Environments in video games are just as integral as the gameplay and story. If a game environment is uninteresting, then that seriously affects the game. Games should transport players to mystical, or at least believable, places that the players want to spend time in.
Journey is a game that takes place in a desert, but I've played through the game multiple times just to spend time in the world that it creates. The game may only be two hours, but it's a worth while experience. The art direction of Journey is distinctly that of That Game Company, and the environment plays a part in the story as much as it is its own character. The landscape is populated by the occasional ruin or bit of magical fabric. This creates a certain element of symbolism. Journey is just another tale of "the hero's tale" but it's done in a minimalist approach. For example, the dark part of Journey where the cloaked figure falls down into the depths, can represent the fall of the hero. Where the hero has gone through much, and has fallen because he or she has grown weak. This darkness, this depression, is marked by the dimly lit environments, and the architecture of the ruins that seem to reach over the player. Like a hand about to slam down on an insect to crush it. This section also makes use of lighting in a very specific way, with only a few shafts of light beaming down from the ceiling, symbolizing hope. Then there is the final section of the game, which is all about upward motion and momentum.
The final section of journey is the antithesis of the depths that the player went through earlier. The top of the mountain is brightly lit, and purely white. The player is happy to be at the end of his or her journey, and the game emphasizes this with stunning visuals and level design that creates flow for the character to move through swiftly. The environment is important, not only as something that players want to spend time in, but also playing a role in setting the tone.
My favorite game of all time Jet Grind Radio has character in spades. Each one of the environments of the three districts of Tokyo-To emanate with personality. Shibuya, Benten, and Kogane are all easily recognizable by their look, color scheme, gangs, and even the bystanders that are littered about each level. Music is an integral part to completing the experience of Jet Grind Radio, and each level has its very own set of songs that play. That's why when listening to a select song on the soundtrack for the game, my mind goes immediately to the level in which that song was played. Shibuya is the shopping and social district, Benten is the district of the night with bright neon lights and tall buildings, and Kogane is the residential district, which has a laid back and relaxed vibe to it, which abruptly disturbed when the cops show up on the scene with attack helicopters.
A well designed environment can help to craft an engaging story by having one of its own. Such as in The Last of Us, when the world is nearly at its end, and human civilization has fallen. All of the places that Joel and Ellie go through have undergone some traumatic events and are dilapidated and deserted. There is a sense of sorrow from these places. Finding the letters of friends telling stories to one another or reports of what had happened right up until the end. The environment can have a story in its own right, and become a character.
Video games like to pride themselves on their memorable characters that players will come across, but scarcely boast about the environments that they travel through. Environments are important to the overall experience of the game. All too often they are written off as hallways that lead to the next objective. If you take a look at some of the rooms in the Metroid: Prime games, or the multiplayer maps of Halo, there is a story there. Environments need to have character, because it plunges the players deeper and deeper into the world of whatever video game they are playing. So, next time you play a game, stop and smell the roses, or at least look at them because they are digital and you can't smell them because then you would be smelling your TV and you would just look silly doing something like that.
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