WHEN did FPS become important!!

[b00moscone]

I'd say since the advent of 3D video games. With the third dimension, new genres were born and some of those are really helped by a high FPS count. Of course, in the beginning with consoles such as the N64 and PS1, games like Mario 64 would still operate at 30 FPS, but i reckon that was more due to a lack of power more than anything, and examples like F-Zero X show that 60 FPS was, even as far back as then, desired. Now, with more powerful consoles than ever, I believe there isn't really an excuse to not have 60 FPS, unless you feel your game benefits more from better visual fidelity, and most gamers appreciate and want it for the better, smoother gameplay and because it's become much more easily achievable now. And don't think that's at all a bad thing at all.