The world of indie game development is a fascinating one. You’re probably only here because you also love video games, so it goes without saying that we’re in awe of the teams of people that can take an idea and turn it into a game that has the potential to impact us for generations to come–or maybe just for a few hours. Regardless, reading about how two people can go from fans to creators is so fulfilling. Moonscars has a particularly erudite origin story.
On PlayStation’s blog, Stefan Semionov, the art director of Black Mermaid, wrote up how he and his creative partner Alex began their work on their first game. Moonscars is about a living clay sculpture named Grey Irma. In-game, she is molded in the image of a fierce warrior. In reality, her appearance was inspired directly by a painting that Stefan did all the way back in 2015! Stefan is a painter turned animator, which definitely shines through in the art of this beautiful 2D game. His original painting is too cool not to share here as well. Check it out below.
In the game, Grey Irma is on a mission to find the man known as The Sculptor. He is the powerful creator of the living statues and like all good villains, he aims to make the world a better place by any means necessary. Grey Irma wants to find him and ask him about her purpose. Stefan says that the inspiration behind The Sculptor is partially from the story of Pygmalion, a king of Cyprus and sculptor who fell in love with one of his own creations. Stefan and Alex used this classic story of bringing sculpted being into life for the central elements of their story in Moonscars.
Stefan’s painting was not the only art style used as inspiration for the game. The developers looked to Dutch oil paintings for their grey tones with red and green accents into consideration as well. When you watch their game trailers, you can see the painted quality in the 2D scenery and characters. Though the two thought deeply about how to move best in a 2D environment. In that way, they were deeply inspired by Souls-like games.
What’s really impressive is that these two met in a game-related field, but when they decided to quit their jobs and create their own game, neither of them had ever taken on a project of this scope before. They took a massive leap of faith and watched in fascination as their own animation and video game art skills grew. As their skills grew, so did their team.
Now Moonscars is being published by Humble games and will be coming to PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on September 27, 2022! Add it to your Steam wishlist today for updates and to show your support.
