One of my favorite things about video games is admiring the gorgeous worlds and special effects that developers are able to come up with. Despite that fact, I find that many games suffer from an emphasis on style over substance. As the next console hardware generation approaches, much of the conversation is centered around the kinds of graphical improvements that the new consoles will provide, but is that the best thing for us to focus on? Let's look at that question from both sides.

Keep the Focus on Graphics

Let's be frank: Graphical improvements sell new consoles. Gamers love seeing shiny images and graphical effects on new pieces of hardware. Humans are a highly visual species, and amazing graphics provide the wow factor that convinces people to buy new consoles. With increased competition from smartphone and social gaming, the graphical quality available on PCs and home consoles helps keep traditional gaming in the spotlight.

Developers are asking for better graphical capabilities on new consoles, too. They're looking for the tools to create as much immersion in game worlds as they can, and multiplatform developers have noticed that modern PCs now have a great deal more graphical horsepower than the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. It'll be great for PC and console gamers alike once consoles are capable of displaying graphics on the same level as PCs.

Graphical improvements push a lot of much-needed technological improvements when it comes to consoles as well. Just think of how nicely beefed-up the next generation of console hardware will be in order to support larger HD game areas with HD graphics, greater load distances, and smoother frame rates. Focusing on great graphics doesn't mean that other facets of gaming fall by the wayside. Good developers will take the beefed-up technology brought to them by the console makers and do great things with it, both in terms of graphics and gameplay.

It's Time to Put Graphics on the Back Burner

The graphics our current generation of consoles can display are already quite good, and it won't be long before we have diminishing returns in terms of improving graphical technology with new hardware generations. We need to give game development some time to catch up, since the cost of developing games with HD graphics is contributing to the financial crisis that many game companies are experiencing.

In addition, no amount of graphical fidelity can save a game with poor graphical design, something that a lot more companies ought to focus on. Do realistic graphics really matter if a game world is uniformly washed-out and brown? What about all the games that came out this generation with great graphics and a poor interface, or with splashy graphics that lacked a unifying style? In many ways it's better to play a cartoonish game with quality design work and a lot of personality than a "realistic" game that looks generic.

We have more important technological improvements to focus on as well. Taking the emphasis off of making ever-more-realistic graphics might put it on other needed development improvements, such as reducing slowdown in combat or creating improved enemy A.I. In the end, we as gamers should be demanding far more than just great graphics. Let's stop letting developers get away with releasing the same basic game with a few graphical improvements every year or two. Instead of being blinded by better visuals, we should be asking for more interesting worlds, better writing, smoother action, and interesting new gameplay mechanics.

The Final Word

Personally, I lean more towards the idea that developers need to concentrate more on quality and interface design rather than on hyper-realistic graphics and other fancy forms of pixel-pushing. While I agree with the argument that consoles could use a graphical boost in the next generation in order to catch up with the capabilities of modern PCs, I also think that gamers and developers should think hard about what kinds of hardware improvements are best for gaming in general, not just for making people say, "Ooh, I can see my character's eyelashes!" while the game chugs painfully. Let's say that, personally, I'm mostly in favor of Argument 2, but with a splash of Argument 1 thrown in. I do like my pretties, after all.

By Becky Cunningham Contributing Writer @BeckyCFreelance Date: February 8, 2012

*The views expressed within this article are solely the opinion of the author and do not express the views held by Cheat Code Central.*