Trends of graphical innovation in Games

Games have come a long way from a graphics point of view. Game developers have given us games in which the immersion level is on some next level ultra-realism. We gamers play games and the computer world feels so real, that it becomes our escape from reality.

How much more the graphics scene can improve?

Modern AAA titles come with graphics that have blurred the lines between reality and games.

Gamers, play games to find some escape from reality for a while.
Realistic graphics help us do that.
But how much more graphical innovation can be made?

Developers are at the end of the innovative techniques as the current situation doesn't leave much room for improvement. How much real can graphics get from here on?

Solution?

The current situation has got developers scratching their heads together. What have they come up with?

Increasing visual fidelity by upping the resolution.
Virtual Reality
Ray Tracing

Upping the resolution

Let's talk about the available and upcoming resolutions for gaming. Now if you're a casual gamer like me who is an utter newb in skills and you prefer story mode games like me then you have got hardware that can run games at stable FPS at the ultra preset then you have got resolutions starting from HD 720p-up to 4k 2160p. In some cases, you can up the res up till 8K. But that will cost you quite a lot and in my opinion, you don't need to spend a lot. 4K is overkill already for gaming. But, who am I kidding? I know the enthusiasts will still go and buy. Oh well, your money, you spend it.

Virtual Reality

VR was supposed to be the next thing in graphical innovation in games. But, it didn't gain the traction that it wanted. And it failed, too. People didn't adopt it the way the developers intended to and even though it did become mainstream to some extent, but just not enough. There are still projects that brought some new stuff to the table. For example, the VR coffee shop. But VR tech didn't get enough traction. The hardware cost also comes into play as well. Not everybody can spend around Rs.80K on a VR headset and then spend another Rs.100-150K on a system which is capable of running VR apps and games.

Ray Tracing

Another innovation in the graphics scene which is considered to be the next big thing. Nvidia introduced us to this tech in 2018 when launching their RTX series cards. The tech follows an algorithm which simulates lighting effects in a Computer generated world by rendering light rays produced by a light source in real-time. The tech is in its initial phase and it holds a lot of promise. However, right now limited hardware is available which has enough juice to process and render the tech in games. Nvidia and AMD are currently working to improve the tech and making hardware which is more efficient and better than the current generation. Keeping my fingers crossed, because out of all the innovations made so far, real-time Ray tracing holds the most promise. Right now, in order to take advantage of this tech, we have to dig a hole into our pockets to buy hardware that is capable of running it. Like I said, your money, your choice. Let us know in the comment section your opinions on how the field of graphical innovation can be improved. We'd love to hear from you!