As Lee has said...shaders and alike are a big subject...and it is. Including advanced shaders in a game engine is a big, time consuming task. Have a look around the web if you like and see how much intense effort is required creating support for and inserting your own shaders effects for instance into any game you make. Its a subject that can take a single person a lifetime to master if at all.
Most users of FPSC that are targetted for purchase wont even consider shaders, bump mapping and alike at all and will take whatever the default provide. Those more ardent FPSC users here are perhaps rather lucky to have any support at all in such a low cost program.
However better shader support is on the cards apparently and is due for further development following V1 release so it seems so perhaps everyone will get what they want eventually in this discipline.
Personally though nice to have as a default, I would not attach a great deal of importance to these effects as opposed to time spent by developers (users) on a great story line and designing better and more interesting looking levels from a world environment point of view and any resulting improvement in gameplay. If I stopped to worry about shaders and bump mapping I would never finish a 50 or more level game - if I do I can always go back and improve support in those areas.
Overall gameplay and overall appearance of game is more important than the detail which by and large is for the most part bypassed by modern gameplayers. All kinds of detail is great if you can include it and most high end AAA games nowadays do, but dont expect anyone to stop to admire it.
An unfair perhaps assumption, but most youngsters for instance I personally see playing games now and I watch a lot, just want to get to the end as quickly as possible and load up the next game - their time attention span is low and concentration on unimportant details in short supply. Its a case of "Just cant get enough of the next one so no time to hang about in this one" Been there, done that, now what else does this day offer to keep me entertained?
Of course that is not to deny a player is moved subconsciously by the game environment.
Most profesional AAA games played now are so full of high quality in all kinds of areas its taken for granted. Many are indeed great works of art in their own right and a massive technical achievement but in real time gameplay few stop to look around and appreciate the developers undertaking and applaude this achievement.
Bit like the huuman animal in general in this 21 century.
