How Art Participates in Video Games’ Evolution
We mentioned the growing importance of art in the article Digital painting use in gaming industry. It is the latest and fastest form of art to evolve, in only four decades this new medium of expression has developed to an incredible level. Video games have won recognition through several ways. Across the world, they are awarded just like films or books and there can be as many winning categories as the Oscars. What part does art play in games’ evolution?
At first, video games were only the repetition of a short game in several levels, like in Pong. Technology progressed to open up the possibility of adding illustrations into levels to set vivid backgrounds for the player to explore. From there, storytelling could be more present in games. The improvement of hardware and software help illustrations and animation to reach a better quality quickly. Video games have developed to the point where there are no limits to what they can depict artistically. Art plays a key part in expressing a game’s identity. We can see that in the increasing demand for concept art in the last decade, and the styles conceivable in game never stop reinventing themselves.
On the one hand, these limitless perspectives inspire many programmers and artists. If you take only the region of Quebec in Canada, the number of indie companies grows, especially thanks to funding from the local government. Indie games push some experimental art styles, which can be less realistic or cartoony and more abstract and explore new game designs. Here few examples of games with astonishing visuals: Limbo (2011) in which the character evolves in an incredible black & white mysterious atmosphere; Journey (2012) still acclaimed today for its amazing visuals, soundtrack and overall solemnity; Firewatch (2016) where nature is beautifully depicted, and an interesting, restyled pixel art in Inmost (2019). The visuals are important, because they convey the story through a lively environment, powerful characters and hidden details. These elements make the game more consistent. Indie companies take creative risks to display the specific universe they imagine. This allows them to make a difference on the gaming market, and it seems to work well for them!
The unlimited possibilities on offer from video games can be interpreted in another way. Indeed, with a big budget game, you can use a cutting-edge technology to create more complex levels, endless open worlds, more realistic characters… Speaking of creativity, the style must please a large audience for the game to become successful, so companies are not always willing to get off the beaten track with an unusual art style. Still, you can find hyper-realistic AAA games like The Last of Us 1 and 2 (2013 and 2020) and Death Stranding (2019), as well as stylized titles such as Overwatch (2016) and Immortals Fenyx Rising (2020).
Pioneer companies in this industry have come to realize the value the artwork produced for their games have outside of the game. Because not only is the art used to produce a game, but the art itself is valuable to artists as a source of inspiration, and it gives an incredible insight into the development process. Let’s continue being a part of such an interesting field!