Much left to pick up on the graphics front

Modern graphics processors can produce dazzling environments, but far from everyone is interested in taking advantage of the possibilities. Many let the game consoles set the bar and ignore optimizing the games for many times more powerful PC hardware, which makes it possible to anticipate a certain stagnation on the graphics front.

We’re still at the point where improvements in graphics technology are enabling major improvements in gameplay. Just the ability to do real-time lighting on environments now means you can construct a completely dynamic environment — or destruct a completely dynamic environment — and have all of the lighting respond accurately.

Epic Games founder and gaming engine guru Tim Sweeney, however, sees great opportunities with more powerful graphics, and not just on the surface. In an interview with Gamasutra, he states that there is still a lot to be gained: the advances in graphics technology open up for more advanced game mechanics.

As an example, he mentions how advanced lighting effects can be used to create dynamic and destructible environments, where the lighting is adapted to the circumstances. The technology can be used to track the reflections for each individual light beam and illuminate surfaces in real time – something that also requires modern and powerful hardware.

Sweeney also mentions that fast storage technologies such as SSDs open up new possibilities for using textures, but without going into any deeper details. He also sees a future where PC games are becoming increasingly important in the gaming market, despite the huge growth in games for mobile phones and tablets.