5 Games Blurring The Line Between Real & Virtual

Video games are rapidly catching up with the real world in terms of graphical fidelity and as every new big budget game is released, we slowly creep towards the day when a game becomes indistinguishable from the real life sights and sounds surrounding us. In the meantime, here are five games blurring the line between real and virtual in convincing fashion.

Detroit: Becoming Human

Beyond being a compelling analysis of oppression and marginalization housed under the paradox of AI assisting humans in more and more complex task though not benefiting from the same status and rights, Detroit: Become Human is one hell of a pretty game. Exemplifying this is the sheer detail found in character models from facial expressions to tiny skin blemishes that are all too eerily similar to the real world. The weather effects, notably the rain are straight up phenomenal and do wonders to notch up immersion, a crucial factor in depicting an almost photo-realistic virtual world.

Generation Zero

Though Generation Zero was only announced this summer and isn’t set for release until 2019, the gameplay demo is enough to trigger our realism sensors into fits of frenzied excitement. Avalanche studios is known for its incredible mastery of open world physics with the Just Cause series and the upcoming Rage 2 under its belt, so though Generation Zero’s brilliance is jaw-dropping, we aren’t all that surprised. Check out the video above and you’ll sense where we’re coming from. The flora is where it truly shines. Generation Zero captures the weather worn melting pot of autumnal colors found in Scandinavia with breathtaking fidelity.

Grand Theft Auto V Photo-realistic Mod

Grand Theft Auto V is starting to show its age. We easily forget Rockstar’s flagship game is over five-years old now, and though graphically of a high quality, it is definitely rough around the edges. However, thanks to devoted modders and particularly L00 and his PhotoRealistic San Andreas ENB, GTA V

can look almost too realistic to single it out as a video game. Take the screenshot above. At first glance you’d be excused for thinking it a normal photograph of a garbage strewn street in urban Los Angeles. Look a little closer and it’s a side street in Los Santos, GTA V’s violent, raucous main conglomeration. For me, the cars give it away, otherwise it can be hard to tell the difference.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

We’d probably be seriously chastised for not including the most recent entry in the saga of Geralt of Rivia in our list so here it is. We’ll spare you the usual superlative filled paragraph about how each biome is uniquely beautiful adorned with breathtaking vistas or wax lyrical about the way Geralt’s hair sways with the wind. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is dazzling, end of story.

Until Dawn

Until Dawn was originally planned as a PlayStation 3 release making how damn good it looks even more baffling. Ultimately launched on PlayStation 4, Supermassive Games’ teenage horror adventure about a group of kids incomprehensibly deciding to spend a night in a secluded cabin up in the woods in the middle of nowhere is through and through among the best looking games out there. From the environmental effects to the character models by way of lighting, scenery, and the way clothing shifts with each character’s movement, it’s hard to find fault in this one. Too bad the game was a rather generic take on the whole horror genre. Beauty doesn’t always equate to quality when it comes to games.