Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Anything from run & guns to modern RPGs, what else do you play?
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KimagureMachibuse

Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by KimagureMachibuse »

Whether it be for the artstyle of the game or the pure technical impressivness of the games graphics what do you consider to be some cool looking games on the ps1

These are my picks

Klonoa Door to Phantomile

The Adventures of Lomax

Spyro The Dragon

Pac-man World 20th Anniversary

Tail Concerto

The Misadventures of Tron Bonne

Tomba

Alundra

Castlevania Symphony of The Night

Hermie Hopperhead

Panzer Bandit

Rakugaki Showtime

Gussun Paradise/Yoyo's Park

Einhander

Blazing Dragons

X2 No Relief
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To Far Away Times
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by To Far Away Times »

Chrono Cross and Megaman Legends for the art style.

Symphony of the Night for that ridiculous walk cycle.
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Air Master Burst
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by Air Master Burst »

Legend of Mana is the obvious choice for me.

ETA: Valkyrie Profile is also a very pretty game.
King's Field IV is the best Souls game.
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it290
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by it290 »

SOTN obviously, but I've always really loved the art style of FFT and Ogre Battle and the way their little characters and worlds are rendered.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by kitten »

hmmm...

vagrant story
any of the final fantasy games
mega man legends (2 is technically prettier, it's one of the best looking games on the console, but.. my affection for 1 is much higher. tron bonne is a little too obviously on a budget but it's still very appealing and memorable)
mega man 8
mega man x4
ape escape
sotn
r-type delta
in the hunt (i guess counts? not an exclusive...)
jumping flash (it's just so simply delightful looking)
armored core
king's field (the series - it's haunting in what it does with such an economical look)
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Immryr
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by Immryr »

omega boost
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by Sumez »

SOTN, obviously
Mega Man X4
Shadow Tower
Rapid Reload
Lomax
Legend of Mana
Lunar games
Chrono Cross
Disney's Hercules
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BIL
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by BIL »

Omega Boost, Silent Bomber, R-Type Delta and Einhander. These four games, I actually revisit every few years just to make sure I'm not mis-remembering them as better-looking than they really are.

I'm not, they're fucking gorgeous. Violent scifi action with hard-edged metals and scorching incendiaries, and in Delta+Einhander's case, the masterful arcade/cinematic direction you would expect from IREM and ex-Konami teams. Boost and Bomber both have some floor-shattering bass too, you really miss out on the former if you've not got a subwoofer so you feel the assault rifle in your sternum.

They're also 100% killer action games/STGs. Some of the best hardass action gaming artistry to be found in any console gen.

SOTN is an immortal beauty. You can tell it was from the same people as Rondo, that unmistakable sense of exuberance with lavish characterful details everywhere they could possibly fit them, down to weapon effects you literally need freeze-frame to truly comprehend. I used to think the occasional poly elements would age horribly, but tbh, I find them quite endearing on PS1, preferable to the cleaned-up later ports. It's like witnessing a realtime torch-passing of classical 2D artwork to first-gen polys.

Silent Hill will always need a mention for alchemizing the cruel draw distance and muddy textures of the PS1's full 3D into a razor cutting edge. It's also insanely detailed, not merely for its time either. Play SH1 and SH2/3/4 back-to-back, and it becomes apparent that the immensely higher-horsepowered sequels were doing all they could simply to match the fine-brush detailing of the original.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by BareKnuckleRoo »

Harmful Park: Some of the best graphics found in a cute 'em up, the sheer level of detail and jokes throughout the game thanks to background art elements is incredible. As impressive as the spritework in the Parodius series is, I feel like this game still blew Parodius away.

Shadow Tower: The King's Field games are very fun, and functional, but it feels like they're very minimalist first person 3D games. Shadow Tower looks gorgeous, and it feels like they really stepped up the wall textures, the monster designs, and placement of environmental decorations compared to the KF games. This shouldn't come as a surprise though, since it came out a couple years after the third KF game, so they had time to refine their technique.

Legend of Dragoon: The 3D models are pretty decent, late gen PS1 stuff that looks good, but the really impressive eye candy is all the super intricate prerendered background artwork that looks gorgeous. There's just so many areas of the game that look amazing.

Resident Evil 3: The first RE focused on outdoor environments, which are naturally much more complex than indoor hallways that what a lot of RE1 and RE2 focus on. That's not to say RE1 and RE2 look bad, but there's just so much going on in terms of the look of Raccoon City that RE3's prerendered backgrounds are hard not to love. It's a really good looking game, aside from Jill's default costume looking rather silly. Fortunately you can ditch the tube top in NG+ for something better like her classic look or the "disco suit" which looks like a pretty slick, white business suit if you ask me.
BIL wrote:Omega Boost
Very stylish, but I'm struggling to think of anything that was outstanding about its 3D that blew me away at the time. There's no doubt it's immensely fun, but the camera can be a bit dicey during some boss fights due to how big your mech is and how the camera is clunked directly behind you (I think there's a first person view too?). I always thought Star Fox 64, which came out a few years before, did a much better job in terms of making the visuals look really refined in a rail shooter.

Sorry. Still love the game though, Omega Boost is rad.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by BIL »

Artistically, it's mostly black space and silver metal, but there are a few scenes here and there I consider fairly stunning - the third stage's Black Heart-esque stealth bomber loosing its payload against a red evening sky as you blast its wings off, everything tumbling lazily planetwards to detonate with realistically delayed explosion SFX; the hideous rusty metal spiders tumbling out of the sky in stage 4's creepy nighttime sandstorm (first order of business in st4: switch to FPV, hit [scan] to draw a bead on the tumbling column, and machinegun the fuckers until there's nothing left Image), and the similarly abused-looking boss tank that comes roaring out of the darkness, flexing and posing like a Zoid Gone Wrong; the Psyvariar 2-esque gigantic robot tarantula that comes screaming down st5's tube after you, its wall-skidding claws showering the scene with sparks, loosing obscenely massive laser blasts from its maw, some precious few feet's clearance between them and the punishing metal walls.

But I think the game's real visual standout is the sheer fluidity of its Galaxy Force-meets-Itano Circus lockon laser barrages. It really leaps out in the Replay Theatre, just how fast you're moving around during rival mech duels, with clouds of guided enemy fire in furious pursuit. Even post-ZOE2, which definitively nailed the Itano Circus aesthetic with its absurdly massive zako wipeouts, there's a primal velocity and intensity to those duels, particularly the final boss with its unnerving knack for the classic "teleports behind you" backstab, and even worse vanish/godlazor from random point in space.

Related, the titular, body-ramming Omega Boost attack itself that, automated or not, is some of the most bludgeoningly visceral polygonal carnage of that generation; try loosing it on stage 6's battleship fleet, or any large target with lots of destructible parts, like that st3 bomber.

I suspect they could've turned in a more consistently spectacular game in Starfox's rail shooter format, but it's really not the same kind of game; you're generally in a sphere, in open space, with enemies passing through to attack (escapees denting your shotdown rating, bosses generally sticking around until one of you dies). Even in the planetside missions, you're either above a flat arena or heading down a tunnel. It's a very utilitarian game as far as the environments go, opposite those outstanding Shoji Kawamori machine designs and Polyphony Digital's trademark Replay Theatre camerawork.

I still love this guy's fan-made (?) promo vid. (was never a fan of Feeder or their scene in general, but I dig the contrast of that main theme too, preferable to the NTSCU version's more X-TREEM nu metal soundtrack imo)
Last edited by BIL on Thu Jul 21, 2022 3:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by drauch »

All the horror stuff for me. The impact still resonates today obviously with all the recent PSX horror clones on the market, for better or for worse. Most seem like jumpscare garbage, but there's some impressive stuff being done.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by ZellSF »

I'm currently playing Xenogears and all the lovely little details they keep putting in the fully 3D environment, how they do different scales, in-engine cutscenes... All looks so good.

Quake II despite the brown problem is one of the most impressive looking games on the system. I have no idea how they made Quake II run so well on the PSX.

Wipeout 3 is really impressive, mostly because of it's excellent art direction (and widescreen presentation!).

Legend of Mana and Vagrant Story does seem like great choices, but I've never played either.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by spmbx »

Been years since i've seriously played anything on ps1, but i remember back in the day Tobal 2 or Streetfighter EX plus alpha were impressive because they ran silky smooth 60fps.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by Despatche »

All those early PS1 games with that very specific early to mid '90s graphic design. Fire up something like Ridge Racer Revolution for a good example.

Sanvein, Ray Crisis, anything with that kind of "cybernetic" look. R-Type Delta and Einhänder have similar energy.

Rockman X4 is SSS-rank. Absolute best. Nothing stops Rockman X4.

Gradius Gaiden is direct sibling to SotN and I don't understand why it it's so rarely mentioned in the same breath.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by BIL »

Revolution is particularly gorgeous, with that beach-side aesthetic. Especially the teal they used for those shallows! A consummately summery game.

I'm very fond of Rage Racer too, seamlessly conveying the same joie de vivre in starker, more inland mode. A crisply autumnal blast of pure escapism with impeccably cooled-down tone. This even extending to the JP booklet/obi & disc's gold-embossed lettering and crimson heraldry against a pristine black and white rush of incoming track. I'm sure someone out there made a custom-painted neGcon, assuming Namco didn't sell one. I should look that up actually.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by Air Master Burst »

BIL wrote:Revolution is particularly gorgeous, with that beach-side aesthetic. Especially the teal they used for those shallows! A consummately summery game.

I'm very fond of Rage Racer too, seamlessly conveying the same joie de vivre in starker, more inland mode.
Oh shit, and those banger soundtracks too! It kills me Ridge Racer died with the Vita version, although I think 5 was the last one I played besides the fantastic PSP games. Was 6/7 any good? I only really played Project Gotham that generation.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by Despatche »

6 and 7 are a lot like the PSP games, if you played those. The PSP games might as well be prototypes.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by null1024 »

You know, there are pretty much two things that really sell Omega Boost for me visually.
The first bit is all the gleaming metal bits and stark shadows you see everywhere, it's a little touch that's really pretty and very dramatic
The second thing is the way it moves. All the motion in the game has this really solid heft to it. You, enemies, the camera, it all comes together REALLY well. The camera in particular is really cinematic without like, getting in the way of actually playing.

...actually, there's a third thing -- the game gives you a pretty good sense of motion blur without really having like, motion blur on everything. All the little particles everywhere leave trails when the camera spins and it looks great.

I also adore all four Ridge Racer PS1 games. RR1 isn't quite as pretty as RRR, but it's a similarly bright, vivid look. I just wish the environments held together better, there's seams everywhere.
Rage Racer's cloudy skies at sunset look with the Greek architecture around is absolutely stunning. I cannot get over how pretty the skies look in it.
R4 is pretty in a way that someone who doesn't really care about PS1 games can appreciate. Also, I think that it's a better looking game than RRV, despite RRV's obvious increase in detail/resolution. :lol: It's just really, really stylish, it's super cinematic looking. The color grading on each track is standout.
ZellSF wrote:I'm currently playing Xenogears and all the lovely little details they keep putting in the fully 3D environment, how they do different scales, in-engine cutscenes... All looks so good.

Quake II despite the brown problem is one of the most impressive looking games on the system. I have no idea how they made Quake II run so well on the PSX.

Wipeout 3 is really impressive, mostly because of it's excellent art direction (and widescreen presentation!).

Legend of Mana and Vagrant Story does seem like great choices, but I've never played either.
Every one of these is a good pick.
Xenogears, I always liked the spritework there and how it contrasted against the mechanical objects rendered in polygons.
I always liked how Q2 on PS1 made the colored lighting even more vivid and neon than on PC. It also runs really, really well, even in splitscreen. Feels like magic.
WO3 is gorgeous. The environments are stunning, and the brightly colored trails from each of the machines was coooool.

Although I'm not actually that fond of Legend of Mana... it is shamelessly, ceaselessly pretty. I bought it because of how pretty it looked alone.
Vagrant Story has a few rough bits visually to me, but I love the lighting to death.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by StarLightMoonLight »

I think the original Crash trilogy is often over looked when it comes art style and graphics, I particularly like the cartoonish atmosphere in many of the levels and how expressive some of the character models are, like Crash for instance.
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by CIT »

Breath of Fire IV - One of the most beautiful looking games ever made IMO!
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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by cj iwakura »

Deception III: Dark Delusion and Vagrant Story top my list, especially the latter.

D3 is my favorite in the series, so many fun possibilities:

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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by BIL »

Totally forgot Vagrant Story, that one's a beaut. Recently played Bloodborne, the Chalice dungeons kept me thinking back to VS's gorgeous ruined splendour, that sense of opulence driven underground. The ivy-covered overground streets are gorgeous too.

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Re: Favorite looking games on the Sony PS1

Post by Obiwanshinobi »

Silent Hill, Xenogears, Apocalypse. There's a rescue helicopter game on PS2 that, by the virtue of leaving textures unfiltered, made an impression nearly as strong as these had on me.
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