Can an Ugly Indie Game Find Success?

Let's face it, there are so many indie games developed each year.  Most of them go unnoticed, but the ones that do typically look beautiful.  Braid, Limbo, Bastion, Super Meat Boy... The list goes on.  All of these titles either look great graphically or have a great graphical style that makes it get noticed by the public.  Sounds good for the groups that are able to pull that off.  But what about the ones who can't?  Would an indie game catch on to the masses if it were truly ugly?  Hit the jump for my opinion on this issue.

Nice art.

Sometimes I feel as though certain indie games gather praise due to their graphics, above all else.  For instance, take Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP.  The game has been noted to have relatively simple gameplay, and I for one agree.  It's is honestly nothing special, yet the attention it has garnered last year was enough for it to get game of the year nominations from several sites.  Sure, the game has great graphics and even great sound, but to go that far for something so simple and rather typical for an adventure game?  Huh?

Looks good!  Plays... pretty standard?

Another example of this is Limbo.  The gameplay in Limbo, in my opinion, was a little too similar to other titles in the same genre (Braid, Oddworld, Another World), yet it received an incredible amount of praise.  The art style and graphics are phenomenal, sure, but if they weren't, we'd likely have just another puzzle platformer without much to set itself apart from the rest.  The story you ask?  Sure, it's interesting, but even so, it wouldn't have gotten the same amount of praise without it's look.

I almost feel like reviewers sit down with an indie game and look at it.  Then they ask themselves, "Does this look good graphically," or "Are the sprite animations in this game fluid," or even "Does this game have a cool art style?"  And if those things are found, the reviewer is already obligated to give the game an eight out of ten.  It doesn't matter how standard the gameplay is.  An indie game will always be remembered if it's graphics are great.  And unfortunately, that's the way things go outside of the indie game world too.

When it comes down to it, how many games can you think of that have been critically acclaimed that have/had poor graphics at the time of its release?  I can really only think of one: Deus Ex.  The graphics in Deus Ex were certainly not terrible.  But at it's time of release back in 2000, it really wasn't much to look at.  Other than that, I'm really at a loss.  That's because most games that have been critically acclaimed sadly have great graphics.  Graphics make an important first impression with games.  It's hard to like a game in the beginning if it has bad graphics.  But if a game has good graphics, one could potentially like it right off the bat.

NieR brought along a bundle of inventive ideas.  It was sadly ignored
and critically panned, mostly for its "ugly" graphics.

It's a real shame too, as some of the industry's greatest games have come from just standard or less than standard graphics.  Some aren't totally ignored, but others have fallen into a niche.  Deadly Premonition, Mischief Makers, Cubivore, Planescape: Torment, NieR, Enslaved, Fragile Dreams, Katamari Damacy...  Notice the trend?  Most of these games are from the current generation or generally later generations, rather than from the days of the SNES or NES.  This is becoming more of the case as the times go on, due to the industry focusing more and more on the look of a game.  And it's a real shame too, as games with subpar graphics have been more inventive than those that look fantastic.

So would what were to happen if an ugly indie game were released to the world?  Let's say this game was incredibly inventive and had a great plot.  Would the public catch on?  Would the game be successful and even be nominated for some sort of award at the end of a year?  It's honestly hard to say in days where good, but ugly games don't get the attention they truly deserve.  It may be forgotten or it may be picked up by a small cult following.  But for an indie game?  It may simply get lost in the river of hundreds of others, without the graphics to make it pop.

An indie game could nail everything perfectly, minus the graphics.  Yet, some indie developers don't really have good artistic abilities like that, myself included.  Going into the industry knowing that my work may be ignored without the proper treatment to the game's visuals certainly worries me.  And at this rate, where graphics are continually improving throughout the years, it becomes harder and harder for a small indie developer to keep up with the standards.  I'm willing to bet that visuals are discouraging creative minds who simply can't make something visually pleasing.  And that's a real shame.

We need more games like Deus Ex.  Especially now.

I would love to see someone make an excellent indie game, but maybe purposely make it look ugly.  8-bit doesn't count as ugly; it's a style.  In all honesty, if it hits all the right notes, I think that game will get attention, at least, for a little while.  After some time, some may forget about it while others will cherish it.  But maybe the game will be remembered for being greatly ambitious and standing out in the crowd for being ugly.  The indie game community needs a Deus Ex, where it was inventive in all departments, except for the graphics.  In the end, the important thing is that an indie game gets the attention it deserves.  And in the modern world, where graphics have become such a large focus, this is very difficult for a game that looks subpar.