Masahiro Sakurai on the importance of post-processing for game graphics

Masahiro Sakurai is back with another installment in his game development video series, and today brings us a feature that falls into the “Graphics” category.

You might think that graphics are served up to you on your screen instantaneously from your video game console, but Sakurai is here to set the record straight! In today’s video, he explains how a game’s visuals are held in a ‘framebuffer’, so that they have time to be fully rendered before being exhibited on screen. This is where details like shading and reflections are added to really enhance a game’s final look.

Sakurai uses comparisons between Super Smash Bros. Melee and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate to illustrate the significance of post-processing when it comes to graphics. Even on less powerful hardware, the results of this type of work can be impressive!