FRACKED: Mining Facilities
The Player returns to the Mine area several times over the course of the game. Here we find the old copper mine, augmented with more modern technology for the recent mining operations. It's also home to the Breaker Plant, a multi floor complex full of interactive machinery and an incredibly fun combat space. Finally there's the Fracking Tower itself, an imposing, newly built landmark contrasting with the older structures and standing out against the wider natural landscape.
The art direction calls for clarity of purpose and legibility, important for a shooter and that is often based within a dense and detailed environment. The timber clad buildings very quickly became noisy and hard to read with all the rickety, criss-crossing forms. To minimise this, we simplified a lot of the forms, reduced the texturing to single colours with a brush painted vibe which lent the game it's graphic novel, stylised look. It took a long time, with the 2D artists working closely with 3D, to nail this approach, but the results were worth the effort. Strong, stylised, lighting techniques complete the overall feel of the game and execute our intended vision perfectly.
Colourful man-made structures contrast with the coldness of the vast surrounding environment. The human structures are a dissonant, almost parasitic presence against the wilderness of Alaska.
Vivid colour and striking forms dominate the style of the Mines. The rickety structures allow light to pass through and create interesting silhouettes.
Sketches and paintovers of the battered old mine entrance.
The old Copper mine is adorned with a layer of newer technology reflecting the repurposing of the mine by Finchteq as it delves for crystal in the depths.
Interior of the Breaker Plant, showing off the verticality that is such a staple of Fracked, which feels great in VR.
Interior concepts for the Breaker Plant area. Note the yellow on the crusher - deliberately used to link with the player's augmented awareness. Yellow generally is a safe colour, whereas purple signifies danger (and is associated with the crystal).
This screenshot of the crystal crushing machine illustrates the smooth transition from concept to in-game styling.
Interior concepts of the train yard combine painterly brush stokes, strong use of colour and light to make a striking whole.
More Interior concepts which showcase the man-made art direction of Fracked.
A storyboard sketch of the huge explosion set off by the player, taking out Finch's crystal operation.
The Fracking Tower - a dominant presence and wayfinding landmark, as well as an important location for one of the big set pieces in Fracked.
Fighting your way up the Fracking Tower in full 360-degree combat is tough going! Here again, we see that trademark verticality at play.
Concept action piece depicting the Player's escape from the tower via zipline back down to the ground!