Games that made you go WOW (graphically)

Crysis
CoD 4
CoD 2
Doom 3
Half-Life 2
Destruction Derby (PS1)
Doom 1 (because it was pretty much my first 3D game experience)
Cannon Fodder (Amiga)

quake GL(ide) on 3DFX everythings been a bit meh since.

my mate showed me Quake with 3DFX, i got in the car and drove 1 hr to bristol immediately and bought one

I had to save up 4 months paper round money for mine, Quake GL was amazing though
 
-Unreal (especially the start of the 2nd level when you step outside the Vortex Rikers and see that big open expanse in front of you). The see-through teleports were also pretty cool (albeit allegedly nicked off of Prey!).
-Forsaken. Probably a bit too brash for modern tastes (techno lighting, loads of lens flare etc)
-Far Cry. Truly stunning and still looks the business 5 years on.
-Serious Sam. Probably the best LOD implementation I've ever seen, it was great to have a throw back to the Doom days i.e. 30+ baddies on screen at once, massive open levels etc. I'm staggered that nobody licensed the Serious engine.
-Call of Duty. A bit of a surprise actually considering it uses the Q3 engine and I didn't play it until after Far Cry and Doom 3. Some really good level design and an example of how visual appeal isn't solely down to the engine and graphics effects - it's also how the designer makes use of those features, the texture design, and intergration with the rest of the game environment (sounds etc).
-Motorhead. Seemed very slick at the time.
-GL Quake. For many people the first real feel of what 3d acceleration can do. The water transparency in particular impressed me.
-Chrome. Simply because I wasn't expecting it from a little known game that was over 2 years old when I played it, the outdoor environments, foliage etc look really good.
-Need for Speed: Porsche 2000. Great track design and some good use of lighting for a driving game.
-Doom 3. Nearly didn't put this (as due to all the hype I was expecting it) but it really did look very impressive with the lighting, shadows, and 'organic growth' infesting the base. I'm tempted to play through this again actually.

Interestingly I haven't named any games released since 2004. I don't know why Crysis didn't WOW me, I mean if I look at screenshots I think 'yeah, that is awesome!' yet it never really struck me that way during gameplay.
 
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PC:
Turok (the first one) - First game I played on the PC that required a 3D Graphics Card
Half Life 2
Doom 3

Console:
Resident Evil (first PS game I played)
Gears of War
 
Interestingly I haven't named any games released since 2004.

There's a surprisingly high proportion of old games in this thread. The Far Cry or Doom 3 engine seems to have been the last big leap forward, everything since has been small increments - depth of field, motion blur and other camera tricks nicked from cinema.

Gears of War is the only thing recently that really impressed me, but again that's more because of the animation and the way the camera moves rather than the actual graphics.
 
There's a surprisingly high proportion of old games in this thread. The Far Cry or Doom 3 engine seems to have been the last big leap forward, everything since has been small increments - depth of field, motion blur and other camera tricks nicked from cinema.

Gears of War is the only thing recently that really impressed me, but again that's more because of the animation and the way the camera moves rather than the actual graphics.

I guess for me everything since has just felt like an expected evolution as opposed to the initial revolution :)

Scott C
 
Quake 2. Going from software mode to glide with 3dfx Voodoo 3 card.

More recently Gears Of War 2 and Tiger Woods 09 on 360. When you see the sea and those rolling waves on some of the courses, I think it's very impressive.
 
Not many modern games have so much wow factor - I guess we've all become used to it.

Recently only, GTAIV really. Despite it's flaws GTAIV does present some amazing vistas if you pump up the view and detail distance.
 
Gran Turismo
Metal Gear Solid
Final Fantasy IX /X
Unreal
Doom 3
Far Cry


Can't remember any more just yet
 
Gran Turismo
Doom 3
Far Cry
Crysis
Company of Heroes (for an RTS)
Age of Conan (for MMO)
Stalker Clear Skies (if your rig can handle the light effects ;))
 
Oblivion
Dawn of War 2 (first new game i played on my first game-capable PC)
Rome Total War
Resident Evil 0
Twilight Princess (Played it before i built my PC or got an xbox)
 
I don't understand this? I really like CoD4 but the graphics are kind of crappy especially the textures..i like the lighting though

It might be because I've just upgraded to an at 4870 from an ancient X850XT and the difference blew me away. Crysis is pretty impressive, but it doesn't have the same cinematic feel to it, and I can't maintain a decent frame rate at high settings.
 
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