Even though I agree that the graphics look outdated (that's no wonder, it's been in the works in 2003 already and on drawing boards in 2001) but I think a lot of people are forgetting the scale of the game. This is not a corridor like early NFS games where you can't turn left or right, that's a lot of miles of real road with a freedom of movement.
Another thing is, we
can't say they've used a lot of fake techniques to make something look realistic. A lot of things are dynamic in this game, including weather and daylight conditions. The shadows, water, rain and numerous GFX effects will still be there. I personally agree with the fact that it's outdated, but this is exactly how I like it and this graphics level is enough for my needs. The gameplay is more important than the graphics.
Besides, it's not that it's ugly right? Tell me, is it? As far as the sky goes, my personal opinion is that this game has the best ever sky created. From the screenshots that I have seen this is the work of art. You can't imagine how hard it is to get the sky done properly. I know from my own experience when I made non-dynamic sky that it's a lot of work.
So I say, physics and story/gameplay is what concerns me most now. Priority is the following:
1. Physics / realism of anything concerning the vehicle
2. Gameplay / storyline
3. Sound
4. Multiplayer
5. Graphics
Well, as you can see, graphics is not that important for me. I have a game which was released in 2000 which does not have anything dynamic in its graphics engine. Yet I still play because the physics/realism and gameplay are top notch. And yes, sometimes I wish graphics was better, but if that game had the graphics of current Rig'n'Roll then I would play that game for all my life without regretting anything
