone was telling me how the great the graphics were. Well whoop de do, fair enough 3d graphics is an accomplishment. But I'd seen better graphics, the best in My opinion was Earthworm Jim which had alot great visuals and was damn funny.

I think the older graphics are much more appealing myself. I like my games simple, but viewable. I think that is why FFVI was my favorite of the Final Fatasies, because everything about the game (Visual aspect) was perfect for me. I like games like that because first off, they don't make me nauseous like most 3D games do. In being someone who wears really strong glasses, my eyes can't handle that sort of thing and send me into fits of getting sick. Also, I think the style is more like a game, and not close to real life. That's how I like my game. The more realistic a game is graphically, the less I want to play it. I play games to ESCAPE reality, not to find a new reality. Those two reasons are the reasons I love games like FFT, FFVI, Legend of Mana, and Chrono Trigger. They aren't too visually complex. Don't get me wrong, the 3D graphics are great and all, but bigger does not always mean better.

* her two cents *

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You're right, I miss the ol' 16 bit. I wish there were more games released for the low-tech. They spent so much more time mastering the old games it seems like. The backrounds and features are so interactive and delightful. I think if they are to make more 3-D games, they need to make them more envyromentally interactive. One such accomplishment is GTA:VC where you could walk into buildings and such more often. I don't know, maybe it's because 2-D games concentrate less of 3-d concepts and more onentertainment value. Lunar- they could have made a top notch 3-d out of ot, but they made a kick ass 2-d I played for a and a half strait.

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I love how they tried to make it like Donkey Kong Country had 3D graphics.

Oooo, nice posts guys. I couldn't agree more. I like 2D graphics because you can see everything on the screen at once. 3D cameras are a pain in the rear, and the complexity seems to extract some of the fun value... wow my radio station is playing a good song... oh, anyway 2D graphics just seem more solid and reliable than 3D graphics. I wish some company would release a new modern 2D system with ultra high res, DVD and a great modern sound chip. OMG that would be fun! I bet it would sell like crazy, especially if it cost $150-$200 at launch. What do you guys think? The special effects would be NUTS!

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I personally prefer 2D graphics, mainly because 3D and computer animation has never been as good. Somehow my brain feels that the 2D sprites are more realistic than 3D graphics. I think the best graphics for the SNES are on CT, FFVI, and SMW2YI.

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F-Zero was amazing for it's time. I loved that game.

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FFXI (Siren server)
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The first super nintendo game I got was Super Mario World. I love that game. I don't know what it is with old super nintendo games. No matter how many times you play them, they never get old. The super nintendo would be one of the last consules that I would ever get rid of.

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I liked Chrono Trigger's graphics more than any other SNES game's that I can think of; I think the sprites were a better size than the FF6 guys. I don't like newer graphics as much because they tend to be a little blurry. Shadow of Destiny (PS2) actually gets around this with really crisp, clean-cut scenes and people.

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While graphics in games like Mario RPG were impressive, I always thought the SNES was at it's best with it's bright, colorful grphics. I'd say, on that note, that the graphics award goes to Yoshi's island. Not only was the game beautiful, but they made a really cool use of the FX2 chip for Morphing, scaling, and rotating objects.

for the super nintendo, i say that CHRONO TRIGGER has the best graphics, although thats not to say they were my fav. i liked...
1. Earthbound-never has a game SO fit with its graphics. could you imagine this game with 3-D graphics? GROSS!
2. Yeap, Earthworm Jim did have some fantastic graphics for the gamers pleasure.

i wasnt really a fan of the donkey kong and SMRPG styles. but this thread is just basically based upon personal-preferences. FUHHHHHHHHHGAAAAAAH!

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Another game I'd forgotten about that I thought had the most unique graphics when it was first released was Out of this World. 2D animation coupled with a crazy, mysterious storyline. Liked dat.

If you liked that you should check out Heart of darkness on PSx. you can get ti real cheap now, it was made by the same people. Abe's oddysee would be a good one for ya too.

Moderator Edit

Since the topic is SNES graphics, any post about a PSX game would best be suited to a PM. I know you were trying to help LT, but a PM is the appropriate place. -R51

This post has been edited by Rangers51 on 7th December 2003 21:47

Yoshi's Island is definitely up there. How about Seiken Densetsu 3? Not bad at all. Chrono Trigger was nice.

I don't think FF6 had GREAT graphics. They were alright, but what I liked was the cozy 16-bit feeling. The sprites are cool and the world is very well depicted. I'm sure you know what I mean.

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One of my favorite game on the SNES (both graphic and gameplay wise) has to be Tales of Phantasia. I loved how the colors were more subdued (I think the proper way to say it is that they were pastels, but I'm not sure), which seemed to lend itself to the game, as it tended to be slightly more serious that other games at the time while still being punctuated by moments of mass hilarity (*My Mind* Arche on the boat about Cless....heh, heh, heh, that part makes me laugh just thinking about it), buit anyway, the graphics fit, and they were well done, all in all, great design job on that.

This post has been edited by Spoony Bard on 10th December 2003 21:29

Must agree with Out Of This World.. SMRPG and Yoshis Island were also great, graphic-wise.

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SNES was definetly the best system of all time (IMHO). Take a look at Both Castlevania's released on that system. They look amazing. Same with Contra 3 (the last good contra). But the best graphics on that system had to be either Secret of Mana, FF6 or Chrono trigger.

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Reading Ace909's post made me think about SMRPG. Its graphics aren't bad at all; they're also extraordinary, so please add that to the list. I probably missed it because it has a different kind of graphics from that of CT, FFVI, and SMW2YI--SMRPG seems to be a precursor of computer-animated 3D graphics, more so than an extension of 2D graphics (as in the other games).

This post has been edited by Glenn Magus Harvey on 11th December 2003 22:49

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Check the "What games are you playing at the moment?" thread for updates on what I've been playing.

You can find me on the Fediverse! I use Mastodon, where I am @[email protected] ( https://sakurajima.moe/@glennmagusharvey )

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This is not to take anything away from FF6, as it is much better than Yoshi's Island all around, but hey, graphics wise, this beats many games on PS1.

Uh, no--about the FF6 being better than Yoshi's Island part. They aren't even the same genre, and in any case I think they're about equal standing within their genre/series. As for graphically, Yoshi's Island smokes FF6.

Yoshi's Island had a very unique graphic style, combining traditional animation, 3-D effects, and almost coloring-book styled backgrounds and levels.

FF6 looked good, but come on. Backgrounds were the most visually appealing part of the game, as well as the world map Mode 7 trick. Yet, the enemies in battles had no animation at all (except for "jiggle a bit when attacking/attacked"), and there weren't much in the way of impressive looking spells. In backgrounds, animation, visual effects and spell graphics, character sprites, etc, Chrono Trigger smokes FF6. Plus, the art style used for enemies clashes with the sprites used for your characters. It looks like hell and didn't happen in CT, Mario RPG, the newer FF's, etc.

The Donkey Kong Countries have to be up there. I didn't like the visual style change in DKC3, but they all were impressive-looking.

I'm surprised nobody mentioned Super Metroid. When I think of great looking SNES games, that's pretty much the first one to pop into my mind. Sure, it's dark and gloomy in places, but the detail on the backgrounds, the enemies, Samus' animation and the weapon effects - it's all gorgeous. I'd also rank Seiken Densetsu 3 pretty highly, as well as Kirby: Super Star. The latter is just bright and colourful - I love it.

I'd never played Yoshi's Island when this topic was first written, but now that I have, I think I have to throw in a vote for it as well. The art direction of that game was just fantastic, and while you would think that having a game so bright and colorful would end up just being a gigantic mess, it really works in YI for both the style and on its own merit.

I mentioned in another post the other day the quality of the sprite work in FF5, and I think that even though we didn't technically get a release of that for SNES, it should still count. The monster design feels more interesting than that of its contemporaries, and the design of the costumes for all the many jobs was done exceedingly well.

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I always thought Tales of Phantasia for the SNES leaned on the maximum of the system's capabilities. It's got superior graphics, some minor voice acting and an actual honest-to-god song in there, and the game goes on for all eternity before you reach the final battle.

...but the topic was about graphics. It's got moving monsters, moving characters, nice-looking spells, a mode 7 Overworld map, beautiful backgrounds and well-designed cities and dungeons.

This post has been edited by Djibriel on 26th July 2011 14:22

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