Post-Processing and its impact on the look of EoD maps

[Ashantara.8731]

I am someone who usually plays with the setting "Post-Processing: None", not because I generally dislike it (it actually adds to the mood of most maps) but because of the character and item outlines for most part.

Now, most maps look just as great without the game's Post-Processing activated, so I don't consider it a huge loss to have it deactivated.

However, on EoD maps, the difference is like day and night. Regardless of whether you're a fan of the color compositions and dull tints used in EoD, the flora's high level of radiance and the blue haze (hint: I am not), you cannot deny the fact that the maps look so much better with Post-Processing on, because it turns the "dullness" of the texture colors and the ambiance haze into a vivid environment and completes the total picture -- without it, the design is incomplete.

And I consider this design choice to be a huge flaw, because a map should look good regardless of whether players use Post-Processing or not.

I sincerely hope that all future maps will look good again with or without it.

[KeoLegend.5132]

well, everything looks better with Post Processing on

 

[fatihso.7258]

53 minutes ago, Ashantara.8731 said:

And I consider this design choice to be a huge flaw, because a map should look good regardless of whether players use Post-Processing or not.

 

Agreed and to note future maps will probably follow the trend of current EoD maps. Root problem here is many assets are slapped under a single option that is post-processing: high, low, none setting. Bloom, HDR, saturation, lighting and anything else you can think of should have their individual settings to fix what you describe otherwise when you select off, everything turns off in game. what if you only want to keep bloom on? You can't without having others on. This needs to be changed.

 

[Doggie.3184]

10 minutes ago, KeoLegend.5132 said:

well, everything looks better with Post Processing on

 

Not when it blinds you. Some things are way too bright, especually infusion terrorists. 

[The Greyhawk.9107]

30 minutes ago, Doggie.3184 said:

Not when it blinds you. Some things are way too bright, especually infusion terrorists. 

I like this term, comrade, this "infusion terrorists".  It will be appropriated for the Proletariat.

[SinisterSlay.6973]

Just wish they would get rid of the fog.

My 970 is running at 40%. Let's do this anet, increase the visual range so when I'm on top of the city I can see everything below and not a white fog.

[SoftFootpaws.9134]

7 minutes ago, SinisterSlay.6973 said:

Just wish they would get rid of the fog.

My 970 is running at 40%. Let's do this anet, increase the visual range so when I'm on top of the city I can see everything below and not a white fog.

The "fog" in New Keining is smog and is an intentional design decision.

Edited August 30, 2022 by Mariyuuna.6508

[Linken.6345]

3 hours ago, SinisterSlay.6973 said:

Just wish they would get rid of the fog.

My 970 is running at 40%. Let's do this anet, increase the visual range so when I'm on top of the city I can see everything below and not a white fog.

I read frog, I think I might need more coffie.

[SinisterSlay.6973]

5 hours ago, Mariyuuna.6508 said:

The "fog" in New Keining is smog and is an intentional design decision.

Unless it's Beijing fog it's way too dense. It completely obscures the ground almost as if the ground isn't rendering at all as if it was some sort of performance saving measure instead of showing us the whole city.

[Labjax.2465]

Oh, I didn't realize it had that much of an impact on EoD. I played it first with post processing on (I think?), but later turned off post processing because I was tired of the game being overly bright everywhere. Didn't realize I was making EoD specifically look worse.

I wouldn't have guessed cause most of the game looks just as good with it off, as you say.

[jamesg.7128]

12 hours ago, KeoLegend.5132 said:

well, everything looks better with Post Processing on

 

Not to me. I don't like it and always have it turned off.

[Ashantara.8731]

On 8/31/2022 at 2:17 AM, jamesg.7128 said:

Not to me. I don't like it and always have it turned off.

Yes, some areas have a very strong bloom effect, but I think those are rare cases. I'd love to use PP, but as long as it's still coupled with outlines, it's not gonna happen.
 

Edited September 3, 2022 by Ashantara.8731

[IYield.1204]

I must say I JUST discovered the truth of this post yesterday. The post processing of this game more often then not, obscures detail, unnecessarily brightens things like the ground and plants making all of them neon green in color, and especially noticeable on EoD maps is a seeming ‘overlay’ of a specific colored fog effect. Kaineng and Arborstone is yellow, Echovald and Jade Sea is blue and Shing Jea is green. 
 

After I noticed it, I started comparing and contrasting in many locations. I highly recommend trying with it turned OFF. It makes the world in general have more detail and more realistic in terms of darkness. Color saturation is down, making the landscapes and assets blend better. Things like jade machines don’t glow as much, yet it doesn’t get rid of the glow. Light sources produce realistic ambience yet still retain directional lighting and a glow on objects nearby. 
 

Definitely give it a try! 

[Sugar Min.5834]

I used to have postprocessing (pp) set to None. Then I followed one of the visual setting recommendations in Reddit and I changed it to low (high wouldn't make any difference unless you have a high-end graphic card). I never switched it off again.

Idk, without pp everything just dull out. It's like switching off the contrast totally. Colours are less vibrant, many light reflections are nulled, shadows are toned down. But, like some have said here the drawbacks are light reflections on certain objects become too shiny and the walls under the shades and corners become too dark with pp switched on. So, I adjusted the full-screen gamma accordingly.

I prefer to have a bight, vibrant and colourful environment. That's just me.

Edited September 4, 2022 by MintyMin.2718

[Redfeather.6401]

I saw a video that said to turn post processing off and use reshade. Is that bad to use. I didn't think reshade worked with gw2 without a plugin thing.

[Sugar Min.5834]

2 hours ago, Redfeather.6401 said:

I saw a video that said to turn post processing off and use reshade. Is that bad to use. I didn't think reshade worked with gw2 without a plugin thing.

Recommendations are done by players too so I am not surprised that there is always an opposite camp. Actually, to date I have watched and read quite a number of such topic and most, not all, prefer to have pp on. Wait, are you going to say you have watched even more videos and all says switched it off ? 😅

The only time I changed it to none temporarily is when I am placing decorations in the Hall, especially with holographic racetracks. 

Edited September 4, 2022 by MintyMin.2718

[Silent.6137]

5 hours ago, Redfeather.6401 said:

I saw a video that said to turn post processing off and use reshade. Is that bad to use. I didn't think reshade worked with gw2 without a plugin thing.

Reshade works perfectly fine with GW2 and is safe to use, But like any 3rd party programs allowed by Arenanet, there's no guarantee. Policy: Third-Party Programs

Check this image out that I posted recently in another thread: https://ibb.co/jGL4016

Bear in mind your monitor settings are different from mine so they may look totally off. Also, you lose lots of details from screenshots and will look totally different in a dynamic game as opposed to a static image. After having used it for so long, without ReShade, the game just look extremely dull.

----------

As mentioned in so many threads, the ability to adjust some settings will be very welcome indeed. The Devs have high-end top-class monitor and graphic cards. And the settings are optimized for them. Most will not have that luxury so the ability to adjust certain settings will make the game looks so much better for all.

Edited September 4, 2022 by Silent.6137

[Ashantara.8731]

6 hours ago, Redfeather.6401 said:

I saw a video that said to turn post processing off and use reshade.

I use ReShade to make textures look sharper and have a little more contrast, not to increase bloom and such. It's totally worth it as textures are quite "blurry" in comparison without ReShade.

However, the game's post-processing adds "moods" to each map -- you can't replace that with ReShade. If the game offered separate graphics options for bloom effects and character/object outlines and I could deactivate those separately, I would totally use the game's own post-processing feature in addition to ReShade.

9 hours ago, IYield.1204 said:

I must say I JUST discovered the truth of this post yesterday. [...]

What you wrote, though, is the total opposite of what I intended to communicate with my OP. 😄

My point was that other areas of the game look good with or without PP, but EoD maps look completely dull and a lot worse without PP.