FromSoftware games such asDark Souls, and more recentlyElden Ring, have been the inspiration for countless artists. The worlds these games depict are so well realized and have such distinct visual styles and art direction, it’s no wonder that art is created that tries to capture the same atmosphere as found in the games. These fan creations usually take the form of drawings or music, but it’s far rarer to see an artist re-create a game likeElden Ringusing the medium of another video game.
Dreamsreleased in 2020 for the PlayStation 4. It’s a game creation system that uses a series of user-friendly building tools to let players make their own games. As a player gets more familiar with the creation tools,Dreamsquickly becomes an incredibly deep system. It is a credit to the game’s versatility that some users have gone beyond making games, instead using the system tomake incredible artwork inspired by other games.
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One suchDreamsartist is YouTuber Martin Nebelong, who makes extremely intricate sculptures and 3D diorama-style landscapes using the in-game building tools. Now Martin has lent their VR brush to the Lands Between fromElden Ring, and released a time-lapse video showing how the fan art was made. The video begins with Martin creating a series of intricate building designs barely visible in the distant foreground of the final piece, this level of detail is put in every part of the scene and makes for a truly admirable project.
The time-lapse of the video does obscure just how painstaking and precise the placement of every asset its, from every shrub and tree to the clouds that captureElden Ring’s constant overcast sky. The completed product is clearlyreminiscent of the cliffs that encircle Raya Lucaria. This is an incredible feat given that every element can be seen sculpted and placed by hand.
Video games are still a relatively new art form, steeped in ever-progressing technology, and it’s for this reason they lend themselves so well to new digital art forms.Creating an open world likeElden Ring’sis its own art form, as separate areas of the map have to feel consistent with the rest of the game, as well as being tonally distinct from other areas. There is even a series of side quests in the game where players have to figure out the locations depicted in portraits found around the map.
The advantage to creating fan art inDreamsis that the game is VR, allowing the artist to move around inside the artwork to perfect distances and perspectives. Being a game creation tool,Dreamsalso allows non-static elements to be addedto a landscape environment like a rolling fog or a character breathing.
Dreamsis available for PS4 and PS5.
