monochromatitleThe Art of… Monochroma

By Suzanne Verras

[divider]

A while back I did a review of Monochroma by Nowhere Studios and I enjoyed the game very much. One thing I liked so much about it was the monochrome style with red details. It reminded me of Sin City where a city is also driven by corruption and immorality. Because of this style, I definitely had to take a closer look at the concept art. I’m glad I did, because it captures the style and the atmosphere of the finished game very well.

Before we take a look at some of the concept art, first a quick recap. What is Monochroma? It’s a cinematic puzzle platformer by Nowhere Studios from Istanbul. The stage is set in a industrial city in an alternate version of the 1950, complete with zeppelins. The relationship between two brothers is central to Monochroma, as you play the older brother who has to carry his injured little brother through the city to get help. Of course not everything goes as planned and you discover that the city bears a terrible secret.

Monochromaconceptart001

The big foreboding zeppelin, that gets struck by lightning looms over the little boys like a treat. The big M on the front of the airship is for Monochroma, a not so pleasant company that tries to catch the boys for all sorts of devious experiments. It appears that the two brothers will have face a lot of obstacles to make it through the city alive.

Monochromaconceptart002

On the second image it seems as if the boy has to cross an impossible gap between two buildings. It really shows the idea behind the puzzles in Monochroma. Most of the time you are facing gaps or high obstacles for which you have to find a way around. Sometimes these puzzles seem impossible to solve, just like the one in the picture, but there is always a solution. On another note, where is the little brother? Well, I guess you have to play Monochroma  yourself to find out. I will give you a little hint though. It has something to do with one of these guys.

Monochromaconceptart003

Apparently those big guys like to scare little boys and they chase you around quite a bit. At first they may seem like normal workers, but as the concept art shows, nothing if less true. They are evil bastards who will do everything to get a hold on those boys you are trying to get through the city.

The concept art for Monochroma definitely shows the style and atmosphere intended for the finished game. A rainy and gloomy city, with a lot of darkness and dark secrets.

If you want to see more, you should check out the Monochroma website of this photoset, which shows some more of the amazing artwork. If I sparked your interest, you should read my review of Monochroma or buy which is available on Steam for $19.99

[divider]

[facebook][tweet][Google][pinterest][follow id=”Cliqist” size=”large” count=”true” ] [author image=”http://cliqist.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/suzanne.jpg”]Suzanne Verras is a freelance writer and a university student from Leiden, The Netherlands. She is a video game enthusiast, but also loves movies and art. She has her own video game, film and art blog called Miss Lily Blogs where she posts all kinds of articles as well as her Let’s Plays. Her favorite games include Bioshock, Myst, Ratchet and Clank and Amnesia: The Dark Descent. In the future she hopes to be writing full-time and one of her dreams is to sell her artwork one day. You can follow her on Twitter: MissLilyTweets. [/author]

About the Author

Suzanne Verras

Suzanne Verras is a freelance writer and a university student from Leiden, The Netherlands. She is a video game enthusiast, but also loves movies and art. She has her own Youtube channel where she plays, horror and story driven games! Her favorite games include Bioshock, Myst, Ratchet and Clank and Amnesia: The Dark Descent. In the future she hopes to be writing full-time and one of her dreams is to sell her artwork one day. You can follow her on Twitter: MissLilyTweets.

View All Articles