I’m not a big player of video games. I never developed the reflexes to play platformers, and I hate anything with stress or time pressure. But some games have such a great story, beautiful visuals, or such an engaging vibe that they draw me in. When I fall in love with one, I tend to fall hard!
The games I like best are those that, whatever reason, give me a similar vibe to watercolor painting, even if watercolor-like art is is not involved. They may have nature themes; grand landscapes; lots of color; or just a sort of gentle cottagecore vibe.
Here are some that give me that feeling of awe and/or visual joy and/or calm feeling that I associate with watercolor painting. I’ve done paintings inspired by each!
Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
I did not actually play this game, because I am not good enough at video games to be successful at the fights and building and platforming etc., but I enjoyed the scenery when I watched my partner play. Some of the locations are utterly gorgeous and a lot of attention was paid to the light effects.
Stardew Valley
You’re a little guy with a farm, and you get to build your little homestead, with frequent trips into town where you can romance the villagers, fight monsters, or follow other garden path quests. The midi soundtrack and 8-bit graphics manage, despite their simplicity, to convey the life and joy of changing seasons. I’m just in love with the way each season has a unique flavor and motion: falling petals in spring, floating pollen in summer, etc.
Life is Strange
This story-based game captures the intensity of teenagerhood. There are some stressful and even problematic elements to this game which make me hesitate to recommend it wholeheartedly (cw storylines involving su*cide and sexual assault, which are not handled especially gracefully). Yet, there is also something magical about this game. The wistful indie/emo soundtrack still gives me Big Feelings when the tracks come up on my yoga playlist. I love the slow pace of the gameplay; in some areas, you can sit down on a rock or a park bench and contemplate, or noodle around on your guitar, for as long as you want. Most importantly, the Unreal Engine graphics are gorgeous, especially the quality of light. Some of the places made me long to be there: a Pacific Northwest forest, a classic Americana diner. In some meandering way I’m not quite sure of, I feel like playing this game helped re-spark my interest in making my own art.
Firewatch
Most of the gameplay is wandering through a National Park in Wyoming – scrambling over rocks, crossing forests and canyons, climbing to your fire lookout – with graphics that put me in mind of classic National Park posters. (This is one of a class of games known as a “walking simulator,” where you walk around a rich environment and examine things.) There is also an ominous element as you investigate a mysterious disappearance and possible government conspiracy. Like Life is Strange, the story has some elements that I found too stressful, problematic, and/or not handled with the respect they deserve, but the majority of the game gave me such an intense feeling of peace similar to what I feel in actual nature. The graphics for this game made me realize how much I love National Park art, and now I’m doing a National Park painting series!
Gone Home
Another walking simulator, this is sort of the inverse of Firewatch in that, instead of creating a feeling of joy with the milieu and dread with the story, it does the opposite. You are wandering around a creepy empty house, but as you pick up objects and learn about the people that live there, a story unfolds that’s anything but creepy. Taking place in the 90s in my beloved Pacific Northwest with tons of period-appropriate details (and a Riot Grrl soundtrack), the story elements hit so close to home for me that I felt myself transported back to my first teen romance.
Do any video games give you the same kind of buzz you get from painting? Have any video games inspired you to create your own art?