The Distributed Art Direction of Edith Finch

Summary

Chelsea Hash, the technical art lead for *Giants' Barrow*, shares insights on the collaborative, dynamic art direction process behind the game. With no single art director, the team worked together through extensive prototyping, inspiration curation, and iterative design. From early conceptual stages with mood boards to the final, polished environments and characters, the team navigated creative challenges, balancing art, design, and narrative. Hash emphasizes the importance of flexibility, iterative development, and trusting team members to refine the vision, ultimately shaping a unique, evocative experience for players.

Takeaways

• 😀 Embrace collaboration: A single art director was not used; instead, a group of passionate individuals worked together, each contributing their unique perspective to the project.
• 😀 Use inspiration, not imitation: The team relied on a curated collection of inspirations, including movie stills, personal photos, and conceptual art, without aiming for photo-realism.
• 😀 Iterative development is key: The project underwent multiple iterations with a focus on refining ideas, allowing room for discovery and adjustments as the development progressed.
• 😀 Be comfortable with uncertainty: The team built in time for 'not knowing,' allowing flexibility in the creative process rather than pre-planning every detail upfront.
• 😀 Mechanics and art go hand-in-hand: Game mechanics directly influenced the art direction, with careful decisions made to align interactive objects with the gameplay experience.
• 😀 Prototyping solves problems: Disparate prototypes were built at different levels of quality to test and prove out concepts before finalizing design decisions.
• 😀 Commit to bespoke design: The team committed to custom assets and animations, avoiding reused elements to maintain a high level of detail and uniqueness.
• 😀 Organization is crucial: While creative freedom was prioritized, the team maintained structure with clear roles, including a creative director and technical leads, to ensure tasks were completed efficiently.
• 😀 Quality over quantity: The team built far more assets than were ultimately used, understanding that not everything would make it into the final product, but the process was crucial for discovering what worked.
• 😀 Collaboration fosters innovation: Disagreements and differences of opinion were resolved through prototypes and the natural progression of ideas, with the best concepts rising to the top.

Q & A

How did the team manage the lack of a single art director during the development of *What Remains of Edith Finch*?

The team managed by collaborating closely, with a group of people passionate about the project. While there was no single art director, they worked together to set a unified direction. This involved creating mood boards, developing visual inspirations, and iterating on ideas to ensure everyone was aligned on the artistic goals. Chelsea Hash, the technical art lead, played a key role in managing and coordinating these efforts.

What role did concept art and reference materials play in shaping the game's visual direction?

Concept art and reference materials were crucial in guiding the visual direction. The team used a variety of sources, including Google Image searches, personal photos, and collages, to establish the mood, tone, and aesthetic of the game. These references were not intended to create photo-realistic environments but to evoke specific feelings and guide the design of spaces and characters.

How did the game’s mechanics influence the art direction, particularly regarding interactive objects?

The game’s mechanics were deeply integrated into the art direction. For example, the team chose to focus on everyday, functional objects instead of ornate or fantasy-driven designs. This was to ensure that interactions felt grounded and realistic. Story objects, such as simple padlocks or everyday household items, were designed to align with the mechanics of interacting with and exploring these objects, making sure that the visual design supported the player’s experience.

How did the iterative process affect the final design and assets of the game?

The iterative process was central to the final design. The team built many versions of assets, sometimes three times more than what would ultimately be included in the final game. This willingness to refine and discard elements ensured that only the best versions were kept. The flexibility to 'not know' and leave space for discovery allowed for the best creative decisions to emerge over time.

What challenges did the team face when transitioning from a project like *The Unfinished Swan* to *What Remains of Edith Finch*?

The main challenge was the significant shift in art style and the complexity of the new engine. *The Unfinished Swan* had a stark black-and-white aesthetic, whereas *What Remains of Edith Finch* required more detailed and realistic environments. The team had to adjust to these higher expectations while maintaining a stylized, evocative look that was not overly photorealistic.

How did the lack of pre-planning affect the game’s development process?

The lack of detailed pre-planning allowed for more flexibility during development. This open-ended approach meant that the team could adapt and refine ideas as they went. While some aspects of the game were initially unclear, the team’s willingness to explore different possibilities in real-time allowed for more organic and effective solutions, particularly in terms of art direction and gameplay integration.

How did the team approach the design of characters and their interactions with the environment?

The team took a bespoke approach to character design, particularly in terms of hands and body interactions. Each character’s hands were designed individually, ensuring that the player could feel connected to the environment. This was especially important given the game’s core mechanic of shifting between different people’s bodies, making it essential to see the hands in the gameplay, even in simple interactions.

What role did the environment and prop design play in communicating the story?

Environment and prop design were essential for telling the game’s story. Each room, object, and piece of furniture was designed to reflect the lives of the characters and their personal histories. Rather than filling spaces with generic assets, the team focused on creating meaningful, specific props that enhanced the emotional impact of the game and helped convey narrative details without relying heavily on exposition.

How did the team balance creative freedom with the need for task management?

While the team was creatively driven, task management was still essential for progress. The creative director, Ian, played a key role in setting overall goals and marching orders. In addition, technical and art leads helped organize subtasks and ensure that work was being completed on schedule. This balance allowed for creative exploration while maintaining the structure necessary to meet deadlines.

What was the significance of the family tree in the game’s design, and how did it evolve over time?

The family tree was a key narrative element, representing the complex relationships within the Finch family. Initially, the team debated how to represent this, with some wanting a more simplistic design and others pushing for a hand-drawn style. In the end, the tree became an integral part of the gameplay, reinforcing the connections between characters and adding depth to the story as players explored different family members’ stories.