Modern game graphics relies on far more than a 3d textured mesh. Game weapons, for example, have dynamic ammo indicators on the object, complex animations, bump/normal mapping, and enviornment mapping. Doom 3 had its objected created in incredibly high detail for the normal maps, and reduced for the dynamic mesh, something that alone takes far more time and skill than most indy teams can afford; upcoming games have multiple maps for every little object (specular map, normal map, diffuse map, parralax map), never mind the high polygonal detail, difficult and complex shader technology, and ever more difficult to create photorealistic textures.
What I'm getting at here is that no, you can't do it well enough; the independant developer will always be a step behind in the technology department. Unless you happen to find some incredibly talented people who are willing to work for you, of course, but that won't happen because these incredibly talented people are off making incredible amounts of money at incredible game development houses, and that's just how it goes. Even if it somehow was to happen against all odds, you still wouldn't have the leverage (IE cash) to get behind-the-scenes info and technology on what's coming up next in the computer graphics hardware industry, which is how titles like Oblivion and Unreal 3 start working with such high tech stuff so early. We're not at the top of the food chain-- adapt and compensate
It is a perilous occupation for TGC to post anything by way of a promise, as the words get etched in indestructable marble for all time.
-Lee Bamber
