Here on TGD, we’ve reported a lot on the high frame rate controversy with The Hobbit. While a lot of filmmakers have been claiming it’s the way of the future, a lot of people feel it makes a movie look too hi-def and unrealistic, and it makes the 3D even more headache inducing. But what about high frame rates for gaming?
This definitely makes more sense, because gaming doesn’t have to be so realistic, and you would think the more hi-def the better. As Cinema Blend tells us, gaming is not only going for 60 frames per second, which is a way higher frame rate than movies are doing these days, but they’re also going for louder volume as well.
As one game designer told the site, “Games feel better at 60 fps,” and with gaming, the smoother and slicker, the better. Gamers want clearer resolution, and smoother action, and eventually anything less will be considered subpar.
In fact, one Xbox One executive recently came under fire for lower frame rates and resolution, and a writer for Blend complained he had to switch to a better resolution of gaming because what he was playing previously was causing him eyestrain. (Funny how higher frame rates cause headaches in movies, but it makes things infinitely easier on the eyes in gaming.)
As this story was being finalized, Forbes reported that the new Tomb Raider game will run at a lower frame rate, and that “the idea that 60 FPS is automatically better is misguided. Even though this is the world of tech and we always like numbers to be bigger, lower frame rates can help a game achieve a deeper, more cinematic effect, and for games that rely on visual more than twitch controls, this is sometimes the right choice.”
