is Fine Art, a daily look at the concept art that goes into our favourite games. With the end of the year fast approaching, I thought it was time to look at some of the best work we’ve been able to showcase this year from some of the biggest games.
With the exception of Red Dead Redemption 2—Rockstar keeps most of its art buried deep beneath the surface of the Earth, never to see the light of day—we got to look at the creative process behind most of 2018’s blockbusters, from God of War to Fortnite to Spider-Man to Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.
We also go to showcase work from small titles like Frostpunk and Banner Saga 3, while even finding time to revisit 2017 with one of my favourite features of 2018, on Battlefront II.
Below you’ll find a series of highlights I’ve put together from the year’s coverage, with links to both the larger features they were a part of, as well as (where possible) the individual artist’s portfolio.
ASSASSIN’S CREED ODYSSEY
[referenced url=”https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/10/the-art-of-assassins-creed-odyssey/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s–Xtww4MBt–/c_scale,f_auto,fl_progressive,q_80,w_1600/n4hzyham7a9hmve8y8s6.gif” title=”The Art Of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey” excerpt=”It’s one of the biggest, prettiest games of the year, so it’s a treat tonight to be able to share some of the work that went into the creation of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.”]
GOD OF WAR
[referenced url=”https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/06/the-art-of-god-of-war/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/ghrqqkbinpetb0jyx4mi.gif” title=”The Art Of God Of War” excerpt=”God of War is one of the best-looking video games ever made. That didn’t just happen, of course; a ton of hard work went into it, and that all started with the game’s art team.”]
BATTLEFIELD V
SPIDER-MAN
[referenced url=”https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/09/the-art-of-insomniacs-spider-man/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s–0MhGlrqU–/c_fill,fl_progressive,g_center,h_900,q_80,w_1600/ry2r7ezcekmbsl6djals.jpg” title=”The Art Of Insomniac’s Spider-Man” excerpt=”Insomniac’s Spider-Man for the PS4 is out, it’s good and it looks good.”]
SHADOW OF THE TOMB RAIDER
[referenced url=”https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/11/the-art-of-shadow-of-the-tomb-raider/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s–ObDheBfJ–/b1mz6ptcelos8f8edfqx.gif” title=”The Art Of Shadow Of The Tomb Raider” excerpt=”Now that the third game in Lara Croft’s modern reboot is out, let’s take a look at some of the concept and promotional work that went into imagining Shadow of the Tomb Raider’s world.”]
NI NO KUNI 2
[referenced url=”https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/04/fine-art-the-art-of-ni-no-kuni-2/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/kep0zz9d4icbhbfyjv8c.jpg” title=”Fine Art: The Art Of Ni No Kuni 2″ excerpt=”We don’t get to run too many Japanese games on Fine Art, so it’s a pleasure tonight to be able to feature some of the work that went into Ni no Kuni 2.”]
HITMAN 2
[referenced url=”https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/12/the-art-of-hitman-2/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/t_ku-large/aeqdgczwhgxkejjptq0q.jpg” title=”The Art Of Hitman 2″ excerpt=”Hitman 2 came out of nowhere to be one of my absolute games of the year, so it’s a pleasure to be showcasing a whole ton of art that went into the game’s production.”]
DETROIT: BECOME HUMAN
[referenced url=”https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/09/fine-art-the-art-of-detroit-become-human/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s–po_UO4K8–/c_scale,f_auto,fl_progressive,q_80,w_1600/hf1eh3sam3vtc9hbn4zk.gif” title=”The Art Of Detroit: Become Human” excerpt=”Kirk didn’t much care for Detroit in his review of the game, but I still thought the game’s vision of the near future was interesting enough to take a look at.”]
FORTNITE
[referenced url=”https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/03/fine-art-the-art-of-fortnite/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s–Sh1rI9hH–/c_scale,fl_progressive,q_80,w_1600/dy5ltv6sfsx8f9epd9cn.gif” title=”Fine Art: The Art Of Fortnite” excerpt=”It sometimes feels as though Fortnite has come out of nowhere to become the biggest game on the planet, but of course it had to come from somewhere. Such as the imaginations of these artists, who helped bring Epic’s shooter to life.”]
SEA OF THIEVES
THE BANNER SAGA 3
[referenced url=”https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/10/the-art-of-the-banner-saga-3/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/tjtyofyyv49dhmozdpaz.gif” title=”The Art Of The Banner Saga 3″ excerpt=”The final instalment of The Banner Saga has been one of my games of 2018, so it’s a pleasure to be showcasing loads of the gorgeous art that went into the making of the game.”]
DESTINY 2: FORSAKEN
[referenced url=”https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/09/the-art-of-destiny-2-forsaken/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s–Fp4zbBGn–/c_scale,f_auto,fl_progressive,q_80,w_1600/pkshqnxpmeub19wl4anv.gif” title=”The Art Of Destiny 2: Forsaken” excerpt=”I know, we’ve done a Fine Art on Destiny 2 already, but there’s so much amazing work that’s gone into the new expansion that I thought it was worth its own showcase.”]
BATTLETECH
[referenced url=”https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/05/the-art-of-battletech/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/t358tb4g8zeyehx7qx48.gif” title=”Fine Art: The Art Of Battletech” excerpt=”Battletech, a new turn-based tactics game based on the classic tabletop series, is pretty damn good! It helps that the game looks gorgeous, courtesy of some gorgeous 2D art and chunky mech models.”]
FROSTPUNK
[referenced url=”https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/06/frostpunk-a-miserable-game-that-looks-beautiful/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s–pDP9XOVt–/c_scale,fl_progressive,q_80,w_1600/hb7apyeu2b7epyrzpc1p.gif” title=”Frostpunk, A Miserable Game That Looks Beautiful” excerpt=”Hi there. Fine Art has taken a little break this week with all the E3 madness, but now that things are quieting down it’s time to bring it back. And it’s a pleasure to be coming back with art from one of the year’s biggest surprise hits, Frostpunk.”]
STAR WARS: BATTLEFRONT II
Fine Art is a celebration of the work of video game artists, showcasing the best of both their professional and personal portfolios.
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