this post was submitted on 09 May 2026
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Every few years I think "this is true photorealism; we can't go further". And every few years they introduce some new technology that upheaves everything and requires a new generation of graphic engines and tech to properly show off.
Though maybe it's just my eyesight getting worse, but I think the first Star Wars: Battlefront reboot was close enough to reality that they could have stopped there. That or the FOX Engine - the tech demos from before Konami killed it would show a real video side-by-side with a render and they were nearly indistinguishable. (Edit: might have been this one?)
Skin and facial animations are what's really holding us back. Forget yet another lighting revolution, focus on the basics!
Eventually we'll get to uncanny valley and have to pull back into stylistic styles instead of photo realism because it will give everyone the creeps.
We have been there for decades. Quite famously Princess Fiona in Shrek over 20 years ago had to be stylized because her original model was too uncanny valley.
We're mostly past that though. There was a period that made people feel strange, but modern games the characters are close enough that we can empathize with them, and we don't think there's something wrong. There's still some improvements to make, especially with how light interacts with skin, but it's close.
The Star Wars looks almost as good as Crysis.
Joke aside, definitely good enough.