C
onrad Roset’s main focus for the poetic
platformer Gris was on creating an
illustration that players could get lost in.
Roset is an artist and illustrator whose
work has been exhibited in galleries,
featured in magazines and books, and commissioned by
brands like Adidas and Zara. Gris was his opportunity
to create a world, swapping the static for the fluid.The game unfurls as a tale of loss and sorrow—a dreamy
experience that’s more about evoking a kind of wordless
enchanted bittersweet mood than offering up a thesis. As
such, the imagery is the star of the show. Shapes cluster
into plants, buildings form out of collections of columns,
platforms, and staircases. A gigantic bird shifts between a
recognisable silhouette and an animated fluid mass.Those images use layers to create the
illusion of depth without linear
perspective—a technique that
translates well to a 2D platformer.
Earle’s influence is evident in Gris’
forest sections, where squared-off
topiary is held aloft by tree trunks so
slender they’re just vertical lines.
Curiously, Gris avoids anger,
harshness, and ugliness. This too is
an aesthetic choice. “There are some
rougher scenes,”
says Roset. “I
liked the idea of
talking about
harsh topics
from a gorgeous,
aesthetically
pleasing
viewpoint.”TOP: Flowers and
trees need to work for
platforming as well as
the look of the scene.
RIGHT: Sketches
allow an artist to
capture the main
shapes of a scene.Gris picks up motifs from Roset’s
existing work. There are blooms of
watercolor pigment, neat ink
outlines, and a fascination with lithe
women. His style is spare, using
white space to balance punches of
color. In translating that to a digital
environment, he worked with his
partners Adrián Cuevas and Roger
Mendoza at Nomada Studio to make
sure the filters, textures, watercolor
effects, etc would get the right look.
Bringing Roset’s work to life
began with hand-drawn sketches,
including watercolors. Once he andTHE TEAM USED
VIDEO OF PAINT
FALLING INTO A
BOWL OF WATERGRIS
Beautiful melancholy
Nomada started the game, art and
animation moved to Photoshop, but
with an emphasis on maintaining the
organic look and feel.
For example, there’s an animation
whereby a cloud of color blooms
across the screen. For this the team
used a video of paint falling into a
bowl of water, and then adjusted it
in Unity so it looked like it was
blooming from the right part of the
screen.INSPIRATION
Eyvind Earle’s
Disney artwork is
a reference point,
particularly his
concept art for
Sleeping Beauty.