ARCHIVE: On "Realistic" Graphics

note: any post that starts with "ARCHIVE:" is something that I wrote either for an older blog or in some other location, but deemed worth of copying over to this.

I see a lot of people arguing back and forth about the merits of "realistic" graphics versus more stylized graphics (such as in Borderlands), and the main reason I see people arguing in favor of the "realism" graphic style has to do with immersion. The arguments make sense; something that looks realistic is easier to relate to than something that seems unreal. It's easier to suspend your disbelief. However, there is a glaring flaw in that argument.