skillzdadirecta Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 I'm currently playing God of War on PS4 and I'm constantly impressed by the camera direction in the game particularly the seamless integration between Gameplay and in game cutscenes and it got me thinking about camera work in cinematic games, an under-appreciated aspect that is invaluable to the overall immersion of the game. The current Tomb Raider series and the Uncharted Series also have great camera work and I was wondering what other games you guys thought had great camera work. Hopefully you'll name some games I haven't played and would need to check out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mo1518 Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 5 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said: I'm currently playing God of War on PS4 and I'm constantly impressed by the camera direction in the game particularly the seamless integration between Gameplay and in game cutscenes and it got me thinking about camera work in cinematic games, an under-appreciated aspect that is invaluable to the overall immersion of the game. The current Tomb Raider series and the Uncharted Series also have great camera work and I was wondering what other games you guys thought had great camera work. Hopefully you'll name some games I haven't played and would need to check out. I would also highlight the last of us as well. Naughty dog really has that cinematic cutscene camera work nailed down. What God of War did with its camera is so impressive, I can't believe they pulled that off. I'd love to see a no-death playthrough, just one long tracking shot from start to finish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
best3444 Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 Superman 64 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gamer.tv Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 Hellblade felt very well directed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skillzdadirecta Posted August 16, 2018 Author Share Posted August 16, 2018 12 minutes ago, mo1518 said: I would also highlight the last of us as well. Naughty dog really has that cinematic cutscene camera work nailed down. What God of War did with its camera is so impressive, I can't believe they pulled that off. I'd love to see a no-death playthrough, just one long tracking shot from start to finish. Oh yes... The Last of Us definitely! Forgot about that one. The Arkham Games are dame good in this regard as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skillzdadirecta Posted August 16, 2018 Author Share Posted August 16, 2018 6 minutes ago, gamer.tv said: Hellblade felt very well directed. Another good one! Keep 'em coming. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rodimus Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 Yes! Hellblade was great. also I think the naughty dog games have good use of camera in and out of cutscenes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwinIon Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 You started the topic with what I think is the current king of the hill. The way they treat the camera in GoW is unlike what anyone else has done, and was apparently quite difficult to pull off. Uncharted 4 has also been mentioned, but I find the dynamic camera work far more impressive than whatever happens in the cutscenes. Here's a deep dive into their process if you're curious. I wish I could think of other examples, but unfortunately bad camera work is so much more common than anything notable. I was actually debating video game camera work with some friends recently. They were playing through Until Dawn, which often uses an almost RE style static camera setup, which I've never liked. They argued it helped set the mood, but I feel like a good dynamic camera can do even better without compromising gameplay. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
number305 Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 Bad camera work is more fun to point out. Some of the worst camera work I ever remember fighting through was Shadowman on N64. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skillzdadirecta Posted August 16, 2018 Author Share Posted August 16, 2018 3 minutes ago, number305 said: Bad camera work is more fun to point out. Some of the worst camera work I ever remember fighting through was Shadowman on N64. Different topic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
number305 Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 1 minute ago, skillzdadirecta said: Different topic. Okay fine. From my memory one of the best film like moments in a game I ever played was crossing over to mexico for the first time in RDR. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skillzdadirecta Posted August 16, 2018 Author Share Posted August 16, 2018 41 minutes ago, TwinIon said: You started the topic with what I think is the current king of the hill. The way they treat the camera in GoW is unlike what anyone else has done, and was apparently quite difficult to pull off. Uncharted 4 has also been mentioned, but I find the dynamic camera work far more impressive than whatever happens in the cutscenes. Here's a deep dive into their process if you're curious. I wish I could think of other examples, but unfortunately bad camera work is so much more common than anything notable. I was actually debating video game camera work with some friends recently. They were playing through Until Dawn, which often uses an almost RE style static camera setup, which I've never liked. They argued it helped set the mood, but I feel like a good dynamic camera can do even better without compromising gameplay. That Polygon article sums up my feelings about God of War's camera perfectly. That was a great gamble on their part and it's been very effective so far. Imagine a survival horror game that takes a similar approach... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XxEvil AshxX Posted August 19, 2018 Share Posted August 19, 2018 I think the original Silent Hill deserves a mention here. It had a semi-fixed camera that would pan and tilt to add tension and create some uncomfortable angles. While nothing amazing by today's standards i'm pretty sure nothing like it had been done at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brick Posted August 19, 2018 Share Posted August 19, 2018 The camera work in the opening scene to Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes is quite impressive. One shot too. This would take so much work and practice to do right in real life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercury33 Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 It was a static camera but I thought the Castlevania Lords of Shadow camera work was great. Really did a great job setting the mood and scope for each scene. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keyser_Soze Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 I remember Ico having some pretty slick camera work, it definitely helped contribute to the atmosphere of the game. Maybe I’d put Journey in there too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
legend Posted August 20, 2018 Share Posted August 20, 2018 8 hours ago, Keyser_Soze said: I remember Ico having some pretty slick camera work, it definitely helped contribute to the atmosphere of the game. Maybe I’d put Journey in there too. I don't think it holds up anymore, but I do agree that they often had some really nice angles to emphasize the danger of the heights, jumps, and slips. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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