What made the 5th generation of console "uncanny" feeling?

[Ikagura]

I know that people love to meme about "liminal spaces" in Super Mario 64 but I noticed that 3D games from the beginning of that era often had that "eerie" feeling (especially in some levels like Surface 2 in Goldeneye, many PS1 games and less commonly Saturn since the games were often more colourful).

I think it's because they're trying to be lifelike while still being technically limited so they often reach the uncanny valley instead of showing proper environments and humans.

With limitations you also have less crowded areas thus feeling emptier than expected (it's noticeable with Mario 64's castle where there are only a few Toads in it).

I am guessing this is also why low poly horror games are quite popular recently, the brain often fills the empty space that the game cannot properly show.

 

[syntheticErik]

I think you mostly answered your own question, but in addition to the overall emptiness and the "not quite right-ness" due to technical limitations, I think it's that many environments constantly feel like they're just on the edge of completely falling apart.

Bless the devs of the day really for being able to create what they did within those constraints, but a lot of full 3D games of that era really do feel like the walls and floor are going to fall away from you at any second and leave you standing in the void. Kind of the same feeling you'd get exploring an abandoned building, maybe it's not necessarily creepy but then you unknowingly take one step onto a piece of rotted floor and your foot sinks much farther than you expect it to.

 

[Yousef]

I can’t give like a super concrete reason as to why but I like to think there’s a beauty to minimilism that we don’t give enough credit.

I recall all the way back from 2015 back when Low-poly wasn’t fully recognized as a proper artstyle the same way it is and 5th gen graphics were deemed outdated at that point. These days the landscape has completely shifted which makes sense considering fans of 5th Gen. Graphics like myself are a lot more vocal about our love for them compared to ten years ago where it was a bit harder to challenge the status quo.

Low poly, as well as other multiple effects that were born out of hardware limitations like fog, detailed 2d backgrounds, your character moving slower due to hardware limits and all that really added to the appeal.

It helps invokes imagination, we as art enjoyers love to fill in the blanks and 5th gen art style really lends itself into this

I recommend Corn Kidz 64 for this. It’s a fantastic little indie.

 

[AmberMinx]

I think you mostly answered your own question, but in addition to the overall emptiness and the "not quite right-ness" due to technical limitations, I think it's that many environments constantly feel like they're just on the edge of completely falling apart.

Yeah, I think it has similarities to liminal spaces, a lot of emptiness and lack of detail or lighting in a proposed world can give that feeling.

 

[RedVortex]

The seventh generation, in my opinion, is uncanny, while the fifth generation is very endearing. Character models always seemed to be made of wax and covered in Vaseline, and every game had ridiculous levels of bloom.

 

[AmberMinx]

The seventh generation, in my opinion, is uncanny, while the fifth generation is very endearing. Character models always seemed to be made of wax and covered in Vaseline, and every game had ridiculous levels of bloom.

Of COURSE it's endearing!!

 

[Waffles]

A lot of PS1 and N64 games look and feel like a cool puppeteering act. Like someone is staging an epic tale with Playmobiles or something. I personally consider that to be part of their endless charm.

 

[symplily]

fog

 

[Ikagura]

The seventh generation, in my opinion, is uncanny, while the fifth generation is very endearing. Character models always seemed to be made of wax and covered in Vaseline, and every game had ridiculous levels of bloom.

Brown/Yellow filter and bloom+post processing are my pet's peeve for the gen despite the games I liked in it.

But let's not derail the topic please.

I remember how that fanmade RE Village trailer with the PS1 graphics was moodier than the original.

 

[middler]

To me, the oddness seems to come from objects of different colors never quite touch each other. That said it does give a "stained glass come to life" effect that I have always loved.