A lot of emphasis is put on concept art and graphic realism in today’s market, but these gems have found an awesome middleground.

Borderlands 2

Platforms: PC, PS3, XBOX 360, OS X

“A new era of shoot and loot is about to begin. Play as one of four new vault hunters facing off against a massive new world of creatures, psychos and the evil mastermind, Handsome Jack” – Game Trailers

Bold colors and a gritty comic like style make this game feel completely badass, and extremely fun to play. The cel shading makes everything look hand drawn, and is the root of the unique graphic style of BL2.

Children of Mana

Platforms: Nintendo DS

“Children of Mana takes us back to ages past, when an island called Illusia floated at the center of the world. At the heart of the island towered an ancient, enormous tree that stretched up to the very heavens. When a time of darkness comes, chaos and sorrow engulfed the world until at last its salvation appeared – in the form of a boy, a girl, and a holy sword.” – Amazon

Spritely characters and bright colour schemes hint toward the Japanese origins of this game. A classic dungeon crawler, this game has a vintage artistic feel with an enchanting twist, reminiscent of Miyazaki films. The 2D graphic overlays complement the capabilities of the Nintendo DS well, making this one of the best looking games on the Nintendo DS.

Mass Effect 2

Platforms: PC, XBOX360, PS3, Wii U

“Plunges you into an all-out galactic war to take Earth back from a nearly unstoppable foe- and how you fight that war is entirely up to you.” – Bioware.com

The graphics and visual styling of Mass Effect 3 is so well executed it makes the game completely absorbing. From the menu interfaces to the home of the illusive man, everything feels ultra futuristic, like you really are looking through your heads-up display with a pair of augmented eyes.

The Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav

Platforms: PC

“The Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav is a point-and-click adventure from the maker of The Whispered World” – Game Trailers

The point-and-click mechanics of this beautiful fantasy game permits the use of hand-drawn graphics, a rare find in today’s videogame market. While the character art can be lacking at times, the landscapes and backgrounds more than compensate. Check out our lets play and review here.

Shadow of the Colossus

Platforms: PS2, PS3

“Shadow of the Colossus is an action game that squares a young boy against a group of towering colossi. You assume the role of a nameless hero trying to rid the world of giant creatures and find his lost love.” – Game Trailers

While the world of the Forbidden Land can feel a little sparse at first, you quickly understand when presented with the first towering colossus. The minimal landscape design is balanced by the extremely detailed creatures, making each encounter with the colossi equally enchanting and terrifying. Desaturated colours, motion blur, and bloom lighting makes gameplay feel like an awesome dream.

Check out our post on the top 8 mods of all time here.

Isabella Romano