Welcome to Art Examination! A video series that explores video games as an art form. In this installment, we will explore how Ubisoft’s Child of Light uses both 3D and 2D mediums to create a fairytale-esque environment.
Fairy tales are something magical. They have this cloud of joy and fantasy around them. These tales were not always so. The original Grimm Fairy Tales were more lessons to teach children than giving them hope of finding their one true love. But over the years, the same fairy tales have had many iterations in the form of film, both animated and live action. It is now time to see the video game form of a classic fairy tale.
Child of Light brings the tale of the sleeping beauty to life in a gorgeous role playing game. Aurora is a young princess who has fallen both into a deep sleep and another realm. With sword in hand, it is her destiny to liberate this world from the clutches of darkness. But the little pink haired heroine isn’t the only reason this game is so visually captivating.
There is a mix of mediums. The first medium is traditional 3D modeling, which is the main character Aurora. The second medium is classic 2D cutout artwork, which is everything from party members to backgrounds. These two mediums function very well together but also serve another purpose. No matter what, Aurora will always be different from her surroundings. This is excellent play with 2D and 3D mediums.
The 2D artwork is the showstopper in Child of Light. There are layers upon layers of beautifully painted backgrounds that create this fantastical world. There are many areas in the game from forests, to villages, temples and waterscapes. As different as the area are, they are unified by this hand painted almost water colour effect which yet again brings the element of fantasy into the equation.
Child of Light is an amazing reimagining in video game form of the classic fairy tale. The mix of mediums brings this fictional world to life. One could get lost in the many layers of art. It is a testament to the fairy tale and also to the fact that video games are a very beautiful form of art.
If you agree with my observations or would like to share your own, please leave a comment down below and once again, thank you all for watching and see you next time.