Ang's 2016 Influence Map - Video Game Influences

Every year around my birthday is always an introspective time.  I like to use this time to put together a new influence map to see how I'm evolving as an artist, what's influenced me in the past and how I can draw on those influences in my future work.  This exercise always puts me in the right mindset to create bigger and better things every year!

This year, I chose video games for my map because, while I don't game as much as I used to, I grew up experiencing these interactive stories that have shaped me both as an artist and as a storyteller.

1. Soul Reaver - The tale of an undead vampire rising from his own death for vengeance enchanted me from the first time I saw the riveting intro.  This was the first game that satiated that mature fan in me who wanted something dark and gothic to sink my teeth into (pun intended!).  The imagery, the decayed land, everything kindled my imagination for greater adventures of my own!

2.  Assassin's Creed Series - The first game, especially, mixed scifi and historical fantasy in a way I had never seen before.  Experiencing genetic memories and parkouring across the rooftops in the body of an assassin was a vicarious experience I absolutely loved!  I learned from this series that I preferred the vagabonds and rogues most. Plus, gorgeous historical fantasy costumes always get my muse going!

3.  Folklore - This game was like nothing I had ever seen. The protagonists explore various Fae realms solving mysteries and fighting the solidified dreams and nightmares of mankind.  Of everything I've played, this game's depiction of the Fae and Fae realms came closest to that mix of surreal and illogical that I'd like to bring to my own Fae-type characters in my stories/art/designs.

4.  Dante's Inferno - I thought this game was trash at first, but its garishness aside, the game's depiction of Hell strikes a chord very close to its source material, which is also one of my favorite literary works.  The imagery of the Harrowing of Hell and the circle of Gluttony still haunt me, as does the notion of damning or saving individual souls whose stories make me question my moral compass.  The design sense for each boss and level with its epic scaling are a master class in composition and emotional impact. 

5.  Prince of Persia (2008) - I still haven't played the entire series, but I've completed this 2008 entry.  Considering my own story about a desert prince, it's no surprise the aesthetics of this game inspire me so.  The imagery of descending into an ancient desert temple as the remnants of an old demon ooze through the cracks in its edifice always stuck with me.  Not to mention the chemistry between the two main characters from completely different backgrounds.  The storytelling shows how subtle relationships can be built and twisted, something I strive for in my characters.

6.  Panzer Dragoon Saga - This game came to me as a tween and was my first experience with a game whose aesthetics were strange and unusual to the point of being alien.  I had never been so immersed in a world that blended both technology and fantasy in such a clever way.  I wanted to explore every inch to discover it's secrets.  From this game I learned about intriguing world-building and creature design.

7.  Shadow of the Colossus - This game just calls to my soul.  Every layer of it is built with subtle intention, from the way you have to work as a player to defeat the colossi through trial and error to the creeping dread after every defeat of each giant.  Was defeating the colossi a good or a bad thing?  I loved that moral greyness. I loved the subtlety of the world.  If I can channel even a modicum of that subtlety and quiet beauty into my own fantasy, I would be happy!

8.  Bayonetta Series - Bayonetta exists at the other end of the scale to all of this subtlety.  She beat out Devil May Cry because of the content involving angels and demons and the batshit insane uniqueness of the angels and bosses.  Her world is full of majesty, layered dimensions, and a sense of epicness.  It's just plain fun and I can only wish to be as unique and imaginative with my own designs!

9.   Lords of Shadow - This Castlevania series might fall flat in story at times, but what it lacked in emotion, it made up for with desolate beauty and immersive design.  I love this for the epic designs and the imaginative abilities and for that feeling of quiet awe I had when I explored the ruins of a vampire lord's abandoned castle or the dread of surviving a toymaker's maze.  It's charming and clever and those are things I strive to be in my art and writing.

10.  Final Fantasy X - Final Fantasy VII brought me into this series, but Final Fantasy X kept me there when I had abandoned it.  The characters were relatable and interesting, but it's the spirits of the Fayth and their temples that kept me playing.  This game did such an amazing job making each being you unlocked fascinating, while deepening the mystery and horror of the game's world with each revelation.  Beautiful game, beautiful designs!  The summons in this game are still some of my favorites of any Final Fantasy I've seen or played.

11.  Fatal Frame Series - Ancient rituals, vengeful maidens, and Japanese mysticism.  The atmosphere of beauty and dread in Fatal Frame sticks in the back of my eyelids like no other game has, save perhaps Silent Hill (which would have been on this list too if Fatal Frame didn't already fill my horror gap).  It's the perfect mix of beautiful and grotesque with every ghost's design and that's a balance I want to strike in my own art and writing.

12.  Xenogears - It makes the list because it came to me when I was young and I didn't leave my house for who knows how long.  It's a story so epic, it spans the past lives of several main characters and has you punching god in the face by the end. Unlike Bayonetta, however, it's more of a subtle anime aesthetic.  It weaves in hints of angels and apocryphal lore into its aesthetic, while also being scifi and something completely unique.  Also, this game knew how to build a mystery.  The main character pilots a mech who is fated to slay god?  Tell me more, Xenogears!


So that is my taste in video games!  I can tell from this analysis that I like the grotesque and the beautiful.  I like the subtle and the divine.  I like the secret spaces that you shouldn't explore.  I like the forgotten and forbidden things.  Now, how to channel that into my own creative works?  I'm looking forward to trying!