"Art in the world of entertainment": What do artists in the gaming industry do
Video games have come a long way since their inception in the 70s of the last century. Today they remain one of the most popular entertainment, in no small measure due to the spread of mobile platforms. One of the components of the game is its visual design - that is, a picture that forms the first impression of the players.
In this article I would like to tell you what the artists in the game industry do by the example of the company Inventain . I talked to their designers and developers and this is what they told me.
Photo by Inventain
A good picture affects the feelings of the audience and players, forms the first impression of the product, attracts users. That's what the artists in the field of game design do: they create amazing worlds that sink into the soul of the players, evoke strong emotions and do not let go for a long time.
In this position, creative people can realize their most courageous ideas, introduce something fundamentally new in the gameplay almost without limiting themselves. The scope for fantasy is enormous, since you have to work in different genres, “time periods” and settings, and solve very different and interesting tasks. Here are some of them.
Comparing the picture with the plot of the game, the artists, as it were, “ immerse ” the player into what is happening on the screen, and this is one of the most valuable qualities of an entertainment product. Exploring and interacting with the virtual world, the player begins to feel part of it.
A great example of such a product can serve as a game LIMBO, made in a minimalist style and dark colors. She does not lose integrity throughout the adventure, as the artist managed to convey the full range of feelings that an unnamed boy is experiencing, searching for his sister.
Mobile games also follow this rule. For example, the projects Inventain Bowmasters and Happy Racing are made in a unique, company-developed style. Both of these games are devoted to creating chaos, and art style complements the madness that occurs on the screen of a mobile device. The task of the artists in this case was to “stir up” the consciousness of the customers and to do something that nobody in the mobile industry had yet done.
Photo by Inventain
In order for the player to feel himself a part of the world, it is very important to work through the smallest details, manifested in the behavior of the characters, the environment, and even the clothes of the characters. Therefore, artists work closely with people of various professions: historians, sociologists, biologists, astronomers, and others. This becomes especially important when creating authentic games when it is necessary to draw character costumes according to epoch and time.
An example of a project with credible images is The Banner Saga. The artist and designer Victoria Smith (Victoria Smith) notes that "low-quality" costumes can spoil even the most powerful characters. Therefore, when working on the clothing of The Banner Saga heroes, the developers tried to achieve maximum historical accuracy.
The Inventain team is also paying attention to detail. During the design of the menu or levels, they make an effort to achieve the wow effect in the most (seemingly) minor points. Even if only 5% of users go to any place at a level or page in the menu, they will still find interesting details and pleasant trifles in their projects.
The artist communicates with users not directly, but through the interface that he draws. The very first thing that the user sees when entering the game is the main menu, which is the main way of communication. The history of the title screen is rooted in slot machines, when they thus tried to attract the attention of customers. Today, interfaces are more than just one title screen, so the artists face the task of accurately formalizing the main idea of the game. They seem to "interweave" the interface into the game world, keeping the style, but at the same time giving it functionality - it should not cause a feeling of irritation among the players.
This aspect becomes more important when working with mobile platforms, because not every solution will look good on a small screen. The approach does not work here when all possible options are located in one window - this is extremely inconvenient and complicates the interaction.
In the case of mobile games, it is necessary to take into account that the user plays them on the move or in public transport, holding his hand on the handrail. Therefore, in such projects it is important for the artist to “cut off” everything that is superfluous, leaving the juice itself. For example, when designing a mobile interface, you have to split the menu into subtasks in order to take a player through all the necessary steps (say, creating a character) without overloading it with information.
Another point that can enhance the impression of the project is the creative presentation of the material. Unusual storytelling methods show players that developers value their product, so they went beyond the framework of classical solutions. Among computer games that use unusual tricks, we can highlight Max Payne, where the narration was conducted in the style of graphic detective stories.
Another effective way to lure a player is to “play” on trends. For this, the company Inventain has a special person who monitors the news and the emergence of new memes. Then he, along with the designers, comes up with how it can be used in future or existing projects.
Sometimes in the gaming industry there is a need to re-release some old project that was popular before (or still is). From the point of view of artists, creating remakes is as interesting a task as it is difficult. Since, unlike the drawing of one’s own world from scratch, it is important to convey the correct atmosphere of “that time”.
One of the loudest remakes of recent years has become DOOM. The developers managed to recreate the very game, but in the new scenery. The artists transferred to the modern engine all the monsters from the original, retaining their images, but giving them a gloss. Thanks to this, DOOM received awards for the best game design and sold nearly 2 million copies.
Thus, the work of the artist in the gaming industry is complex and interesting, and she also brings moral satisfaction - millions of players enjoy their work. Inventain are convinced that not only artists can create in the development team, and every member of the company can give free rein to their imagination. The development team is one organism in which employees learn from each other useful skills, and the initiative is only encouraged.
Therefore, if programmers are able to create, you need to let them do it - it gives rise to interesting ideas. It also simplifies the communication processes in a team - it becomes easier for artists to convey a thought to the “masters of the code”. Together, all these features help to create amazing worlds and levels that will keep the player and force him to return again and again.
In this article I would like to tell you what the artists in the game industry do by the example of the company Inventain . I talked to their designers and developers and this is what they told me.
Photo by Inventain
A good picture affects the feelings of the audience and players, forms the first impression of the product, attracts users. That's what the artists in the field of game design do: they create amazing worlds that sink into the soul of the players, evoke strong emotions and do not let go for a long time.
In this position, creative people can realize their most courageous ideas, introduce something fundamentally new in the gameplay almost without limiting themselves. The scope for fantasy is enormous, since you have to work in different genres, “time periods” and settings, and solve very different and interesting tasks. Here are some of them.
Create immersive effect
Comparing the picture with the plot of the game, the artists, as it were, “ immerse ” the player into what is happening on the screen, and this is one of the most valuable qualities of an entertainment product. Exploring and interacting with the virtual world, the player begins to feel part of it.
A great example of such a product can serve as a game LIMBO, made in a minimalist style and dark colors. She does not lose integrity throughout the adventure, as the artist managed to convey the full range of feelings that an unnamed boy is experiencing, searching for his sister.
Mobile games also follow this rule. For example, the projects Inventain Bowmasters and Happy Racing are made in a unique, company-developed style. Both of these games are devoted to creating chaos, and art style complements the madness that occurs on the screen of a mobile device. The task of the artists in this case was to “stir up” the consciousness of the customers and to do something that nobody in the mobile industry had yet done.
Photo by Inventain
In order for the player to feel himself a part of the world, it is very important to work through the smallest details, manifested in the behavior of the characters, the environment, and even the clothes of the characters. Therefore, artists work closely with people of various professions: historians, sociologists, biologists, astronomers, and others. This becomes especially important when creating authentic games when it is necessary to draw character costumes according to epoch and time.
An example of a project with credible images is The Banner Saga. The artist and designer Victoria Smith (Victoria Smith) notes that "low-quality" costumes can spoil even the most powerful characters. Therefore, when working on the clothing of The Banner Saga heroes, the developers tried to achieve maximum historical accuracy.
The Inventain team is also paying attention to detail. During the design of the menu or levels, they make an effort to achieve the wow effect in the most (seemingly) minor points. Even if only 5% of users go to any place at a level or page in the menu, they will still find interesting details and pleasant trifles in their projects.
Creative presentation and user interaction
The artist communicates with users not directly, but through the interface that he draws. The very first thing that the user sees when entering the game is the main menu, which is the main way of communication. The history of the title screen is rooted in slot machines, when they thus tried to attract the attention of customers. Today, interfaces are more than just one title screen, so the artists face the task of accurately formalizing the main idea of the game. They seem to "interweave" the interface into the game world, keeping the style, but at the same time giving it functionality - it should not cause a feeling of irritation among the players.
This aspect becomes more important when working with mobile platforms, because not every solution will look good on a small screen. The approach does not work here when all possible options are located in one window - this is extremely inconvenient and complicates the interaction.
In the case of mobile games, it is necessary to take into account that the user plays them on the move or in public transport, holding his hand on the handrail. Therefore, in such projects it is important for the artist to “cut off” everything that is superfluous, leaving the juice itself. For example, when designing a mobile interface, you have to split the menu into subtasks in order to take a player through all the necessary steps (say, creating a character) without overloading it with information.
Another point that can enhance the impression of the project is the creative presentation of the material. Unusual storytelling methods show players that developers value their product, so they went beyond the framework of classical solutions. Among computer games that use unusual tricks, we can highlight Max Payne, where the narration was conducted in the style of graphic detective stories.
Another effective way to lure a player is to “play” on trends. For this, the company Inventain has a special person who monitors the news and the emergence of new memes. Then he, along with the designers, comes up with how it can be used in future or existing projects.
Rethinking and refinement
Sometimes in the gaming industry there is a need to re-release some old project that was popular before (or still is). From the point of view of artists, creating remakes is as interesting a task as it is difficult. Since, unlike the drawing of one’s own world from scratch, it is important to convey the correct atmosphere of “that time”.
One of the loudest remakes of recent years has become DOOM. The developers managed to recreate the very game, but in the new scenery. The artists transferred to the modern engine all the monsters from the original, retaining their images, but giving them a gloss. Thanks to this, DOOM received awards for the best game design and sold nearly 2 million copies.
Thus, the work of the artist in the gaming industry is complex and interesting, and she also brings moral satisfaction - millions of players enjoy their work. Inventain are convinced that not only artists can create in the development team, and every member of the company can give free rein to their imagination. The development team is one organism in which employees learn from each other useful skills, and the initiative is only encouraged.
Therefore, if programmers are able to create, you need to let them do it - it gives rise to interesting ideas. It also simplifies the communication processes in a team - it becomes easier for artists to convey a thought to the “masters of the code”. Together, all these features help to create amazing worlds and levels that will keep the player and force him to return again and again.
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