Low Poly PC Game

I'm about seven months into learning Unity -- my art isn't great, so I've been looking at assets on the store.

I personally like the Low Poly style, but whenever I see a pack, it generally concentrates on VR/Mobile (for obvious reasons). Am I alone in liking the low poly style for PC games? Should I be shooting higher with more realism?

Anyone with experience creating low poly games on the PC?

I'm just wondering how popular this art style is... I do realize that game play is the most important aspect of a game, but does low poly look "cheap" to people?

 

It depends how what style of low poly you're doing. I mean me personally I love all Low Poly, but a lot of people claim that PS1 and N64 graphics didn't age very well.. Which to me personally I beg to differ, but that's only my opinion.

Now with that being said, low poly stylistic is very popular, but ultimately graphics can look like whatever, and if the gameplay is good, then the graphics just build upon the story you're trying to tell.

There's really no true right or wrong answer to your questions, an Art style is only but one part of hundreds of parts that make a game interesting and catchy. Just build what you want and do the best you can and push your knowledge.

 

How low poly is low poly? I consider The Witness to be low poly, and it looks great. Could say the same for Firewatch.

 

Um.


^^ This is from my LDJam 37 entry from last year.

Here's a wizard from that video:

Low poly can look good, but it is difficult to make it play nice with textures. Badly done textures can ruin it.

This post indicates how a simpler texture can improve quality of a model:
https://forum.unity.com/threads/game-devs-crying-about-asset-flips.497087/#post-3235048

In general, it is not cheap, if the person who uses it has a brain and love what they're doing and not just trying to cut corners.

It is sorta similar to this talk about 8bit graphics:

Limitations you impose on yourself can help you improve the visuals, because you are not being overwhelmed by the possibilities you have.

 

Thank you for the replies and advice! The poly style I'm going for is, in a way, a lot like Firewatch -- however, I'm looking to go more third person/isometric.

 

I also like the low poly look, which I've dabbled with on a side project (a game that will be released in the distant future). I think this look has gained a lot of popularity recently, both by studios with dedicated artist and indies looking to cut down on some of the complications of producing games (namely, UV unwrapping and texturing). Browsing the reviews of games that utilize this style, it generally seems to be well received (if implemented well).

Of course, low poly can represent a ton of different styles, the biggest difference between styles probably being whether you choose to go with noisy/detailed textures or more of flat shaded (single color for each face) look. I personally prefer the latter, and have achieved some great results with it (in my humble opinion). For example:



The trees and rocks are from LMHPoly on the Asset Store, who does some of the better low poly work in my opinion. Some low poly users like all their polygons to have hard edges, but personally I find using shading groups creates a more pleasing look.

 

This is exactly the look I am aiming for -- I am also a fan of LMHPoly's work.

 

I like low poly smooth or flat shaded. They both have a lot of character. I don't think it looks cheap so much as more artistic or stylish. Some like it, some don't. Chances are you won't get as much money for it as a AAA game made with teams of people. If you make a good product with lots of depth, people will pay somewhat for it.