Styling

As the Environment Artist, it is one of my many jobs to ensure any and all assets created fit in with the overall determined art direction. This keeps the game looking cohesive and aesthetically pleasing to entice the player. Luckily, Esi has a whole chapter about the art direction on her website, categorizing her inspirations with helpful footnotes at the bottom. Her end evaluation has her decide between a blend of two particular inspirations:

Keven	Priichu
Harvest Moon + Animal Crossing Inspired DS/3DS Aesthetic Airbrush Look	Similar to Megaman Legends Cell Shaded Sharp Edges

However, the styles seem a bit very opposed. One has a soft airbrushed look and the other has sharp edges. And of course, our team couldn’t help but add on a few of our own inspirations…

Squeakross: Home Squeak Home

• Good colouring and shading
• Cartoony Features

Mega Man Legends

• Lowpoly artstyle
• Cel-shading

We also decided early on that the specific level we would adapt into our slice would be Level 2: A Family – in which the rat sneaks into a household to try and acclimatize there. The world is based on the suburbs of London, England, and since game has a cute lowpoly style that’s reminiscent of the 2000s, we decided that the setting itself should be during the 2000s. Not only does this fit in with the overall aesthetic, but it allows us to capatalize on nostalgia to entice the older players with chunky TV monitors, floral-patterned furniture, and plenty of references to the old pop culture.

Esi’s Moodboard:

Esi’s moodboard has an emphasis on suburban towns in London. Despite not living in London myself, many of these places felt familiar to me. We grew up in different towns, but we’re still linked in British culture.

My 2000s Moodboard:

With my own moodboard, I wanted to delve into specifically the house interior. I drew on my own memories of childhood in the 2000s, Pinterest, and “2000s British Nostalgia” tiktoks. Living rooms had the unique paradox of being both cluttered and clean – if the furniture is patterned, the carpets and surfaces tend to be clean; but when the rooms have plain white walls and light wood grains, the houses are more of a mess.

Primary Research Moodboard:

Being born in 2004 my early childhood and most formative memories were in the 2000s. I looked back in some photo albums to see if I could jog my memory any, and found some embarrassing interesting old photographs. This way I know for sure the aesthetics I’m drawing from really do come from the 2000s.