Most of the games that appear on the Game of the Year list are fantasy, in situations where the spots are extraordinary, distant future or distant past. They want to take players into a completely different world, bringing new and different experiences from something you’ve tried before. Behind the Frames: The Finest Scenery, released June 2 on PlayStation 4, points to a different kind of fantasy, where you can immerse yourself in the gorgeous routine of everyday life.
I want to take some time to analyze why Buddy, the community manager at Acupara Games, and the experience of frame gaming systems are so important to us. Behind the frame, you are playing the role of a young artist who wants to showcase his art in a big exhibition. And while the game focuses on a mystery that it is trying to solve, you will spend most of your time behind the frame in its quaint, bus-in-looking studio apartment.
Behind the frame are various animated scenes throughout the game, which many gamers and critics have compared to the studio Ghibli’s animation, famous for films such as Princess Mononock and Spirited Away. These films, as well as many similar Japanese films, were the biggest source of some inspiration behind the frame. In particular, while Marni was there, Silver Lining Studios helped a lot to orient themselves on certain types of traditional animation for use in game scenes. The bold and honest colors and clear lines transform the artist and his studio into something more beautiful.
As the game system, the goal has always been immersion. The developers of Silver Lining Studio wanted to keep the players in the routine of that daily life. Wake up in the morning, have coffee and a quick breakfast and turn on the music before you start painting for that day. The main game mechanics behind Behind the Frame include painting and solving related puzzles, where the story will begin to unfold and many more mysteries will be unraveled. But to truly understand him, players need to see more of the protagonist behind the frame than the story. This will happen by helping him cook egg and butter toast.
For example, my favorite detail is playing music by tapping the player. Clicking a button is not enough to start music. The player must systematically open the cassette player, pick up the cassette, insert it, close the cassette player, and press the play button to release a single note. In game design, there is a term called “kinesthetics”, which describes the movement of a player in a virtual space. Similarly you can type on a keyboard without looking at your fingers because you feel how the movement of your finger will cause the characters to appear on the screen, the players feel how their virtual avatars move through the virtual space. And while a game may have good or bad mechanics, graphics, and sound, its dynamics can greatly enhance the experience. As a player I was much more attached to the painter thanks to the process of turning on his cassette player just by pressing a button or through an animated scene.
The same kinetic care has been applied to other parts of the game animation. When players hit the play and start playing music for the day, instant shots on the spinning cassette give players a moment to appreciate adding music to the game world. In fact, all the little routines in the painter’s apartment have this moment of admiration, whether it’s watching a tape game or pouring coffee into a cup.
This focus extends to the animation of the game’s painting. The silver lining adds special movement to the artist’s arm so that even if the player paints with a brush (which is attached to the controller), the arm smoothly follows the strokes of the brush. Details of how the game’s paint dissolves in the final result have also been added. As the player draws, the strokes of the brush stroke will begin to slide across the canvas. Once you have finished painting a part, the paint will smoothly transform into the finished result. This sequence helps to give the feeling of spending time and paying attention to create the details of the painting well.
For the developers at Silver Lining Studios and for us at the Acupara Games, this is the story that takes you back to a truly immersive, lifelong experience of being a young artist who spends his days painting in his apartment. If you also want to try to draw some masterpieces, behind the frame: The Finest Scenario 2 will hit PS4 on June 2. On the same day we will also launch a brand new theme for the game, a side story centering on another young painter. And we hope you’ll keep an eye out for choices like the ones above if you decide to try the frame. The game is full of them!
