Atmosphere: Much like the natural force that surrounds our planet, having a good atmosphere is essential to creating an immersive videogame experience. The traditional definition of atmosphere for more traditional media would be the pervading mood of a place, situation, or work of art. However, in videogames, it takes on a slightly different definition. In the context of interactive media, a good atmosphere is meant to make it feel as if the world the player is in is alive. When the player interacts with elements of a world it should feel like their actions have consequences, reacting to said actions in positive or negative ways. Talking to non-playable characters populating a hub should feel like a real conversation, the environment should provide obstacles and environmental storytelling, enemies thematic and reactive to various tactics the player may use. The reason molding a good atmosphere is so important is because, without it, specific story beats or entire story arcs can fall flat. What is the point of a depressing, pessimistic story about the end of the world if the environment, characters, and writing don’t reflect that? A good atmosphere can do a lot of showing to reinforce the telling, making the narrative stronger if used properly.
There are three different elements vital to creating a good atmosphere in videogames: visuals, audio, and mechanics. Visuals are the first step to creating a good atmosphere. If the game does not have a consistent visual theme, then it will be harder to immerse the player. If the developer wishes to create a dark and depressing atmosphere, then the visual design should reflect that. Dark shadows, decrepit environment, alien encounters/events, or warped perception of reality are common visual tropes used to create this specific atmosphere. Sound is the peanut butter to the visual’s jelly, good when separate but when used in tandem can create a feast for the senses. The setting has a huge influence on the soundboard available to the player, from what music to the sound effects you hear in-game. A science fiction’s soundscape would most likely consist of a more metallic palette, with electronic sounds for machines and various other tropes. Fantasy settings meanwhile would sound entirely different, with far more fantastical and natural sound effects being present. To complete this sandwich analogy, mechanics are the bread that holds all these elements together. These mechanics should not only reinforce story themes or plot points but also feed back into the previous elements. If the story has magic, how would you represent that through gameplay? Mana pools are quite common. If the story has computers, how can we demonstrate to the player they are more than fancy textures on a model? Hacking is a common mechanic, not only does it help the players sense of disbelief but makes sense in the context of the setting. That same mechanic being present in a high fantasy environment however not so much.
Yet the atmosphere is not to be confused with tone. They can work together and be used to reinforce the previous element but are not the same. The atmosphere is meant to immerse the player; tone meanwhile informs the player of what kind of game they are in for. A good example of this is the game Godhand, whose gameplay is one of the most fun I’ve ever experienced, but the story is a wild trip if nothing else. The game is over the top stupid, with cartoonish voice acting, over-the-top animations, a story packed with references, and an insane combat system. All of this gives the game a very lighthearted and comedic tone, mashing so many crazy elements together to make them more reasonable in the context of one another. However, I would not say the game has a good atmosphere. There are no consistent themes or visual elements unless you count punching people and demons as a consistent visual theme. One mission you are fighting your way through a wild west canteen and in another completely unrelated level you are fighting inside of a giant mechanical crab with robots.
All genres have the ability to craft an immersive atmosphere, but I believe two genres, in particular, use atmospheric elements the best in gaming. Horror games and RPGs. All forms of media are designed to make you feel something and for horror games, its sole purpose is to make you feel as insignificant as possible. Let’s create an atmosphere for a generic horror game. In our hypothetical horror game, the player will be relatively useless. The only mechanic to fight enemies is to run and hide. The visuals are very dark, to make the player second guess what they hear around the corner. The sound design is subtle, creaking of wood or shuffling of footsteps in the distance penetrating stark silence. The atmosphere is dark, lonely, high tension, and perfect for telling a horror story. RPG’s on the other hand are a lot less homogenized. The purpose of this genre is to be what is essentially a virtual roleplaying game. A well-designed RPG designs a world that reacts to the player’s actions. If you are playing as a supervillain, characters should react accordingly. Fearful, wary, attacking you on sight. If you are playing a pure good paragon they should react accordingly. Hopefully, kind, and praising you on sight. This genre allows for the atmosphere to be a lot more dynamic, changing in reaction to the decisions of the players while at the same time proactively encouraging further choices for the player to make.
Now there is one game I’ve been playing recently that nails what it means to have a good atmosphere. It’s a game you all know and it starts with a D. That’s right: Darkwood. Although on the surface it is similar to many other horror games with its dark atmosphere, how it executes the presentation is what makes it stand out. Darkwood is a top-down survival horror game where you play as the Stranger. You are trapped in the woods, surrounded by wild animals, and every night are attacked by horrors from beyond reality. The story is told in a somewhat fragmented and vague manner, with the only non-hostile characters you interact with horrific in their own right. Similar to most horror games the visual elements contribute heavily to the atmosphere, forests surrounding you at every turn, rain obscures vision as you navigate through said thick woods, all the while making it harder to listen to things around you. The audio is even better with the player constantly second-guessing themselves if that noise they just heard was ambient audio or a potential enemy from behind a bush. The real star of the show is its unique mechanic, the limited line of sight. Unlike most top-down games, you cannot see the entire screen at once. Instead, you are limited to a cone of vision, similar to that of a flashlight. This one gameplay element changes the atmosphere entirely as you are constantly looking over your shoulder like a horror movie protagonist. You cannot see everything at once, forcing the player to rely more on audio cues, increasing the fear factor by not knowing exactly what is behind them. By taking away information available to the player, their imagination fills in the gaps immersing the player in the world and scaring them simultaneously.
Despite all the advantages having a good atmosphere can provide, successfully executing it within a videogame can be difficult. This can be for numerous reasons, but most of them stem from the nature of the media itself. The concept of “good” atmosphere is not exclusive to videogames, it can be found in all forms of media from movies to books. However, in those forms of media, the level of control afforded to the creator is a lot greater than in a videogame. When a scene plays out in the movie, directors have insane levels of control from lighting to dialogue, to character actions, and so much more. The interactive nature of the media means that a lot more unpredictable elements need to be considered. Instead of needing to create one conversation to inform and immerse the audience, you now need to create several. Instead of designing a scene from a single angle, it has to look good from all of them. Bugs and glitches can also break immersion reminding players that they are indeed playing a videogame. If an enemy freezes in place or phases through the floor for no reason, this takes the player out of the experience. Even things like easily exploitable AI can turn a scary horror villain into a goomba from Super Mario bros. But a skilled programmer can work around these issues, and an even more skilled storyteller can use these mechanics to their advantage. They can modify behavior in reaction to player actions, using the full three-dimensional space to their advantage to create an involved set-piece. In short, you need a fulfilling atmosphere to make the world feel alive. Without it, your story may end up dead.
-Brandon Peck. Blogger.
Brandon Peck – Asst Blog Editor, Prose Editor, and Layout Editor: Brandon is a Senior at Lewis University. He holds a great interest in painting miniatures and writing stories in his spare time. In addition, he enjoys many different kinds of media, ranging from movies to anime to video games, always keeping up to date with the latest trends of the time. Some of Brandon’s favorite pieces of writing include Devastation of Baal, Baneblade, Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse, and Fallout: New Vegas.