User:Rainydey/sandbox

Aesthetic
Models that are said to be low poly often appear blocky and simple while still maintaining the basic shape of what they're meant to represent. With computer graphics getting more powerful, it has become increasingly computationally cheap to render low poly graphics. Some artists use the resulting low-detail from a low polygon count as an aesthetic rather than as an optimization technique. They are often used by indie developers due to being faster and cheaper to create. In addition, there is an element of nostalgia to low poly styles, hearkening to older video game consoles such as the Nintendo 64 or the PlayStation (console). Since they often achieve a certain retro style, serving as a 3-Dimensional analog to the 2-Dimensional pixel art.

Low poly as a relative term
There is no defined threshold for a mesh to be low poly; low poly is always a relative term and depends on (amongst other factors):


 * The time the meshes were designed and for what hardware
 * The detail required in the final mesh
 * The shape and properties of the object in question

As computing power inevitably increases, the number of polygons that can be used increases too. For example, Super Mario 64 would be considered low poly today, but was considered a stunning achievement when it was released in 1996. Similarly, in 2018, using hundreds of polygons on a leaf in the background of a scene would be considered high poly, but using that many polygons on the main character would be considered low poly. In this way, there is a relativism between the importance of objects and their graphical quality. More important objects such as Non-player character s usually contain a higher amount of detail than less important objects, which are often small or in the background, like a blade of grass. This relativism is subverted when low-poly is used as an intentional aesthetic style: every object shares the simplicity that a low number of polygons brings, making the distinction between important features and unimportant features less clear.

Emergence as an aesthetic style:
Low poly graphics emerged around late 2013 as a specific style when content creators began to redefine the difference between high-poly and low-poly. Instead of using a low number of polygons as a necessity, creators like Timothy J. Reynolds recognized how the usage of fewer polygons sharpens the focus on essential artistic elements like form, lighting, and texture. The emergence of the style is somewhat similar to earlier artistic movements where artists like Paul Cézanne tried to decompose objects into geometric shapes. The low poly style seeks to highlight the idea that the world can be represented by a composition of shapes, which makes it a self aware style that is intentionally vague.

Popularity in video games and other mediums:
Although it has gained some traction in the art world, low-poly is a much more established style in video games, since it serves the dual purpose of reducing development time and giving the game a unique aesthetic style. The oldest game on the popular game distribution site Steam with the tag "low-poly" is Mirror Moon EP, an space-themed exploration game with an emphasis on the low-poly style, which was released in September 2013. In 2014, Richard Whitelock published Into this Wylde Abyss, a short, story driven survival game with a similarly low-poly style. From that point on, the genre expanded quickly. From 2014 to 2018, there were 244 titles published on Steam with a low poly tag. Some of the most notable titles include Superhot, Necropolis, and Grow Up.

Low poly meshes in physics engines
Physics engines have presented a new role for low poly meshes. Since the display of computer graphics has become very efficient, allowing the display of tens to hundreds of thousands of polygons at 25 frames per second on a desktop computer, low-poly has been almost universally phased out of games by limitation, perhaps giving rise to the emergence of low poly as an artistic choice instead of a practical one.