Bring back HIGH RES TEXTURES NOW

[spitfire12]

EC is ugly as hell right now with the pixelated ugly 2d textures.... and devs said 8 months ago that terrain textures going in,, followed by high res character textures...

what the hell is taking so long? why not revert back to the KR high res textures? which frankly was WAY Better than the current EC client now... but because we have 80 year old players who whine and can't conform to change, had to cry until they got their way with the EC, which they don't use anyway, because 2d is the only way to play UO.


Bring back KR textures, or DO SOMETHING TO GET HIGH RES TEXTURES OUT.
UO gameplay is why I play it, but thats not enough now, given its 13 years old. GRAPHICS ARE A MUST

 

[Merion]

Well, I sure wouldn't mind if my char looked a bit sharper.

 

[Madrid]

EC is ugly as hell right now with the pixelated ugly 2d textures.... and devs said 8 months ago that terrain textures going in,, followed by high res character textures...

what the hell is taking so long? why not revert back to the KR high res textures? which frankly was WAY Better than the current EC client now... but because we have 80 year old players who whine and can't conform to change, had to cry until they got their way with the EC, which they don't use anyway, because 2d is the only way to play UO.


Bring back KR textures, or DO SOMETHING TO GET HIGH RES TEXTURES OUT.
UO gameplay is why I play it, but thats not enough now, given its 13 years old. GRAPHICS ARE A MUST

I could agree more especially with "What the hell is taking so long"!



It's really sad when I think they way this game has been handled. Some **** poor decisions made one of which was taking out the KR graphics and going to something which looks even worse and has 0 chance of attracting new players.

 

[Anira Cuilwen]

Many things looked totally ugly in KR too but yes what's about the promised new graphics?

And let's all hope it doesn't turn everything into the ugliness of the SA style. Has that designer been shot yet?

 

[Martyna Zmuir]

Don't expect an answer regarding this topic from Mythic, especially not from GrimmOmen (since he feels the need to post regarding everything BUT art issues).

In 8 months, even one person should have been able to completely redo all the EC terrain textures. The in-game avatar revamp would be little more then patching in the higher res one from KR, or rerendering from whatever 3D program they created them in - same goes for the mobs.

But no, we get typical hollow promises without any solid results. They definately know how to play us.

Go Mythic.

 

[Anira Cuilwen]

Well.. since it is an EA company there is nothing to expect.
It's more like being lucky to get anything good at all.

So my expectation for everything are like -10000%.
Good side is. I am happy with any little nicey

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

Saying that a designer "needs to be shot" is inappropriate and should be rescinded.

I want to see higher resolution artwork in the EC as well (or at the very least a toggle to use KR artwork at KR resolutions), but that statement towards the artist(s) who spent a LOT of time to reimage the entirety of UO (at the time) was wrong.

 

[Anira Cuilwen]

...

Saying that a designer "needs to be shot" is inappropriate and should be rescinded.

I want to see higher resolution artwork in the EC as well (or at the very least a toggle to use KR artwork at KR resolutions), but that statement towards the artist(s) who spent a LOT of time to reimage the entirety of UO (at the time) was wrong.

*Giggles*
They said themself in one of their videos. Well okay, they have chosen sort of more friendly wording for it.
My comment just expresses how I feel about the SA art. It just looks wrong between all the original stuff.

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

The worst they did with the KR artwork was that they changed the equipment (armor and weapons) too much from their original versions so that it WAS confusing for a while to remember what each one was at a glance (you had to relearn them again).

Beyond that, things like the perspectives on barrels, dye tubs, fountains and the like look different because the perspective was CORRECTED. The 2d perspective on many rounded objects is actually quite a bit off compared to the rest of the artwork... it's a case of familiarity vs "correct".

The bad thing about SA artwork is that it is using 2d artwork in its native resolution then trying to scale it through the ingame zoom feature which apparently does NOT include any type of anti-aliasing or other scale-enhancing methods (oddly enough, the UI windows DO use these methods as can be seen with some playing around in Pinco's UI with UI scale and ingame zoom), thus any time you go outside of the native resolution for 2d graphics, they get distorted and pixelated.

Much of the 2d artwork, especially pre-UOR artwork is done with very low levels of color depth... the KR versions were MUCH better about this (see spider webs which in 2d were flat white vs shades of grey in KR giving them a more realistic, ethereal look). You can even see the difference within 2d artwork itself when you put older 2d artwork beside newer items.

Point being it's the older items that needs to be updated in color depth and resolution WITHOUT making them entirely different graphics.

It's been interesting to see what lurks via a certain program posted here not too long ago.

 

[Woodsman]

It's been interesting to see what lurks via a certain program posted here not too long ago.

It has been, wish that stuff would make its way into the game in some form sometime soon.

I would be surprised if we didn't see something within the month, because somebody is obviously messing with the graphics files.

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

I haven't been keeping track each patch... to be honest, there are so many pieces to dig through that it would be difficult to ever really be sure that something was in fact changed unless you do see it ingame and recognize it. Seeing it in the art files, especially the ones that are currently sitting unused, unless you spent the time to export and catalogue EVERYTHING for comparison would be DAMNED time consuming... I don't think I'm either up to that task or have the time to be.

We'll see what happens, but I'm more than ready... I miss KR graphics, wooden floors and trees especially.

 

[Elric_Soban]

First, I don't remember them saying anything about higher rez char art...

Second, they only *said* they were going to improve terrain art.. its one of those things that il believe when I see it.

As for KR rez art... the EA Mythic team takes a strong moral stance against good graphics. They're commited to keeping UO in the technologial stone age, to continue to appeal to the commodore 64 users.

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

Well, the statement was actually that they were going to START with terrain and building walls for the artwork upgrade...but yeah we're still waiting on that one.

 

[Woodsman]

First, I don't remember them saying anything about higher rez char art...

Second, they only *said* they were going to improve terrain art.. its one of those things that il believe when I see it.

Like Dermott said, they actually said they were doing it in phases or waves, with terrain and walls first. I don't know why they picked those first, unless there were fewer pieces or less has changed over time or less has been added versus characters.

It would be crazy as hell for them to only do terrain/walls and not characters, because it would defeat the purpose. It would make things look a hundred times worse.

You should grab UO Reader and poke around though.

to continue to appeal to the commodore 64 users.

I sometimes wonder if those who are against adding new/high resolution graphics would rather see the game die than see high resolution graphics. I could speculate on other reasons, but I've ran across people who almost seem like they'd rather see it continue to wither away.

 

[Kons]

i think a reason about upgrading terrain first could be a try to make ground tiles load using less memory or similar.
If you see in my program EC Houses Multis (with new graphics) don't have floors..
Btw it's taking too long anyway.

 

[Woodsman]

It is somewhat confusing to look through the files in the current EC or to guess what's new and what's not.

I grabbed these a few minutes ago. Obviously the tree and pillar scale up nicely to large monitors, but I wonder about the smaller stuff.

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

The serpent pillar is by FAR one of my favorite graphical pieces I have seen inside the EC files, and I'm sad I missed it in KR (if it was in KR). It really is a testament on how GOOD the EC and UO COULD look if it were allowed to happen.

Other great pieces include the telescope and of course, from KR, the banana trees.

Just KNOWING what UO COULD look like is very frustrating to me (especially dealing with the UHall), and I'm sure it's frustrating on a personal level to Grimm and his team as well.

 

[Woodsman]

Just KNOWING what UO COULD look like is very frustrating to me (especially dealing with the UHall), and I'm sure it's frustrating on a personal level to Grimm and his team as well.

We should just start posting some of these every time somebody claims the EC graphics suck. There are a lot of people who have never seen these.

 

[Pinco]

those items are HD but they are far from being good... they are bulky and ugly, and that's why I leaved KR...

The are only 2 ways to improve the graphic:

1) Use 3D models: this way will greatly improve the entire game since will reduce the HUGE amount of 2d frame for every object/beast/ecc... With 3d they just need the model, the coordinates and the texture to apply instead of lots of frame on each possible direction.

2) Remake the items in a more real look. This will requires ages to be completed and the result could be worst than what we have.

In short: give us back the good old third dawn

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

The only difference between EC and Third Dawn graphically were that the models were 3d polygon models instead of stop-motion animation... everything else was 2d client graphics (and had the same pixelation/distortion problem). Technically, behind the scenes, the 3d client was a much different animal in many coding ways making it impossible to do some things they were doing in 2d (notably snow on the ground during winter).

Some of the aspects could have been kept, but the client itself needed to be left behind in favor of a better-built engine tech-wise.

And no, we shouldn't need to get into a graphics war with the Luddites over on the UHall... I had actually planned on doing just that when Reader was first posted and I found those items, but discussed the matter elsewhere and was politely requested not to do so... and that's probably for the best.

Let's debate with "what is", not "what we want" right now and let's see what direction they take with the high res graphics tweaking.

 

[Woodsman]

In short: give us back the good old third dawn

The heads that would explode.

It would be nice though. I would like to see what's possible with today's hardware.

 

[Kons]

i think 3d models would be great, but it would mean trashing all the work that has been done developing this medium.high 2d graphic.
Btw i would still vote 3d models.

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

3d models WOULD work better in terms of animation and client download footprint, plus would give us a more interactive paperdoll (as we has with the 3d client).

It was IMO a mistake to go backwards in that manner even if they smoothed out the 2d animation because it made the client download MUCH bigger than it needed to be, and with today's hardware, we can get the smoothness and quality of image that wasn't available when 3d was released.

 

[Woodsman]

And no, we shouldn't need to get into a graphics war with the Luddites over on the UHall... I had actually planned on doing just that when Reader was first posted and I found those items, but discussed the matter elsewhere and was politely requested not to do so... and that's probably for the best.

Let's debate with "what is", not "what we want" right now and let's see what direction they take with the high res graphics tweaking.

From what I can see all of these are KR graphics, so I just posted them in response to somebody who has never thought the EC could do any better than it does, ignoring the fact that the EC is the same engine that drives Rift and Fallout 3 and Oblivion and that it drove KR as well - EC is just a rebranding of KR and dumbing down of it graphics-wise.

may have to click on these as they appear to be resized by the forum.









As for your questions about the Serpent Pillars and Telescope, those are KR:

Serpent Pillars - UOGuide, the Ultima Online encyclopedia

Moonglow Telescope - UOGuide, the Ultima Online encyclopedia

Now I didn't include the things that I believe are a part of the EC update since I think that was what you were asked not to post, just the leftover KR graphics that can be found on UO Guide.

I hope I didn't open up a can of worms since that stuff is on UO Guide.

 

[Gilmour]

personally, i would prefer more classic in EC just with more detail and other features a 3d engine could bring. its another client - not another game.

 

[Kons]

i just wanna make you see the power of isometric 2d games with latest graphics.

So i wonder why they don't finish EC..

Please do not sponsorize in any way this game if you know it

 

[Woodsman]

I'm quoting this from the UHall thread, this was from the twitter of the guy who produces the Ultima franchise Jeff Skalski:

rlakies Ray Lakies
@Jeff_skalski Whats your plans for Ultima online? Will EA invest and make the game a hit again? or is the 2D where its at forever?
16 hours ago

Jeff_Skalski Jeff Skalski
@rlakies Continue to grow the game by revitalizing old areas forgotten, add new things to keep players happy & crush as many bugs as we can.
31 minutes ago

TheUOJournal UO Journal
@Jeff_Skalski @rlakies Does that include the high resolution artwork update?
10 minutes ago

Jeff_Skalski Jeff Skalski
@TheUOJournal @rlakies I think high resolution artwork would make players happy, right?
3 minutes ago

 

[Kons]

right

 

[Pinco]

is not right... depends on how is the new high res artwork... I don't think I would like an high resolution picasso style art

 

[Kons]

Lol, o well why not, NEXT GEN mmorpgs

 

[Sir_Bolo]

High resolution terrain textures are going to be released in the next publish:

Happy 14th Birthday UO | Mythic Entertainment | Ultima Online

In the upcoming months we are working on redoing the art to a high rez art, the first part of this will be the terrain in the next publish, so keep your eyes open for a new look.

Happy Anniversary

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

I just hope that the terrain keeps the nice look it has now (just crisper in some areas) and doesn't end up reverting back to the 2d version (even at higher resolution) the way it was done with the 3d client.

Even at high res, the 2d terrain is just too dated looking... it's SNES era FFIII/VI style terrain (ok MAYBE a little better, but not by much) and is simply too limited looking to do well in a high res setting.

With that statement of concern, I DO look forward to seeing the updates.

 

[lucitus]

is not right... depends on how is the new high res artwork... I don't think I would like an high resolution picasso style art

All you need is an option, like in KR you had the option to switch between the two styles, how you like it. I also cant understand why they dropped it, they dont need to make 2 graphics for new content and style this style is included in both, but i havent seen any results so far, i hope with the high rez update also the bluryness of the characters is going away.

 

[Woodsman]

Well the article mentioned that terrain is the first part of the high resolution update, so the blurriness will still be there at certain zoom levels, but I'd rather see terrain and/or housing first anyways. Seeing high resolution mobiles against low resolution backgrounds would be weirder.

 

[Elric_Soban]

It's bizzarre but the terrain is actually the highest rez and nicest looking part of the EC.. they need to boost the resolution for the buildings, and character art.

But any art improvement is welcome in my books.

They said in the 'next' publish.. so pub 73. Who knows how long that'l take to launch.

NEW PRODUCER GUY: Any chance we can see some screenshots of what it's looking like?

thanks

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

It's probably not all that far out as it will probably also include the Halloween content. So I'm guessing a little bit smaller of a Publish than 72 was.

 

[lucitus]

Well the article mentioned that terrain is the first part of the high resolution update, so the blurriness will still be there at certain zoom levels, but I'd rather see terrain and/or housing first anyways. Seeing high resolution mobiles against low resolution backgrounds would be weirder.

You should install KR and look at that i have old installtions with the 2d terrain, also zoomed in there were no pixelation like we have now. So it is not the artwork, it is the client itself, the rendering.

 

[Woodsman]

...

It's probably not all that far out as it will probably also include the Halloween content. So I'm guessing a little bit smaller of a Publish than 72 was.

Actually it appears the Halloween content had to be in pub 72 since the event starts in a few hours (or may already have).

So the only thing left for Pub 73 will be the high resolution stuff and possibly veteran rewards (although I think those are already in, at least partially).

 

[Woodsman]

Well the first batch of high resolution stuff is supposed to be in, still patching so I don't know what it looks like yet.

 

[Storm]

zoom factor is much better

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

Terrain is crisp and clear regardless of zoom level, there look to be some minor tweaks in the artwork itself, the grasslands seem a bit more tame than they used to be (again), and even zooming in, all of the 2d artwork seems to distort MUCH LESS than it used to... it still pixelates, but the scaling is MUCH smoother than it was yesterday.

 

[CosmicRebirth]

it's been a long time and very little progress since KR. it feels like they are brushing us off.

 

[Elric_Soban]

KR was beautifull, but the whining minority took a stand against good graphics and kept UO in the stone age where its been all along.

EC graphics will never improve, because every time they do, people pancake cuz they want their crappy commodore 64 graphics.

 

[Woodsman]

EC graphics will never improve, because every time they do, people pancake cuz they want their crappy commodore 64 graphics.

They were just improved yesterday - the terrain is high resolution, and it's similar to the CC, which should placate CC users who complained about KR/EC graphics.

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

I miss the wilder grasslands of KR though. The current version of grasslands terrain just seems too well manicured. I didn't know they had lawnmowers in Britannia.

However, the wall segment previews shown today look really good with a LOT more detail, so we'll have to see how well they translate into EC.

I miss KR as much as if not more than anyone in this thread, but after seeing what is happening and reading how Grimm's handling things, I'm convinced to sit back and see where it is all going before rendering a final judgement.

Consider me "cautiously optimistic".

 

[Elric_Soban]

i seriously loved KR graphics. i really wish they'd re-implement them, even on a toggle.. for those who dont like em.

nice high rez Uo.. that was awesome. and even the KR-style terrain, higher rez art for all housing tiles, etc.. i actually preferred it.

Oh well.

 

[Dermott of LS]

...

Well the good news is that Grimm is going to try and salvage the KR plants (as much as possible) for that portion of the artwork revamp, so that's sounding good. Hopefully some of the other artwork will be used as well (serpent pillar, telescope, etc).

 

[Kons]

...

I miss the wilder grasslands of KR though. The current version of grasslands terrain just seems too well manicured. I didn't know they had lawnmowers in Britannia.

However, the wall segment previews shown today look really good with a LOT more detail, so we'll have to see how well they translate into EC.

I miss KR as much as if not more than anyone in this thread, but after seeing what is happening and reading how Grimm's handling things, I'm convinced to sit back and see where it is all going before rendering a final judgement.

Consider me "cautiously optimistic".

Fact is that those are 3d renders view. i don't know how they will be projected in 2d.

...

Well the good news is that Grimm is going to try and salvage the KR plants (as much as possible) for that portion of the artwork revamp, so that's sounding good. Hopefully some of the other artwork will be used as well (serpent pillar, telescope, etc).

where do you find all those informations?

Btw anyone can post a screenshot with before/after difference?
I currently don't have active account(!)

 

[Woodsman]

Grimm posts a lot in some of the graphics/pub threads in UHall.

 

[Martyna Zmuir]

I'm all for higher res bulding art, but I have issues with what has been presented. Specifically with the castle/tower grey stone from the first pic. Notice how the base wall pieces shown are exactly the same. Same repeating pattern over and over again doesn't create a very realistic image.

Whats worse is if you go look at a castle now, all its wall pieces are exactly the same... Same with towers. This changed with the recent publish and reeks of the old KR terrain conversion.

Castle/tower corner pieces and the "secret pssage" stone doors now stick out like sore thumbs, further ruining the illusion.

I seriously doubt people will be thrilled if these issues aren't fixed (assuming they aren't a bug).