Concept Note
Liminal Solace revolves around the nature of the escapism queer youth seek through the online and gaming community. The introductory cutscene depicts the main character, struggling to come out, facing judgement, dealing with dysphoria and being cornered into a space where the only outlet they have is an arcade machine which represents the online world. The obstacles in this world are represented by TV-like-eyes (fear of being discovered by family online) and a spinning cross (trolls that use religion to justify their hate). The little green power pellets represent green carnations, since they have long been associated with queer solidarity because of Oscar Wilde.
My Role
I conceptualized this game along with my colleague and was responsible for 3-D modeling, animating and editing the entire cutscene, while he used the models to code and create the playable (colorized) section.
Stills
Still 1 - The character wakes up closeted.
Still 2 - The character is subjected to taunts, speculation and judgement.
Still 3 - The character considers masking themselves at the cost of killing a part of themselves.
Still 4 - The character considers living as their true self at the cost of being "Crucified" and persecuted.
Still 5 - Even in the moment of conflict they aren't given the space to self-reflect by this monster.
Still 6 - the creature attempts to come closer.
Still 7 - They find an arcade machine that acts as a release from the harshness of the real world.
Highlights from the Process
Renders of an initial iteration of the character
Render 1
Render 2
Render 3
Initial Concept Art for the Eye Creatures
A Kanzashi I made for a previous project in college. I reused the Oni mask I modeled for this in "Still 3".
Kanzashi Render 1
Kanzashi Render 2
The Oni Mask
A Darker Gloomier Render of the Isometric Portion in Maya
Finalized Look and Feel
