Koki on 7/6/2011 at 14:17
Discuss.
van HellSing on 7/6/2011 at 14:30
Lower FOV = tunnel vision.
End of topic.
Briareos H on 7/6/2011 at 14:33
Lower FOV = last resort tool when the developer is too lazy to optimise performance properly
catbarf on 7/6/2011 at 14:55
I don't think it affects immersion one way or the other. I often find myself increasing the FOV (the two that leap to mind are Metro 2033 and Bad Company 2), because lack of peripheral vision is incredibly annoying.
Judith on 7/6/2011 at 15:02
Lower FOV in the age of wide-screen monitors and TVs? The trend seems to be quite opposite.
Boxsmith on 7/6/2011 at 15:04
Really? I was playing the DXHR leak and the ridiculously narrow FOV made it pretty difficult to look at. Maybe there was an FOV adjustment slider that I missed somewhere. :erg:
van HellSing on 7/6/2011 at 15:07
Yup, I remember when 90 was the standard, these days you're lucky if you get FOV above 75.
catbarf on 7/6/2011 at 15:16
Quote Posted by Judith
Lower FOV in the age of wide-screen monitors and TVs? The trend seems to be quite opposite.
That's the thing, a lot of games are designed with TVs (consoles) in mind, so when you run a game designed for 1080p on a 1280x1024 monitor, it reduces the horizontal FOV to compensate.
Muzman on 7/6/2011 at 15:39
"Lower FOV = bigger immersion?"
Yeah, definitely. The effect in Thief 2 back in the day was particularly impressive. You just tap the zoom in a little and leave it there. The spatial representation matches your eyes pretty closely. The distance from a wall, say, is notable when it looks as though it's arms length away and 'feels' as though it is in the game as well (which game distances and player movement can verify).
There's probably a few factors. Most games probably aren't that concerned with accurate character movement or even good world measures when they make the game, how the camera is attached to the player 'body' etc. Looking Glass and the Dark Engine certainly were. But the game defaulted to the old 90 degrees on a 4:3. If it were to relate to human perspective at typical sitting distance, about 65 degrees would have been more like it (which is what the zoom thing does. I haven't tried it on the widecreen version much). They had to account for a wider range of smaller monitors too.
In general with FPS games, the old 90 degree standard probably is only barely accurate now with huoe monitors like mine. The tendency to smaller FsOV is a wise one, but does seem to be misused a lot (many shooters just crowding the frame with crap and making it annoying). It's the right way to do it if you're doing a proper job however.
mothra on 7/6/2011 at 15:52
to mention the DXHR leak again: low fov is bad. it just feels wrong to me. Like I'm on drugs, not some cyberimplanted badass with a heads up display.
