E3 has come and gone, and Bethesda left a lasting impression on veteran fans, new fans, and industry leaders alike. They blew all expectations out of the water with their press conference, finishing off with the 30 minute presentation of Fallout 4 by Todd Howard. Now, what’s interesting about the structure of their presentation is that it built from the ground up. Most other presentations had a gameplay trailer, additional features, and left the audience with tidbits of release info as well as minute factoids. Howard presented in a similar way, but with one significant difference: the concept art.
He started off with describing the details put into the open world of Fallout 4 from the lights and knobs of a nondescript terminal, expanding to other nondescript terminals. They seem to serve small to no purpose whatsoever, but as Howard highlights “it’s our belief that all of these small details coming together that form a much, much larger whole.” The music crescendos, a take on one of the main themes of the Fallout series with sweeping violins and a melancholy piano accenting it. What Howard showed was hundreds of concept art panels, which I will not go into minute detail about, but just offer analysis and impressions of the artwork.
What struck me first off was that many of the panels seemed to be the work of the late Adam Adamowicz, the sole concept artist of Fallout 3 and one of two concept artists for Skyrim. He also was the sole creator and developer of the Dragon language in Skyrim. This would make sense, as Howard stated that early development on Fallout 4 started in 2009, before they worked on Skyrim. Adam unfortunately passed away in 2012 from lung cancer. I distinctly remembered when this happened, as his concept art was some of the most beautiful ever done for a video game. Below, there is a panel from the Fallout 4 concept art and the comparison to concept art done for Skyrim.
I think it is almost haunting how the artwork was presented, along with the possible artist identity. More so than a presentation of the artwork, it seemed to be a tribute to the artistic talent of the late Adamowicz. Without his vision, a lot of the style of the Bethesda games would be very different, and Howard seems to be hinting at this. Howard started with the art to not only show the audience what style they would be in for, but also how important this step was for Bethesda Game Studios in creating Fallout 4. By starting off the presentation with this artwork was a strong move and incredibly moving. To see a man’s artwork three years after his death leaves an impression, as it is his work that players of Fallout 4 will be enjoying. To quote Bethesda’s official memorial page:
“And he never stopped. Right until the end he was drawing, creating images for a new game many years off. It is in that game, and our past games, that he will live on. You have not seen the last of his amazing talent and spirit. We will miss him terribly, but he will always be with us.”
Again, it seems that the art featured is Adam’s, as the only game Bethesda Game Studios was directly working on with this artwork was Fallout 4. There is much more I could say about the artwork in terms of Adamowicz’s contribution to the game, but I implore the readers to look up the concept art for themselves and get a feeling for the gravity of the art themselves.
Onto analysis of the artwork. As a whole, the artworks seems to be ⅓ The Road, ⅓ The Matrix, and ⅓ The Jetsons with some more 50’s flair thrown in. Much of the work focuses on the landscapes of the Commonwealth, with dilapidated towns and cities, barren landscapes, and vibrant swamps and coastlines. There is much more color and atmospheric detail, with darker pastel blues, hot rod reds, silvers and of course the staple browns and greens of the Fallout universe. The artwork suggests that the world will be much larger and varied, with richer colors and an almost suffocating amount of structures and landscape.
Some my favorite works are the coastal scenes, as the run down lighthouses and the remains of boats and airships, inciting similarities with the beach scene from The Road. There is a sense of cold air and crippling loneliness felt in the northern post-Boston area. As players of the game know, Fallout in general has a dark, satirical take on the post-Apocalypse, with an almost wacky sense of humor about it.
The artwork suggests the game may touch on darker and more serious topics. The cities and suburbs contrast this, with a more cluttered and skeletal infrastructure reminiscent of the cyberpunk style displayed in The Matrix, complete with pods inside the Memory Den in Shollay Square. The environment is definitely a step up from the barren greens and uncomfortable clutter of Fallout 3.
The characters featured in the artwork also tell a tale of the kind of NPCs and enemies the Sole Survivor will encounter in his exploration of the Commonwealth. Stills of the Minutemen featured in the E3 Microsoft press conference contrast raiders and super mutants in what appears to be handmade power armor Mad Max style, complete with wrought iron bars and concrete details. Molerats, mirelurks, and two-headed deer, oh my. There is also concept art of the player character and his faithful canine companion aboard a vertibird as well as fighting alongside the Brotherhood of Steel. These scenes suggest enemies and allies and conflicts to be encountered. I, for one, am excited to see the role the Redcoat Ghoul will play.
The player character seems to have a lot more time on the canvas than previous Bethesda games. There is many an outfit featured, like the bowling outfit, pre-War dresses and casual wear as well as revamped leather armor and power armor. New hairstyles are featured too, with even crazier styles than previous games. The whole point of all these details, is just that. There is so much going into this game artistically, and we have only scratched the surface. Again, I implore those reading to check the art out yourself. It is visually appealing, haunting, and greatly appeals to the consumer’s pathos. The art itself invokes greater anticipation and further speculation into the ambient world we will be entering when the game comes out. The sense of wonder is at an all time high, and exploration is a must.
Lastly, I would like to reiterate the role Adam Adamowicz played in helping construct this beautiful game that I am very confident will awe players this Fall. To enjoy the game is to enjoy his artwork and thus his memory. Rest in peace, Adam.
-Ryan Ridpath
Want to see more concept art from the show? Click here!
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