Dwelling on the architecture in modern immersive gaming environments.
Another post in the #ArchiTalks blogging series. #ArchiTalks is organized by Bob Borson at Life of an Architect. A group of architects writes blog posts around a single theme or subject and posts them all at the same time, ensuring a good range of various takes on the subject or theme. Last time we wrote a post on the theme of Tool. This time we write on the theme of Architecture and…. I chose to post about Architecture and Gaming. I hope you enjoy this as well as the other #ArchiTalks posts. Be sure to check out all the links below and search #ArchiTalks on Twitter and other social media.
Virtual Reality
I have enjoyed gaming as long as I have had a computer. My first computer, an Apple IIe, had Microsoft Flight Simulator. It was always neat to get into that virtual plane and fly around the then heavily pixelated and hardly believable environments. To follow the development history of Microsoft Flight Simulator alone, is a lesson in the astounding changes in computer graphics over the years. It has come a long way to the 3d video card I run now that, when paired with the glasses, provides quite an immersive experience in gaming and simulations. With the photo-realistic rendering capability of modern personal computers and the expanding narratives that games portray, architecture in these virtual realities has become more important. In researching this post, I have read of gamers that go into these fictional worlds simply to explore the architecture and admire the environments. The design of the worlds where games take place are now as important and substantial as the game itself, and have been at that level of immersive reality for more than a decade.
Gallery of Games
If you have played computer games, you might find this familiar. You might have visited some of the environments I am going to show you here. If not, you are in for a treat. These images are what I have found to be the some of the most impressive game architectures. I have not played all of them, but for the ones that I have, I can easily say that these two dimensional pictures, while impressive, do not come close to capturing the environments that have been built by these coders, architects, and game makers. If you ever have the opportunity to borrow someone’s avatar and move around in any of these virtual worlds, you should! I promise you will be impressed.
Click on any of the images to see a larger picture.
Virtual Cockpit View in an F-18. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004
A Lighthouse Pavilion that I built in Second Life.
The Ages of Myst and Riven are among the game environments that exploited virtual worlds to push the physical limits of what is possible.
A scene from Myst Revalations. via www.theverge.com
A scene from Riven: The Sequal to Myst. via www.mobygames.com
The Witness was a breakthrough game by developer Johnathan Blow. He commissioned Architect Deanna Van Buren, FORUM design studio and landscape architects at Fletcher Studio to push the quality of the design. This before and after shot shows the transformation that the architects brought to the world of the Witness, as shown at www.architectural-review.com.
The Compound in the game The Witness before and after architects and landscape architects worked on the model.
This shot shows the rich material palate put together by Van Buren. Visit her blog post about game design by clicking here.
The Witness – Bell Tower with Corten Steel and Stonework (Civilization II)
The Mirrors Edge via Denna Van Burens post at www.gamasutra.com – link above
Gone Home via Denna Van Burens post at www.gamasutra.com – link above
Chrystal Palace in Shiva’s Dreaming via www.architectural-review.com – link above
BioShock The underwater city of Rapture via www.architectural-review.com – link above
For the best write up of gaming architecture that I have seen, go to Architizer for a great post from Daniel Carrapa. He also has an excellent Pinterest board with a ton of great photos and videos of gaming architecture.
Renaissance Italy in Assassin’s Creed II and Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood via Architizer, link above.
Thank you for taking this tour of architecture in gaming with me. Happy gaming.
Here are all the posts, in no particular order, from my bloggeratti architect friends that write for #Architalks. Check them out, tweet, share, comment, etc.
Marica McKeel – Studio MM (@ArchitectMM) Architecture and Photography
Jeff Echols – Architect Of The Internet (@Jeff_Echols) Architecture and a Future Without Architects
Lee Calisti, AIA – Think Architect (@LeeCalisti) architecture and __
Lora Teagarden – L² Design, LLC (@L2DesignLLC) Architecture and Travel
Collier Ward – One More Story (@BuildingContent) Architecture and Storytelling
Eric T. Faulkner – Rock Talk (@wishingrockhome) architecture and m&ms
Rosa Sheng – EquitybyDesign [EQxD] (@EquityxDesign) Architecture And the Era of Connection
Michele Grace Hottel – Michele Grace Hottel, Architect (@mghottel) #ArchiTalks 18: architecture and… the bigger picture
Meghana Joshi – IRA Consultants, LLC (@MeghanaIRA) Architalks 18: Architecture and Mathematics
Amy Kalar – ArchiMom (@AmyKalar) Architalks 18: Architecture and … Parenting
Michael Riscica – Young Architect (@YoungArchitxPDX) Architecture and Yoga
Michael Riscica – Young Architect (@YoungArchitxPDX) Architecture and Yoga
brady ernst – Soapbox Architect (@bradyernstAIA) Architecture and Ego
Michael LaValley – Evolving Architect (@archivalley) Architecture and Ego / The Architect’s Unique Struggle with ‘Good’ Design
Sharon George – Architecture By George (@sharonraigeorge) Architecture and Kids
Emily Grandstaff-Rice – Emily Grandstaff-Rice FAIA (@egrfaia) Architecture and More
Jarod Hall – di’velept (@divelept) Architecture and the Myth of the Master Builder
Jeffrey A Pelletier – Board & Vellum (@boardandvellum) Architecture and Interior Design
Greg Croft – Sage Leaf Group (@croft_gregory) Architecture and Real Estate
Samantha Raburn – The Aspiring Architect (@TheAspiringArch) Architecture and Wrestling
Keith Palma – Architect’s Trace (@cogitatedesign) Architecture + Memories
Adam Denais – Defragging Architecture (@DefragArch) [#ArchiTalks 18] Architecture and Strange Travel Etiquette
Jim Mehaffey – Yeoman Architect (@jamesmehaffey) Architecture and…my Generation.
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Not a gamer at all, and never explored them.. Time to go check them out!
Hey Meghana. Thanks for reading. I am glad that this post has opened the virtual world and rich architecture of gaming up to you!
Hi Meghana!
I look forward to your report of exploring.
nice jes, i do not game but i am familiar with the concept and we lived next door and are still friends with derek friesenborg who is presently working on his own movie, “two headed cop” very cool if you want to check it out 🙂
Hi Michelle. It looks like he’s developed some strong characters. I look forward to seeing the environments and architectures he animates for them. I checked https://vimeo.com/twoheadedcop… That the one?
That was sort of the point of my post, although indirect and buried near the middle. The architecture in gaming is so intricate and integrated into the gaming experience now, that even wandering around aimlessly in a game can be a rewarding exploration.
Jes – loved, loved, loved this. As an Architect and a Gamer, I can absolutely appreciate what you’re talking about. I haven’t had the chance to get the Witness yet, but it’s definitely high on my list.
“The design of the worlds where games take place are now as important
and substantial as the game itself.” – Abso-freaking-lutely! We should talk more about this topic sometime. Great stuff.
Side note – also love the periscope drives! It’s a great idea to make use of that time.
Hey Michael. I am glad you thoroughly enjoyed this post. The Witness sounds like a great experience, but honestly, I can hardly find the time to sneak out of the real world to fly a few circuits and touch-and-goes in FS9. Much less getting deep into another puzzle world. Riven was the last game like that I played and it was something to look forward to, for sure. It feelt like the end of a great movie when I get done… I just wanted it to keep on going!
This was a really fun post. I think the incredible architecture in gaming while growing up definitely had an impact on my interests.
Thanks for reading, Adam. It is a generational phenomenon, and cultural at that, but I am sure we are not the only ones that can claim a lasting influence from our virtual gaming experiences.
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