Industry vet who worked on Ultima Online says the next big thing needs to have ‘sh*tty graphics’ to escape the doom of rising development costs
Raph Koster, legendary developer of Ultima Online and creative director of Star Wars Galaxies, is warning that the industry’s obsession with high-resolution graphics has become unsustainable given rising development costs and widespread layoffs. Speaking to Edge Magazine, Koster notes that what once required a single 128x128 texture now demands multiple 4K versions, exponentially increasing development time and budgets without proportional returns.
Koster has raised these concerns since 2005, but the situation has intensified as hardware prices remain elevated and studios continue mass layoffs. Rather than merely theorizing, he is implementing this philosophy in Stars Reach, his current MMO project, which presumably embraces a more modest visual approach.
His argument challenges the prevailing industry assumption that photorealistic graphics are essential to commercial success. Instead, Koster advocates for prioritizing art direction, gameplay design, and meaningful content over raw technical specifications—a philosophy validated by the critical and commercial success of numerous indie titles. As development budgets spiral and industry pressures mount, Koster’s call for embracing simpler aesthetics represents a potential path forward for an industry struggling to balance ambition with financial sustainability.