It’s time to decide the worst graphical effect in games: depth of field vs vignette
Motion blur, chromatic aberration, bloom… we’ve discussed many times whether these effects deserve a spot in a game’s settings menu or are the hellspawn of satan’s computer graphics division. Now it’s time for you to chime in. One final reckoning; until I have the same idea again in five years’ time. I am nothing if not returning to this well over and over again.
It’s your classic knockout format: Two effects go head-to-head and only one makes it through to the next round. There are four initial rounds, then we’ll move onto semis, then regional semis, regional quarter semis, semi regionals… nah, we’ll make it quick. There are three rounds total.
Here are the initial head-to-head rounds:
- Depth of field vs vignette
- Chromatic aberration vs dirt
- Motion blur vs lens flare
- Film grain vs bloom
Got it? Get your votes in below. Then y’all can argue about it in the comments, and say stuff like, “well, actually, motion blur serves a very important purpose.” Yeah, whatever.
Examples
Depth of field
Here’s a good example depth of field in Gray Zone warfare. Depth of field is most visible in FPS games when aiming down sights.
Vignette
You can see a vignette clearly here in Cyberpunk 2077. It’s the dark border—a way to draw player focus into the middle of the frame.
