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Why I’m starting to prefer 2D over 3D again as I get older

BlueManifest

BlueManifest

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
15,331
I'm not going to stop playing 3D games completely but I couldn't figure out why I started enjoying 2D games again so much in the last few years

I've been replaying secret of mana on switch this month and I finally figured out why

Simply it's that you can take in more information in less time, and since I value my time more as I get older it makes perfect sense

220px-Smana.PNG

just a very simple example with this photo, if this game was 3D I could only see 1 part of this house at a time, if i wanted to see the side or back I would have to take time to walk around to them and explore each side individually

but since it's 2D I can see the front, both sides, and back all at once, more information in less time

so yea i finally figured out why I'm enjoying 2D games again
 
Clive

Clive

Member
Oct 25, 2017
5,095
But in a 3D game you can see in between those houses into the alleyway with the two pots. What's beyond there? Can't see that in 2D.
 
ned_ballad

ned_ballad

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
48,251
Rochester, New York
I enjoy the level of abstraction you get from 2D games. You can leave detail to the player's imagination and graphical mistakes and reused assets are more forgiving.

This tends to make the games feel more detailed than they actually are.
 
OP
OP
BlueManifest

BlueManifest

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
15,331
Clive said:
But in a 3D game you can see in between those houses into the alleyway with the two pots. What's beyond there? Can't see that in 2D.
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You can see stuff in the distance in 3D but you don't really know if it's worth going to until you get there
Which can also take a long time since 3D worlds are larger than 2D ones

most of the exploring you do in a 3D game is around the current surrounding area you are at with your character, same as 2D, you don't explore things that are in the distance until you get to them
 
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Speely

Speely

The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
7,998
Started playing 2D "again?" Sounds like you are old enough to have experienced the OG golden age of 2D.

You are moving closer to your death and further from your birth/youth. 2D games connect you to a place and time closer to having a future that was bigger than your past.

Just kidding. I am kinda the same way, and I think it's because I DID grow up with 2D games and I feel like there are vastly more quality modern 2D games these days that adopt modern ideas than ever since the 32-bit age. The market is there, and indies are going nuts. I can buy 2-3 amazing 2D indie games for the price of one 3D AAA game, and they fucking deliver.

It's a really good environment with really good tools for 2D games right now, so we are seeing a LOT of creativity, both iterative and otherwise.

I'm not saying that's why YOU like them, but I think I like them because the quality is just so damn good rn.
 
OP
OP
BlueManifest

BlueManifest

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
15,331
Speely said:
Started playing 2D "again?" Sounds like you are old enough to have experienced the OG golden age of 2D.

You are moving closer to your death and further from your birth/youth. 2D games connect you to a place and time closer to having a future that was bigger than your past.

Just kidding. I am kinda the same way, and I think it's because I DID grow up with 2D games and I feel like there are vastly more quality modern 2D games these days that adopt modern ideas than ever since the 32-bit age. The market is there, and indies are going nuts. I can buy 2-3 amazing 2D indie games for the price of one 3D AAA game, and they fucking deliver.

It's a really good environment with really good tools for 2D games right now, so we are seeing a LOT of creativity, both iterative and otherwise.

I'm not saying that's why YOU like them, but I think I like them because the quality is just so damn good rn.
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Yea like I'm looking more forward to hollow knight silk song than cyberpunk and i can't believe it
 
Why would you do that?

Why would you do that?

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,801
New York City
Clive said:
But in a 3D game you can see in between those houses into the alleyway with the two pots. What's beyond there? Can't see that in 2D.
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I feel like that's kind of the point, a lot of 3D games nowadays will more likely show you more of what's in between the houses, and it can sometimes be a bit of a sensory overload, especially if you want to finish things quickly. In the 2D days, and the early days of 3D, they will only show you things that are important or more likely to be important. The technology limitations kinda made the games more streamlined and "to the point" in some ways.
 
Dary

Dary

Member
Oct 27, 2017
8,416
The English Wilderness
Old games are great when you're visually impaired because the screen isn't overflowing with information - space was at a premium, and graphical limitations forced simple, easy to read interfaces.
 
Soapbox Killer

Soapbox Killer

Member
Oct 28, 2017
27,133
It happened to me a few years ago. I really can't explain it. I hazard that I feel 2D games are easy to pick up and play so I don't have to make time to play. It is also why the Switch is my Number 1 console despite having Gamepass,4k HDR tv and a One X
 
sleepnaught

sleepnaught

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
4,538
I'm sorta in the same camp, but probably for different reasons. I've found as time goes on, nostalgia is becoming more and more the driving factor for why I still play video games. I'm less and less interested in newer franchises, sticking mostly with games I loved when I was a kid. Mario, Sonic, Half-Life, Doom, Donkey Kong, Mortal Kombat, etc, etc. Last year, I bought a SNES, NES, and Genesis, as well as a neat little 80s era Sony CRT to play them on. My brother also recently gave me his BVM which is really great. I'm really in 2D heaven right now and loving every minute of it.

The only other system I play with regularity is the Switch. Has all my favorite franchises, great 2D games, and so ridiculously convenient to game on.
 

Deleted member 8860

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 26, 2017
6,525
Perspective is one thing (and 3D games still have remarkably adversarial camera design), but even 2D games can suffer from visual overload when they go overboard on the special effects and detail (e.g., Ori and the Blind Forest, which looks gorgeous but is a readability nightmare).
 
Pyro

Pyro

God help us the mods are making weekend threads
Member
Jul 30, 2018
14,505
United States
I get that OP, it also helps that 2D games just tend to be shorter in general. Now if I can just find the time to replay that Strider remake...
 
Vespa

Vespa

Member
Oct 26, 2017
1,850
I've not played Secret of Mana but how are you seeing the "front, both sides, and back all at once" of the house?

I see the front of the house and the top. Do you mean the space behind and around the house?
 
Thera

Thera

Banned
Feb 28, 2019
12,876
France
BlueManifest said:
you can take in more information in less time
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No problem that you prefer 2D games, but this reason is completely irrelevant. 2D games are designed in a way and 3D games are design in an other way.
BlueManifest said:
if i wanted to see the side or back I would have to take time to walk around to them and explore each side individually
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Sure, but I can to you that if you want to know if there is something interesting on the right or left, you need to move there. In a 3D game, you just had to watch.
 
AfropunkNyc

AfropunkNyc

Member
Nov 15, 2017
3,958
that's starting to be me. though i have a fondness for isometric Diablo clones and Metroidvanias. my favorite genre.
 
tokkun

tokkun

Member
Oct 27, 2017
5,409
BlueManifest said:
220px-Smana.PNG

just a very simple example with this photo, if this game was 3D I could only see 1 part of this house at a time, if i wanted to see the side or back I would have to take time to walk around to them and explore each side individually

but since it's 2D I can see the front, both sides, and back all at once, more information in less time
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

The 3D version of Secret of Mana has a pretty similar viewpoint. The changes are more due to the switch to widescreen rather than being in 3D.

fSJmqAq.jpg


The 3D version also has a minimap with a much larger field of view. So it wins the battle of "more information in less time" if that is what you are after.

8H9TXDl.jpg
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OP
OP
BlueManifest

BlueManifest

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
15,331
tokkun said:
The 3D version of Secret of Mana has a pretty similar viewpoint. The changes are more due to the switch to widescreen rather than being in 3D.

fSJmqAq.jpg


The 3D version also has a minimap with a much larger field of view. So it wins the battle of "more information in less time" if that is what you are after.
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The remake is made in 3D but it's still a 2D perspective
 
Łazy

Łazy

Member
Nov 1, 2017
5,249
There are a few series I wish could go back to 2D.

But I'm ok with both. Depends on the game.
 
Vespa

Vespa

Member
Oct 26, 2017
1,850
That style of parallel projection can be done in 3D but it's way more common in 2D games.

A link between worlds seeks to emulate that look:

320px-albw_witch_housbuksf.png

zelda-a-link-between-2fkrn.jpg

There's still some slight influence from a vanishing point but it's prioritising the front plane that faces the bottom of the screen similar to the secret of mana.
 
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