Trees in the game: past and present

You can draw a graph showing the evolution of PC gaming in several ways: the power of a shotgun; depth of dialogue; scale of an RTS (Real Time Strategy: real-time strategy) game. However, one element that is often overlooked is the trees in the game.

Behind the outstanding elements mentioned above are the trees waving their leaves modestly in the background. And trees are very important. They give us a better understanding of the ever-evolving gaming industry than guns. Trees are a testament to the dedication and what developers are willing to do to help players immerse themselves in the game world, with tiny details that sometimes we often go unnoticed.

Early period

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A side effect of the simplicity of the games of this era was that the tree was more than a decoration. In many games, they are almost your enemies. This was often seen in the 8-bit ZX Spectrum console days, for example in 3D games deathchase, You will have to ride the moto through a dense forest and trees are the only thing that can kill you. The danger of these deadly “weapons” is somewhat reduced with the fact that they look like IKEA table legs.

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To find a concrete example of these early trees in a PC game, we need to go back to the game. Skifree (1991). Many people might remember it by the image of that damned yeti, but there’s a good chance the trees were the real enemy. They are the “evil” saplings that grow out of the snow to make you stop your ski race. They were like a child’s drawing of a tree, and perhaps that was why it was so much more terrifying. If you’ve never seen them before, stick it in your head because we’ll be comparing it to The Witcher 3.

90’s

When the graphics were developed in the 1990s, the trees in the game seemed to breathe new life. Think of it like spring, with flower buds blooming everywhere in all colors and shapes, but in this case it’s just green and the shape is a tree. 2D foliage is everywhere, but the game Cannon Fodder (1993) are most notable for their ineffable pervasiveness. Even the game background is mostly blue. At this time, moving among these luxuriant trees feels like playing Platoon (1987) so. And then it’s your turn Mortal Kombat 2 (1995) with trees that are really alive (literally). You might think this lays the groundwork for other tree-based elements in fighting games – like the haunted wooden effigy Mojukin in Tekken – but that’s if you spend too much time studying trees in the game.

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That’s more than enough for 2D graphics, now we come to the 3D tree version to understand that there is still a long way to go before they are like today’s games, and Myst (1993) is a prominent example. First of all, it must be acknowledged Myst It’s a pretty cool game, but the trees in this game are more like witch hats than real trees. The rocks, the buildings, the sky: all beautiful. But if you want a lively forest, you’ll have to wait.

Elsewhere, we have the game The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall. The images depicting the plants in the game look good, but they look oddly similar.

Turok: Dinosaur Hunter (1997) is also quite impressive. Looking back now, it felt as if you had to walk through piles of foliage in endless forests. But 21 years later, those foliage looks very lonely, hidden in the misty landscape as in Jurassic Park and Silent Hill so.

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Next, let’s take a look at the game title Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines (1998). It shows us a complete difference from the green “stains” in Cannon Fodder with a 5 year difference. This game has more types of trees, like pine trees and small treetops next to the train tracks. We haven’t really gotten to the stage of growth where the tree is starting to look like the real thing; but they really do look like real-life tree models, which is pretty good.

Decade 2000

While the ’90s was a period of “dominance” for trees when they were more dangerous than people, motorbikes and even motorcyclists, 2000 was the year when everything changed completely. The Sims (2000) gives us control over them, allowing players to buy, plant and rotate them in all directions, proving their “dominion” over nature. Whether large or small, indoor or outdoor, alive or dead: all plants are under our control. And to rub salt on that “humiliation,” The Sims also allows the player to decorate a dead tree as a Christmas decoration. Humanity’s victory so far is absolute.

Then we have Halo: Combat Evolved. Released on PC in 2003, the first Halo game captivated players with the grass they stared at for days – but the forests were just as captivating. Dense forests in level Halo, dangerous vines in level 343 Guilty Spark, snow-covered pine trees in Assault on the Control Room: Combat Evolved; must admit that Halo there are more plants than guns.

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Now things are just starting to get real. The forests created in 2004 were without a doubt the most authentic products up to that time. Swing above the dense forests in Far Cry brings a unique and new feeling. That reason was enough to get players to spend money to invest in a PC powerful enough to play this game at the highest settings, and with some subsequent technical developments made the game still impressive. more. If only we could say the same to the mutants (Trigen) in Far Cry.

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We must mention the moon Endor in the game Star Wars: Battlefront II (2005) because it brought out one of the liveliest forests up to that point, and World of Warcraft offers a bunch of different plants that still excite today (and the ability to turn into a tree if you’re a Druid). And in 2006, Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion showed us an extremely lush city of Cyroddi. The following year, All Ghillied Up’s level Call of Duty: Modern Warfare allows you to actually become a tree. Resident Evil 4 set the standard for bark details in gaming. But then game developer Crytek took the limelight again with a classic PC game, Crysis. It allows players to shoot down trees, and interact with them, and at the highest settings they look better than many games today.

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And in the late 2000s, we pay homage to Harold. Perhaps not the most realistic tree in the game – and certainly not the most “handsome” tree – but he brought us one of the best side quests in the game. Fallout 3 (2008).

decade 2010

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Developments in the 2010s were harder to spot. Partly because they are more subtle, partly because Crysis still looks better than anything else. But The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, launched in 2011, at least showed us how far the series has progressed in terms of plant fidelity. Skyrim is a love letter of Nordic motifs: a beautiful landscape of leafy caves, autumnal forests, and huge, majestic pines. You can even cut down trees and get lumber for the sawmill, as if to remind us of humanity’s completely one-way relationship with nature.

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Minecraft’s cube forests can be seen as a visual evolution, but they allow us to interact with trees in many ways that make crafting with wood mechanics available in games. during the next 200 years. You can punch, chop and redesign them – it’s like a BBQ, but instead of meat it’s wood. If you haven’t built a tree house in Minecraft then maybe you played the wrong way. Another standout game is Alan Wake, released on PC in 2012, bringing deep forests covered with fog creating a realistic and engaging scene. But a year later we have Deadly Premonition, this title is definitely not among the names that contributed to the advancement in the 2010s. And then there was Proteus, also released in 2013, is an example of how plants don’t need to be detailed to look impressive.

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Our jungle walk is coming to an end, but before that let’s go back to the developer Crytek, they accidentally made the game Crysis The first is so beautiful that the later games make no sense at all. Crysis 3 (2013) can almost be considered an exception, but the trees in this game have lost their depth and luster, even though its setting is set in a post-apocalyptic period, when nature once again dominating the surface of the earth. Battlefield 4 There are also very realistic woods, but you’re probably too focused on destroying buildings and complaining about campaign missions to notice.

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And we have come to the end. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is a game where sometimes you have to stop playing and look at the surrounding nature. When you first step foot into the city of Velen and see those green landscapes, you will want to stop and pull people around to the 4K screen, and simply enjoy the majesty of nature. without having to go out. And developer CD Projekt Red clearly enjoys a rich forest: creepers, divine trees, dead trees, and haunted trees.