Comment by exodust

I think HDR photography has some influence too. "Normal" photo-realism isn't necessarily the benchmark for renders anymore. Not when HDR looks so good when done right (subtle).

Take this photo of a room. The HDR is subtle, and reveals shadows in the corners that wouldn't be there without HDR.

http://www.vangviet.com/wp-content/uploads/lovely-separation...

Game graphics aren't known for subtlety. So the cheesy overdone HDR photography that burns our eyes, has found its way into gaming graphics. GTA5 generally looks great, but I noticed the overcooked corner shadows.