Wait, what? MGS4 looked bland in comparison to Gears of War 2? Even when it's sub-HD (which, mind you, I'm already aware of), it looked quite better than Gears of War 2 in my eyes. The ONLY places where I see a legitamite complaint about MGS4's graphics is some shadows and the textures of the South America level. But otherwise, MGS4 was the game that wowed me the most by console graphics standards in 2008.
Granted resolution isn't the only factor to judge a games technical merits by but I just couldn't help but notice how bland and flat the environment textures looked. I think most of the effort went into the character models because they do look stunning. Also Gears 2 was a smoother experience. MGS4 had an uncapped framerate which could be quite jarring. I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
That's very true. MGS4 does seem very flat at times, the framerate is jarry and there are a lot of low res textures. But there are times in the game where everything is perfect, the lighting, the textures and the framerate, it's in these moments that I think MGS4 is one of if not THE best looking game this generation.
And you are right, the beauty is in the eye of the beholder, I think MGS4 looks better than Gears of War 2 AND Uncharted 2, I think Killzone 2 looks better than Killzone 3, I think Crysis 2's graphics are mediocre and I think Final Fantasy XIII is one of the best looking games this generation. There are too many factors that make a game look great, including art design and personal preference.
