Updates
Game updates
A game keeps changing after release: artists refine the lighting, replace blurry textures and add photo mode, while programmers look for ways to make each frame lighter. We don't retell news about specific titles. Instead, we describe the types of graphics changes that show up most often in updates and explain what to expect from them.
After a major update, you sometimes have to take a fresh look at a familiar world: the light falls differently, and well-known places look new.
How this section works: the entries describe kinds of graphics changes that regularly appear in updates, without game titles and without news about specific projects. The dates show when an entry was added to the magazine.
What changes in the graphics
Six kinds of changes after which it is worth checking the settings menu.
Accessibility settings
Options appear for adjusting font size, modes for people with color vision deficiencies and turning off camera shake. That is graphics too: the kind that makes a game comfortable for everyone.
A new graphics mode
You get a choice between prioritizing quality and prioritizing smoothness. Try both options in the same scene: the difference is often more noticeable than the description promises.
Optimization
The creators lower the load: they simplify distant objects and remove hitches when new areas load. Sometimes this lets you raise other settings afterward.
Reworked lighting
The way light bounces off walls and gets into interiors changes. Scenes may become darker or more contrasty, so after an update like this it is worth adjusting the brightness again.
Improved textures
Blurry surfaces are replaced with sharper ones. Updates like these usually take up a lot of disk space and put more strain on video memory.
Photo mode (in Russian)
The game gains a free camera, depth-of-field controls, filters and the option to hide the interface. A great excuse to take a closer look at the world.
How to read a list of graphics changes
Go to the original source
Change notes are published by the creators themselves, in the game or on its official pages. Secondhand summaries often lose details, especially the ones about settings.
Find the graphics section
Look for mentions of lighting, shadows, textures, draw distance and new menu options. Those are what change what you see on screen.
Expect your settings might reset
Major updates sometimes return the menu to its defaults. If the picture suddenly looks different, check there first.
Compare a familiar scene
Go back to a place you remember well and look at it at the same time of day. That makes it easier to notice what exactly was redone.
Check smoothness again
New lighting or textures can add to the load. Walk through a demanding scene and, if needed, lower one or two options.
Read next
- Guides
Guides to the picture: choosing graphics settings, taking great screenshots, reading a scene and finding out why a game stutters. Our article catalogue lives here too.
- Mechanics
How a game builds a frame: model, texture, material, light, shadow and post-processing, and what to turn down first when things stop feeling smooth.
- Reviews
What to look at in a game's graphics besides the amount of detail: style, scene readability, light, animation, smoothness and accessibility.
- Glossary
A plain-language dictionary of game graphics: terms about models, light and materials, plus the options you see in the settings menu.
What we rely on
- Descriptions of graphics settings in game menus (in general terms)
- Blender School editorial material
We describe the general principles of game graphics. Every game lays out its settings menu differently, options go by different names and change with updates, so look for the exact wording in the game's own tooltips and help screens.