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  1. Games

Beautiful concept art from PC games

Features
By Andy Kelly published 12 January 2016

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Concept artists have an important job, establishing the atmosphere, tone, and visual identity of a game before a single line of code has been written. Not everything they dream up will make it into the final game, but they have a huge influence on its look and feel. Here are some of our favourite pieces of concept art from old games, recent games, and games still in development.

Page 1 of 23
Page 1 of 23
Crystal Dynamics / Rise of the Tomb Raider

Crystal Dynamics / Rise of the Tomb Raider

This painting captures the impressive scale of the latest Tomb Raider, and the muted colour palette of its cold, snowy setting.

Page 2 of 23
Page 2 of 23
Bethesda Game Studios / Fallout 4

Bethesda Game Studios / Fallout 4

A sleepy American suburb witnesses the beginning of the end. This was a concept image for Fallout 4's prologue sequence.

Page 3 of 23
Page 3 of 23
id Software / Doom

id Software / Doom

This striking painting is an homage to the box art for the original Doom, and was a reversible cover for boxed copies of the game.

Page 4 of 23
Page 4 of 23
Arkane Studios / Dishonored 2

Arkane Studios / Dishonored 2

Stylish concept art of Emily Kaldwin, a new playable character who joins Corvo Attano in Dishonored 2.

Page 5 of 23
Page 5 of 23
Ubisoft Reflections / The Division

Ubisoft Reflections / The Division

This moody art of post-outbreak Manhattan captures the evocative environment design in Ubi's multiplayer shooter.

Page 6 of 23
Page 6 of 23
FromSoftware / Dark Souls III

FromSoftware / Dark Souls III

FromSoft's beautiful, haunting games begin with art like this. This painting features the ethereal Dancer of the Boreal Valley.

Page 7 of 23
Page 7 of 23
Blizzard Entertainment / Overwatch

Blizzard Entertainment / Overwatch

A concept painting for Overwatch's Egypt maps, setting the tone for their exaggerated futuristic caricature of the country.

Page 8 of 23
Page 8 of 23
Arkane Studios / Prey

Arkane Studios / Prey

We don't know much about the forthcoming Prey reboot, which replaces the cancelled Prey 2, but we're already in love with its artwork.

Page 9 of 23
Page 9 of 23
Simon Stålenhag / No Man’s Sky

Simon Stålenhag / No Man’s Sky

A gorgeous painting by artist Simon Stålenhag. We can’t wait to explore this vivid Chris Foss-inspired universe.

Page 10 of 23
Page 10 of 23
James Paick / Prey 2

James Paick / Prey 2

A beautiful image from the original version of Prey 2 that was sadly cancelled. Click here to see more of Paick’s art.

Page 11 of 23
Page 11 of 23
ABC / Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

ABC / Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

Starkiller yanking a Star Destroyer out of the sky with the Force was one of this game’s most memorable scenes. You can see more of ABC’s Star Wars art here.

Page 12 of 23
Page 12 of 23
Paul Chadeisson / Remember Me

Paul Chadeisson / Remember Me

According to Dontnod’s 2013 action game Remember Me, this is what Paris might look like in the year 2084. There’s more art by Paul Chadeisson here.

Page 13 of 23
Page 13 of 23
Mathieu Latour-Duhaime / Thief

Mathieu Latour-Duhaime / Thief

The dark, gothic city in 2014’s Thief reboot, known only as The City, is one of the highlights of the game. Check out Latour-Duhaime’s blog for more.

Page 14 of 23
Page 14 of 23
Brad Wright / Alien: Isolation

Brad Wright / Alien: Isolation

Ripley travels to Sevastopol on this ship, the design of which was inspired by the functional hard sci-fi visual style of the 1979 film. More here.

Page 15 of 23
Page 15 of 23
Frédéric Bennett / Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

Frédéric Bennett / Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

Eidos Montreal’s last Deus Ex game, Human Revolution, had gorgeous concept art, and its sequel is no different. See more of Bennett’s concept art here.

Page 16 of 23
Page 16 of 23
Nathan Stapley / Broken Age

Nathan Stapley / Broken Age

The stylish paintings of artist Nathan ‘Bagel’ Stapley were the creative touchstone for the art design in Broken Age, Double Fine’s crowdfunded adventure game.

Page 17 of 23
Page 17 of 23
Ruan Jia / Guild Wars 2

Ruan Jia / Guild Wars 2

This painting shows Lion’s Arch, one of the biggest cities in Guild Wars 2’s beautiful world, being rebuilt. You can see more art by Ruan Jia here.

Page 18 of 23
Page 18 of 23
CD Projekt Red / The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

CD Projekt Red / The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Countless pieces of concept art were produced to help realise the world of The Witcher 3, including this image of the city of Novigrad. You can see more here.

Page 19 of 23
Page 19 of 23
Ubisoft Montreal / Far Cry Primal

Ubisoft Montreal / Far Cry Primal

A great piece of concept art can transport you to the place it depicts, which this image created for Far Cry Primal does wonderfully. And here’s some more.

Page 20 of 23
Page 20 of 23
David Satzinger / SOMA

David Satzinger / SOMA

This artwork sums SOMA, Frictional’s sci-fi horror, up perfectly: beautiful, melancholy, and slightly terrifying. You can see some more images from the game here.

Page 21 of 23
Page 21 of 23
Ubisoft Quebec / Assassin's Creed Syndicate

Ubisoft Quebec / Assassin's Creed Syndicate

The foggy streets of Victorian London make for an evocative Assassin’s Creed setting, and have been recreated beautifully by Ubisoft’s artists. More here.

Page 22 of 23
Page 22 of 23
BioWare / Mass Effect

BioWare / Mass Effect

This vision of a cylindrical space-city had been imagined by sci-fi artists as far back as the 1970s, and BioWare used the idea to create the Citadel. Click here for more.

Page 23 of 23
Page 23 of 23
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Andy Kelly
Andy Kelly
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If it’s set in space, Andy will probably write about it. He loves sci-fi, adventure games, taking screenshots, Twin Peaks, weird sims, Alien: Isolation, and anything with a good story.

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