Graphics quality question (Not specific to AH or a tech issue)

[Blackwulf]

The BF3 video posted in another thread reminded me of something I have wondered at times, and maybe some of you with more programming knowledge can explain it.

Why are the graphics in a game like the BF series so high, yet MMo's like the EQ series, etc. so low comparatively.  The rendering is done client-side, and BF3 is going to be played mostly in multiplayer mode I would assume, so it is dealing with the same server/client issues a MMO would have so far as I know.  But to my knowledge, the server is basically just transferring item and character location data back and forth, so I don't see how that would limit graphics in a MMO. The map is also loaded client side, so I don't see map sizes as being a determining factor either.

I know there is the desire to have a broad mass appeal (for lack of a better term) in the MMO's so they design for the lowest system denominator within reason.  But couldn't they give high graphics as an option, or let people lower the graphics for a older system, etc.?  Failing that, they can't have a high rez and low rez install option on the disk?  Obviously a small company like HTC doesn't have the manpower for this level of detail (though they have done an outstanding job for their size) but a company the size of Sony does.  Is it really just being cheap, or is there a technical reason I can't see? Even if they didn't go as high as BF3, they could be optimizing their game engines a lot better couldn't they?

[MarineUS]

With MMO's there is so much on the screen (including stuff you can't see yet because you might be too far away) that starts using your RAM (temp memory) and other things inside the PC. If it were trying to process all of these at once it would be an overload.

Plus it is based off of the game engine the game was designed around. BF3 is using a brand new frostbite engine, which is why it looks so good. BF3 proves that the people of CoD are doing nothing but milking a dieing series before it runs out of steam. They recycled graphics, game sounds etc. to give you an older game with a new environment.

[gyrene81]

imagine the resources your computer would use up loading and rendering a 250 mile bf3 terrain with all those detailed objects...then try to run that on an old pentium 4 with only 2gb of ram and a 256mb agp graphics card...be lucky to get 640x480 resolution with 30 fps...as it is you're only rendering 100 yards to scale of full 3d environment at a time as you move around...and the maps aren't massive.

[Blackwulf]

So a game like BF3 is limiting the draw/view distance by working on a smaller scale compared to a MMO, so too much overhead for the MMO due to the size of the zones, yes?.  I would think that with DX10 they would have given a better capability to specify the level of detail by scaling the Z axis.  Especially with 3D on the horizon.  I should think they could reduce the overhead quite a bit by putting the level of detail on a gradated scale, placing a matte painting style backdrop for the zone, and telling the video card to ignore any objects beyond "x" distance.
But like I said, I am no programmer.  Greatly appreciate the answers!

[gyrene81]

give it a few years blackwulf...just look how fast things have come along in the last 12 years.