Hey fegs, which game should I use to christen my incoming HDTV?

[CajoleJuice]

So I haven't been gaming much the past two months, and I've just been playing Left 4 Dead the past few days. I definitely want all of these games, but it's just a matter of which one I want to play first on my imminently arriving 42" HDTV. So graphics are probably the biggest factor here, as I want my eyes blown out the back of my head. I want this shit to look awesome, so I'm really leaning towards the first two.

CHOOSE MY FATE

[Costanza]

I'd say go with either Gears 2 or Dead Space. Probably the former.

[bud]

mirror's edge

play the demo foo

[CajoleJuice]

I might add Far Cry 2 if the 360 version is actually decent. Has anyone played it?

I have played the demo, bud.

[bud]

fallout 3 looks like poo, literally. i don't think i've ever seen so many ugly browns and greys in a game.

[bud]

i have, actually.

[CajoleJuice]

Uncharted

Once I buy a PS3 (for blu-rays lol), the first game I play will be Wipeout HD.

[dark1x]

If this 42" HDTV is an LCD, I would recommend staying away from darker games.  Dead Space, for example, would be a terrible choice for just this reason as it uses a lot of extremely dark locales.  I really think Mirror's Edge would be the best choice regardless of which display you're using simply due to the "wow" factor you get from its intense colors.  Gears 2 is probably the only other good choice on the list, though it still has its fair share of dark areas.

I take it you haven't played any of the Metal Gear Solid games?

The MGS games use a wide variety of colors.  Each scene focuses on a unique hue that defines that area.  MGS3 and 4 in particular featured vastly different color schemes depending on the area.

[Tabasco]

Dead Space is really pretty, but it's damn dark.  I mean greyscale is a big part of the HDTV setup, but I think when you get a new TV, you wanna see something that POPS off the screen.  Gears 2 does that more so than any game I've played.

[CajoleJuice]

It's a Panny plasma, dark1x.

[dark1x]

It's a Panny plasma, dark1x.

Ah, so Dead Space might not be a bad choice, but it's still very dark.  It looks great, but it's probably not the best way to experience a new TV regardless.

Still, I think Mirror's Edge or Gears 2 would be better choices (with Mirror's Edge having a slight Edge ).  Gears 2 looks really really nice, but I thought the lighting was a bit flat throughout and the darker areas suffer due to a terrible design choice.  ME just jumps off the screen with some of the most vivid colors and beautiful locales I've seen in a game.  It would make a great impression.

[maxy]

Banjo,it looks amazing...amazing,but since its not on your list,Gears 2.

[cool breeze]

Gears 2 is you want good graphics.  And you can always  download the demo of Mirror's Edge if you wanted to see that.

[Howard Alan Treesong]

when I got my new HD projector last week, I christened it with Wipeout HD

[T234]

Do what I did, watch high-res vids of SF4 and KoFXII.

[CurseoftheGods]

Gears of War 2, easily.

[y2kev]

Far Cry 2 looks really great but has some shimmering problems that kind of bug me when the light comes through the trees. Dead Space is a pretty game...and if you play it, you can hear Dark's speech about how much better a game it would be if you bought a 900 lbs CRT from 6 years ago instead.

OH WAIT I SEE YOU HAVE NOT BEEN SPARED

[CajoleJuice]

when I got my new HD projector last week, I christened it with Wipeout HD

If I jumped on that PS3 deal this past Saturday at Walmart, I would do the same.

It's looking like Gears 2, which I was already leaning towards. I'll buy Dead Space as well, anyway. I'm just so goddamn excited.

T234, your plan sounds pretty awesome as well.

[T234]

@ the whole CRT thing.

PEOPLE HAVE STAIRS FFS THOSE THINGS ARE HEAVY

[CajoleJuice]

OH WAIT I SEE YOU HAVE NOT BEEN SPARED

But I didn't get an LCD. I WAS spared.

[Kestastrophe]

Cajole, is this is the TV you bought?

http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/463030618/panasonic-th-42pz80u

[y2kev]

OH WAIT I SEE YOU HAVE NOT BEEN SPARED

But I didn't get an LCD. I WAS spared.

NOT FROM THE LECTURE

[CajoleJuice]

Cajole, is this is the TV you bought?

http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/463030618/panasonic-th-42pz80u

Pretty much, only I got the 85 instead of the 80. Amazon had it for $950, I couldn't resist.

[Kestastrophe]

I saw a deal a few hours ago posted on slickdeals that had the 80U with a free Blu-Ray player for only $950 with free shipping. I almost bit. Let me know how the TV is after you test it out.

Here is a screencap I took of the deal:

[CajoleJuice]

That's a pretty sweet deal.

[dark1x]

OH WAIT I SEE YOU HAVE NOT BEEN SPARED

But I didn't get an LCD. I WAS spared.

NOT FROM THE LECTURE

Twas no lecture.  Dead Space looks pretty good on a plasma, but it IS a very dark game and probably isn't the best way to experience a new TV.

I never suggested a CRT. 

[Smooth Groove]

Far Cry 2 looks really great but has some shimmering problems that kind of bug me when the light comes through the trees. Dead Space is a pretty game...and if you play it, you can hear Dark's speech about how much better a game it would be if you bought a 900 lbs CRT from 6 years ago instead.

OH WAIT I SEE YOU HAVE NOT BEEN SPARED

[Mupepe]

mupepe.

You called? 

And I'm with Dark.  My old CRT was only 86 pounds and it was fucking awesome.  It weighed less than any of my LCD tv's (except my 26 inch).  Too bad the colors are better on the LCD's I have

[Smooth Groove]

CRTs are still the best for SD systems but they are too damn bulky.  Hopefully, they'll still have some 1080I CRTs around when I buy a house. 

[Draft]

Dead Space is the best looking console game.

Do not listen to any psychopath trying to tell you that an LCD can't do dark enough for Dead Space. My Samsung 650 rocks heart of Africa blacks, and Dead Space looks amazing on it.

[Smooth Groove]

Dead Space is the best looking console game.

Do not listen to any psychopath trying to tell you that an LCD can't do dark enough for Dead Space. My Samsung 650 rocks heart of Africa blacks, and Dead Space looks amazing on it.

The new LED backlit LCDs from Sony and Samsung have both gotten rave reviews.  Supposedly, they do better blacks than most plasmas.  In brightly lit viewing rooms, which most people probably have, they look even better than the newest Pioneer kuros. 

The only drawbacks are diminished viewing angles compared to plasmas but they'll probably fix that eventually. 

I'll probably switch back to LCD in a year or two.  The 58" Samsung plasma looks great when the lights are off but the glare is super annoying, especially for dark games. 

[Draft]

I'm not going to say whether or not my TV does better blacks than some other TV, because I just don't know.

What I do know is that seated on my couch, in a room with the lights either on or off, the TV produces a very deep, solid black. It is not gray, it is not banded, it is simply black. The absence of color.

It does go very gray if you look at it from an odd angle, like standing very close and looking down. It also goes a little gray when I stretch out on the love seat, which is positioned a little left of the sofa.

[CajoleJuice]

LOOK WHAT YOU DID KEV

Get this shit out of my thread and let's just keep it to some good ol' graphics whoring.

[Draft]

Dead Space is a WOW good looking game. It is the first console game I've played that had me just stupid impressed at several points throughout. Gears didn't do it, MGS4 didn't do it, GT5P didn't do it, but Dead Space did it and THEN some.

[Smooth Groove]

LOOK WHAT YOU DID KEV

Get this shit out of my thread and let's just keep it to some good ol' graphics whoring.

Just hookup your labtop and watch that movie we were talking about.   

There's no better eye candy than that. 

[CajoleJuice]

LOOK WHAT YOU DID KEV

Get this shit out of my thread and let's just keep it to some good ol' graphics whoring.

Just hookup your labtop and watch that movie we were talking about.  

There's no better eye candy than that. 

I got plenty of that stuff ready to stream through my 360.

[E-DuB]

Of this list, Gears 2 is the only right answer all 'dat juice in 1080p

[CurseoftheGods]

I thought Gears was 720p (native).

[dark1x]

I thought Gears was 720p (native).

It is.

If you want 1080p Gears of War at 60 fps, you need the PC version of the original (though it has its own unique technical hitches that Epic never bothered to address).

CRTs are still the best for SD systems but they are too damn bulky.  Hopefully, they'll still have some 1080I CRTs around when I buy a house. 

Yeah, CRT televisions all kind of suck, but the top end CRT pc monitors are just insane.  That Sony GW900 (24" widescreen CRT) rapes any PC LCD several times over.

[Joe Molotov]

Make sure you buy a new S-VIDEO cable to get the most out of your HDTV, I recommend MONSTER!

[demi]

Gears 2

[duckman2000]

Wipeout HD

[Phoenix Dark]

Gears 2 is the best looking game of this generation

360

[demi]

Well there's a demo for Mirrors Edge, and I think that game is gorgeous

Dead Space is also good, but better when played in a dark environment

Gears 2 as well

Fable 2 is uggo

[Darunia]

gears. wow you will say

[Cormacaroni]

Rez HD 

[CajoleJuice]

I already said I'd pick Wipeout HD if I had a PS3.