The 10 Most Beautiful Games of the Last Five Years

As you know, you meet people by their clothes. Advanced graphics are very important for immersion in the virtual world. Every year the picture in games is more and more reliable - developers create believable lighting, reflections and shadows. Artists spend thousands of hours creating detailed character models and picturesque locations. And animations and weather effects become barely distinguishable from reality. Here are a few examples of games with stunning visuals released in the last five years.

The 10 Most Beautiful Games of the Last Five Years

Alan Wake 2

Every Remedy game since Max Payne has been a technological breakthrough. In Alan Wake 2, the studio used the latest tools to create a frightening atmosphere and cinematic experience.

Northlight's proprietary game engine supports the most realistic lighting calculation method to date—path tracing—allowing for pixel-perfect shadows. This is especially crucial, as the characters always carry torches, and both the gameplay and story rely heavily on the interplay of light and shadow.

The high level of environmental detail is achieved through grid shaders, which efficiently cut off and unload models outside the game camera's field of view, freeing up video memory for rendering remaining objects in greater detail. This optimization ensures that every donut in the game is perfectly round, and even the dashboard switches are intricately modeled. And if you're looking for top-tier entertainment outside of gaming, Richard Casino review will introduce you to a fantastic online casino with fast payouts, generous bonuses, and a huge selection of slots.

Hogwarts Legacy

Avalanche Software has squeezed the most out of Unreal Engine 4 to faithfully recreate the magical atmosphere of the popular fairy tale. Every square metre of Hogwarts and surrounding areas is filled with unique details, every portrait on the walls is individually drawn, animated and lit. And the neighbourhood of the school the developers have created in four variants - according to the seasons, which change in the course of the story.

In the world of magic something is constantly moving. The roots of the magic plant crawl away from bright light and fire. The ‘Reparo’ spell makes the shards of broken statues and destroyed bridges spin in the air and come together. Even small things like a box with a popping hand are animated. As a result, it's easy to recognise Rowling's world, familiar from the books and films, in Hogwarts Legacy.

The studio used the Niagara particle generation system built into UE4 - each spell, of which there are dozens in the game, is accompanied by a unique special effect. As well as the movements of magical plants, enchanted objects and some fantastic creatures.

Atomic Heart

Mundfish's first-person shooter immerses you in a unique setting of Soviet retrofuturism. For the atmosphere is responsible for the art style, combining features of real architecture and technology of the Soviet Union with elements of science fiction. The authors meticulously recreated familiar attributes of the Soviet Union, be it a soda machine, a brand new ‘Kopeika’ or monumental buildings of the Stalin era.

The aesthetics of the USSR in Atomic Heart is realised with the help of physically correct rendering of materials: metal, granite and marble, plastic, glass and carpet fabrics, which were loved by Soviet architects. And due to high-quality lighting, all surfaces are easily distinguishable from each other.

The developers demonstrate in detail the clever mechanisms, curly hoses and twisting parts with the help of beautiful animations. In the engine-based cut-scenes, Mundfish uses modern effects like subsurface scattering, thanks to which the skin of human characters transmits and reflects light like a real one.

Horizon: Forbidden West

Both parts of Horizon successfully combine post-apocalypse tribes with primitive way of life and robotic dinosaurs. And all of this outlandish diversity looks believable thanks to the details of the game's vast open world.

The foliage and grass react realistically to the movements of the protagonist and most of the other characters, robots and animals. Snow and sand also react to Eloy's movements - and the effect is different depending on the height of her feet. If the girl runs, there are pits on the ground, and if she walks slowly - a small rut.

The developers even implemented in the game full-fledged waves, which crash on the shore and form a believable foam. And underwater scenes were ennobled with lighting from bioluminescent algae. By the way, lighting in Forbidden West is calculated and ‘baked’ for 12 periods of the day - without ray tracing in real time.

Face animations and model detailing deserve special praise - in cut-scenes and dialogues they perfectly convey the emotions of the characters.

A Plague Tale: Requiem

The sequel to Asobo Studio's stealth action game about the adventures of Amicia and her younger brother Hugo, who are hiding from the Inquisition during the Hundred Years' War between England and France. The events of the sequel develop not in gloomy ruined Aquitaine, but in bright and colourful Provence.

As in many stealth games, the heroes will have to hide in low vegetation, which in Requiem is a real work of art. It is dense, varied, reacting to characters and weather conditions. And the main thing is that there is a lot of it.

A Plague Tale: Requiem is amazingly detailed: from textures of stones and metal objects to physics of heroes' hair. But especially the developers are proud of the unique system of rendering up to 300 thousand plague rats in one frame. And all this works not on the popular Unreal Engine, but on the studio's own engine, which was also used to create Microsoft Flight Simulator.

The Callisto Protocol

A horror game by Glen Schofield, one of the creators of Dead Space. At release, The Callisto Protocol was criticised for poor performance, monotonous gameplay, mediocre story and a DLC ending. But what can't be taken away from the game is its gorgeous graphics.

Striking Distance studio has made perhaps the best character rendering to date. The character models are rich in small details like sweat drops on their faces or skin glistening with moisture. In the photo mode you can literally see every pore on the hero's forehead and the smallest fragments of equipment.

The work of the environment artists deserves special attention. Dirt-covered pipes and blood-stained walls together with skilful lighting enhance the ominous atmosphere of the space prison. And some effects, such as volumetric smoke hiding monsters, contribute to better immersion.

The Last of Us: Part 2

Naughty Dog's game was released on PS4 four years ago, and its technology is somewhat dated by now. But the animations and the developers' attention to detail are impressive to this day.

The main setting is post-apocalyptic Seattle. Nature in this world has long ago taken the upper hand over civilization - streets, walls and roofs of houses are covered with thick and believable vegetation. Most of the buildings in the city can be explored - their detailed decoration reveals the stories of the people who once lived and worked here.

Another key to creating a realistic world is to make the characters' interaction with their surroundings believable. It's not just about the already familiar things in games like footprints in the snow or muddy roads. Characters convincingly disassemble weapons on the workbench, clothes gradually get wet in the rain, and even the keychain on the main character's rucksack sways in time with her walking. It is worth noting the cinematic cut-scenes, the transition from which to gameplay is realised as smoothly as possible.

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora

Critics and gamers were reluctant to accept Massive Entertainment's action game based on the famous film franchise, but appreciated the beauty of the game's open world. Developers perfectly conveyed the scale of the planet Pandora. Locations are fascinating - the authors managed to achieve a striking resemblance to the films of James Cameron.

Open-world games have never before had such a level of detail. Every tree in the Frontiers of Pandora looks unique. And if you ride a flying banshee, you can enjoy a colourful panorama of the planet thanks to the impressive drawing distance.

No other virtual world of comparable scale has such realistic lighting provided by tracing technology. The Snowdrop engine creates a stunning play of light and shadow as the sun's rays penetrate caves or through tree crowns.

Locations are especially evocative at night, when Pandora is illuminated not only by the moon, but also by the planet's vibrant flora. In Frontiers of Pandora each plant is a full-fledged source of light, not just a model with a very bright texture.

Cyberpunk 2077

Many experts, including the authoritative experts of Digital Foundry, recognised Cyberpunk 2077 as the most beautiful game of 2020. Even despite bugs and poor optimisation on release.

In the game CD Project Red entourage and atmosphere of cyberpunk is largely provided by the neon lights of the metropolis of Knight City and the shine of metal futuristic cars. Global illumination together with physically correct materials emphasises the competent work of artists and creates a photorealistic image. And ray tracing completes the picture with correct reflections and shadows.

Cyberpunk 2077 is a story-driven game, so the protagonist often interacts with other characters. Whether it's dramatic cut-scenes or ordinary dialogues with NPCs, the heroes' models delight the eye with expressive facial animations and detailed clothing. And the virtual cameraman captures the camera at the most appropriate angle for the scene every time.

Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2

The long-awaited game of Ninja Theory studio did not please the audience with interesting gameplay, but impressed with stunning visuals and advanced technology. One of the main advantages of Hellblade 2 is the highest detail of characters. In many scenes the characters look as natural as in a big-budget film with live actors. It's not always clear what's on the screen - real-time rendering or pre-recorded clip.

The developers maximise the possibilities of Unreal Engine 5 engine. For example, with the help of Lumen global illumination technology the authors have created convincing natural lighting. The realisation of volumetric effects like fog, clouds or smoke is also impressive. Often you can see the firelight shimmering in them - a mesmerising sight.

Ninja Theory has also achieved amazing results in aspects such as drawing distance, water rendering and reduced load times. The SSD speeds in Hellblade 2 are also utilized to change the environment in spectacular ways. For example, the game features an impressive scene in which the heroine drains an entire lake and then descends into the underworld - all in real time.

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