The Timeless looking Videogames

 

 

 

Time is the ultimate yardstick for everything that exists which means something is truly and unquestioningly great when it can stand the test of time. And even in the rapidly evolving World of Videogame Visuals, there are three games that still stand out as some of the most graphically rich experiences even after close to a decade of their release, thereby proving that if made with enough Love and Care, some things can indeed transcend time. So without further ado, here are the timeless looking Videogames that haven't aged at all and can still look better than most games released even in 2024. 

 

And instead of writing in lengths about how phenomenal their visuals are, I'll just post lots of in-game screenshots and let the images do all the talking. After all, a picture speaks a thousand words.

 

5. Batman: Arkham Knight (2015): 

 

Hard to believe this game actually came out over 9 years ago...

 

If there's ever a game that showcases just how much an engine could be polished and perfected beyond it's limits, it's Batman Arkham Knight. Running on the ageing Unreal Engine 3, Arkham Knight looks practically ageless and effortlessly holds it's own against a large number of titles even in the current-gen platforms. The technological wizardry that Rocksteady had managed to pull off to make it look this great is nothing short of awe-inspiring, proving that when sheer technical expertise and amazing Art Direction come together, the result can be something that's timeless. 

In fact, there were lots of moments while playing the game where I just stopped and thought--"I don't think Videogames need better graphics than this". When a game can make you think like this, you know it's beyond special. 

 

4. Crysis 3 (2013): Back when Crysis was released in 2007, it instantly set a standard of visuals in Videogames that was so high and so far ahead of it's time that even after 10 years later, it was still unsurpassed in terms of sheer graphical fidelity and realism. Crysis 2 was a step backwards which was clearly a result of the game releasing simultaneously on the 7th gen Consoles along with the PC platform, and although the DX 11 patch did make it much better when it arrived later but still Crysis 2 didn't reach the fabled heights of it's predecessor.  

 

The Cryengine excels at rendering fully Natural environments...

 

However, Crytek was well aware of this and made Crysis 3 specifically not just to surpass everything else that was being developed in that era but set a whole new bar for Visual fidelity in the Videogame industry for years to come----and the results speak for themselves even after more than a decade of it's release. 

In fact, some of the visual features of Crysis 3 are still capable of putting even a lot of newly released AAA's to shame such as it's facial expression technology which adds a ton of realism in it's main characters along with the game's incredibly lush and detailed vegetation system as well as the Water rendering which is one of the most advanced and natural depiction of Water I've ever seen in a Videogame. These are only some of the reasons why Crysis 3 still remains a tour-de-force of graphical richness and the Remastered version even makes it all shine a bit more by adding Ray Traced Reflections and shadows along with higher-res Textures and Shaders.

 

Even after more than a decade, Crysis 3 remains one of the most beautiful looking Videogames ever made.

 

 

3. Quantum Break (2016):  

 

Photorealism...courtesy of the Northlight Engine.

 

 

At the time of it's release, Quantum Break was a Sleeper Hit in terms of visual realism but looking back, this time-bending third person shooter easily stands out as one of the most jaw-droppingly photorealistic Videogames ever made that hasn't really aged with time (pun intended). And although both Control and Alan Wake 2 (it's spiritual successors that were made from the same Northlight engine) has surpassed this game in terms of sheer graphical horsepower, Quantum Break is still a visual stunner to marvel at after more than 8 years of it's release, which makes it a fully worthy inclusion in this list.  

 

Northlight shines in rendering both indoor and outdoor environments with spectacular details...

 

For me, Quantum Break is one of the most cinematic looking videogames ever made where it's visual flourishes goes hand-in-hand with the game's unique narrative beats, so much so that they actually feel inseparable. At many instances, the game looks and feels like you're playing a movie rather than a Videogame and this approach actually works in it's favor in more ways than one.  

Released nearly a decade ago, Quantum Break still dazzles...

 

 

2. Red Dead Redemption 2 (2018):  At this point in time, it's just criminal to not include RDR 2 in any list catering to some of the greatest visuals in Videogames, and the game is a living testament to developer Rockstar's unsurpassed level of technical wizardry that makes it not just a game with phenomenal graphics, but rather a towering monolith of visual artistry and detail that stands above time itself. A game without any Ray Tracing technologies, RDR 2 still looks like an actual next-gen game in all facets of graphical parameters, not just capable of rivaling any current gen game out there, but also standing in a league of it's own. 

 

One of the best looking Open World games out there, RDR 2 is a powerhouse of graphical fidelity that has and definitely will continue to be a benchmark for visual realism far beyond it's generation. 

Cinematic and lifelike, RDR 2 redefines Videogame Visuals...

 

 1. Need for Speed (2015):   

 

 

Even after nearly a decade of it's release, Need for Speed 2015 remains the most breathtakingly realistic videogame ever made, especially when it comes to the racing genre. And even in a world of post-Unreal Engine 5 games as well as titles such as Forza Horizon 5 which uses extensive Ray Tracing, NFS 2015 still remains untouchable when it comes to realistic depiction of night time in a Videogame, ever. Personally, I don't think the visuals of this game will ever be 'outdated' or seem 'old', but don't just take my words for it, see these screenshots for yourself. 

NFS 2015 still remains peak visuals in gaming at least in Racing games, and looking at this screenshot, it's real hard to disagree.

The Lighting model of Frostbite Engine is one of the reasons this game looks so jaw-droppingly real

You can certainly fill an entire art gallery with in-game screenshots of NFS 2015, and it'd still be not enough to show the unprecedented visual realism that this game delivers at every second. In fact, at the time of it's release, the devs themselves teased the graphical capabilities of what they had achieved in NFS 2015 with this image, also showing off the immense visual powerhouse that is Frostbite 3, the engine powering this game. 

For me, NFS 2015 remains the high yardstick of Visual standards that all other games (especially in the racing genre) are measured against and will possibly continue to be for a long time. But the fact that a game from 2015 is still unmatched in it's genre to this very day is in itself a testament to how much ahead of it's time it really was and that's why it more than deserves to be at the top of this list. 

And that's about it for this article, so let me know if you agree with this list or not in the comments section below.