Its funny that that people would be so bold to say aesthetic appeal is universal. Every game even Killzone picked the kind of asthetics they wanted and used the graphics to conveay that world the way they wanted it.

Plain and simple asthetics is subjective while graphics give the ability to render real life making it more objective. Games like horror games and purposelly very violent games often create a darker mood/asthetic by not being bright and happy astheticallty. This guys video only reflects this guys liking of bright and happy games versus dark and gritty games that are just trying to convey that dark and gritty asthetic.

If you can't stand dark games dont play them and stop whining and if you hate cartoony or artistic games than dont play them. I think there is much needed room for both.

It's a damn good point, as many have said.

For example, the Wii may not be the most powerful console, but games like Kirby's Epic Yarn and Okami look better than 95% of PS360 games, because of the art-style, the feel, the mechanics etc.

Sure, good graphics are nice, but you reach a point where you can't improve them furhter, where they don't GIVE you anything. Aesthetics and gameplay can always be improved.

Valkyria Chronicles looks more beautiful than any other game released this gen from an aesthetic perspective.

The designers were wise enough to accommodate this style of play by making all combat in the game performed by mashing the same button

Also, This^:

Gaffers >>>>>> Atheists

B   E   L   I   E   V   E

In gaffers?

Art design and graphics are on the same end of the spectrum. They are the same thing. They are just the visual part of a game. Very few people care that Kirby's Yarn or Murumasa look amazing when the gameplay isn't notable.

Gaming is an interactive medium. The best games don't focus on the visual aspect, but make the visual aspect serve the interactive element of the game.

I could give a huge list of games that are purely functional in their so-called art design, starting with Donkey Kong, and including plenty of "hardcore" games like Counterstrike or GTA, which could hardly be described as realistic but really don't have a notable style either. And of course there are sims like Gran Turismo or Madden which do go for realism, but do so for the sake of the gameplay. But maybe the most compelling case is games like Guitar Hero and the Sims, which have terrible, ugly art design, but no one cares because it doesn't get in the way of the gameplay.

Let's go back to 2006 when the question was gameplay vs. graphics instead of art design vs. graphics.

i agree with that

And yet the gameplay is still rather deep.  And I hope you aren't insinuating the game is easy.  Many people quit the game because of the difficult bosses, just like Odin Sphere.

I tend to like Cel Shaded games more than 'realistic' games.  Valkyria Chronicles is just one of a long list of cel shaded games I'd say looks better than the others.  Not to say I think games like Assassins Creed, Red Dead or Batman: Arkham didn't look amazing.  But due to their focus on trying to have sharp, realistic looking graphics, they are bound to have things that look off or not as realistic as they planned.  Whereas a Cel Shaded game always looks like what its suppose to look like.

Come on, you know what I meant. Atheists = non- believers. Neogaf's slogan is "Believe".
Gaffers vs. Atheists sounds similar to Graphics vs. Aesthetics...

It's funny I tell you!!

To be honest I found it quite hard to get into the game for some reason, repetitive combat definitely having something to do with it. Every time I back-tracked I also had to fight the same enemies over and over again. After seeing the same things two or three times I kinda stopped caring about how beautiful the animation was... left the game after about 10 hours. I'll probably come back to it but I'd be lying if I said I won't have to force myself a little bit to finish it.

Also regarding the challenge, I played on the easier difficulty and for the most part got by with button-mashing. Changing blades and using items wisely can definitely come in handy but I didn't find it necessary in order to progress.

Bottom line is I wanted to like the game but it's just too lacking in substance for my taste... could have been amazing with co-op though... and less grinding.