my "low FieldOfView = thumbs down" policy

Starting "Deus Ex:Mankind Divided" (August 2016), I give every new 1st person 3D game a thumbs-down review if the FOV (field of view) can not be set to a value way above 100° (horizontal). This article explains why, and it hopefully convinces you that this is reasonable.

Btw., here's a Steam Guide explaining what FOV is, why it's important, how it should be set etc.

Why?

Because the big screen revolution is underway: They become increasingly affordable, e.g. you can get a good 49" 16:9 4K SmartTV for less than 600$/€ (June 2016). Yes, with PC-mode, and indeed with 60Hz at 4K via HDMI. I have one standing at arm's length distance on my desk. New rule: Your screen shall cost more than your graphics card! I'm joking, but there's something to it.

The very purpose of the 3D 1st person view in a game is to replace your surrounding world with the game world, and obviously: The bigger your perceived screen size (Actual size vs viewing distance.), the greater your immersion in this other world (and the higher the required FOV). We pay good money for games to experience these other worlds! Not mentioning the time of our life that we "invest" in this. So, we should make the most of this experience.

The visual interface - almost all we ever get to experience from a game (the rest is audio) - is of highest importance. That's why people spend thousands of dollars on powerful PCs that can play games at high graphical settings. That's why I, and other serious gamers (The kind of people who first let down their roller shutters when gaming and who spend €200 on headphones.), position themselves close to a big screen when playing, crank up the FOV to just the right value, and spend many hours inside an imaginary 3D world.

And finally ...

... because allowing us to increase an already existing parameter (A simple number that is in every 3D engine and that is not magically limited between 50 and 110.) just a bit more is really really easy work!

Since there are potential graphical artifacts and slightly lower frame rates (See FOV article linked at the top.), you may not want to give users FOV options (beyond a small range), but we can expect that there's at least an unofficial way to change the FOV value beyond the range available via the game's menu. Many games don't even expose the FOV value in the menu, so "you can't change it", but these games, as well as games with a FOV slider, often have configuration files that you can just simply edit so that you can get your desired FOV. (See your game's http://pcgamingwiki.com/ article for details. Googling for part of a game's name and the word "pcgw" usually works.)

But no. "Deus Ex: Mankind Divided" and "Dishonored 2" both come with built-in FOV sliders (max value 100° and 110°, both horizontal) - which is a nice gesture, but it's too little, especially since the key problem with these games is: If you edit the value in the configuration files, these games clip it to the officially available range regardless! That is COMPLETELY unnecessary! That is nothing but THE FINGER to the players!

FOR GOD'S SAKE, we now have the SECOND Virtual Reality gaming wave going on (Btw., this one's here to stay.), where people "redecorate" their rooms so that they have space, and where they wear helmets/glasses that give them effectively very big screen sizes - requiring high FOV values - but STILL the ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ gaming industry has not woken up!

THAT'S WHY YOU, THE DEVELOPERS, DESERVE AND RECEIVE A THUMBS-DOWN FOR YOUR MILLION-PERSON-HOUR CREATION IF YOU STUPIDLY LOCK IT AWAY BEHIND A TOO LOW FIELD OF VIEW!

The end.

[God, owner of the Universe]

I'll give new games with too low max FieldOfView a thumbs-down review, starting August 2016. I don't want to encourage you to do the same, but I want you to know why I do it, and I hope you find the reasons sufficient. Because the FOV battle still feels like kicking water uphill.