Lords of the Fallen
A follow - up to the 2014 title , Lords of the Fallenpicks up over 1,000 year after where the first pull up stakes off . The game come from developer Hexworks and publisher CI Games , the latter of which has also help produce titles like theSniper Ghost Warriorseries . Just like its predecessor , the newLords of the Fallenis a soulslike game build around difficult boss fight in a disconsolate phantasy populace .
Lords of the Fallenhas two different areas that players will explore : Axiom , which is the public of the living , and Umbral , the realm of the dead . These two worlds are aesthetically distinct , draw and quarter inspiration from a 10000 of different horror and fancy reference . The biz also boasts an raiment of grotesque enemy , each with their own move and attributes that make for a roll of unparalleled challenge throughout the two environments for players to conquer that ’s garneredLords of the Fallencritical kudos .
Lords of the Fallen , like many Souls - like games , has some fabulously thought-provoking bosses . Although many are easy enough , some can seem near impossible .
Screen Rantsat down with Alexandre Chaudret , the art managing director forLords of the Fallen , to discuss his creative outgrowth , crafting fiber with gameplay in mind , and his preferred purpose within the title of respect .
Alexandre Chaudret On Lords Of The Fallen
Screen Rant : First , I would bed to know a slight bit just about the originative summons with a game like this , design each enemy and course character , where do you even know where to bulge out with something like that ?
Alexandre Chaudret : Well , for a task like Lords of the Fallen , first of all , we had a legacy , because it ’s the , allow ’s say reboot plus continuation of the first game that was out in 2014 . So there was this back software that we had that was analyzed for a long time . We took what was good in it , what was high-risk in it , and of class the more we were develop on our Lords of the Fallen , the more we ’re getting some space was the first one , especially on the prowess focal point , because we shifted completely . The first one was more high illusion , and this one is strictly dark phantasy . So that was small bits of it , but on my side , I ’m heavily relying on two independent pillar .
First one is the gameplay , because we ’re doing a game , we ’re not doing an art Quran . That ’s what I say to all my teams first solar day ever . I always say , " We ’re here to do a game , not an art book . " So gameplay is what ’s the most important , and then we have the story , the lore that evolves at the same clock time that we ’re creating the art , but it make a kind of majestic triangle . You have art , gameplay , and lore , and it ’s a balance between each of them . So , even if at the starting of any graphics centering you have some reference , you have your own luggage of what you wish or what you wish to puff , or what you want to make , the more you ’re creating on this game , the more the young macrocosm itself become its own address . So , creating a character at the rootage of the pre - output and a fictional character at the end of the production is very dissimilar . When you ’re starting on the pre - yield , you ’re like , " I have nothing . So I have small bits . Let ’s start . " You repeat a tidy sum until you notice something . It can be just a bod that suddenly is appealing , something that you feel in your bowel that it ’s blend in to be the good vision and everything is going to rely on it .
And at the close of production it ’s much easy . We ’ll tell you , " Okay , this is this character . He come from here . He needs this form of artillery . This type of armor . " You almost have all the stats of the RPG , and then it ’s like , " Okay , I ’m just go to ask the secret plan . " So , this is what we have to produce , " What should I do ? " And then everything is pop out somehow .
And talking about drawing inspiration from the world after a sure point . I ’m also curious about what the process was like , because you have the two dissimilar worlds in this biz ; you have the Axiom and the Umbral worlds . What were the chief aesthetic element you want to include in each one and sort of use to differentiate the two spaces ?
Alexandre Chaudret : So I would say that first we had a common vision and direction for the whole game . And this is at the beginning , that ’s what you rely on because that ’s the only matter you have . The vision from very betimes on in the plot was to make a double region , that ’s for sure , that would bring immersion to the player , but with enough contrast to get a kink .
And then already just with this pitch , there are already keywords that just appear to make both land . So if I need to immerse our instrumentalist in this game , we take to appeal to stuff that they can rely on . So blue phantasy is consummate for this , because it ’s something that we all have from our bedtime floor to our Game of Thrones serial or the books , the movies we read , we have this common voice communication on it . So we study this and we made it very tormented and that was our base .
And then it was : how do we contrast with this ? And we had more or less two answer . Either we make this Axiom rack world a bit brighter and we have a sullen property that will be Umbral . Or we say no , we stay exceedingly dark in the Axiom and we create the nightmares of torment people . So we just go even deeper in the darkness .
So where Axiom is very colored phantasy grounded , so blood , guts , candles , skull , medieval armors with rust fungus and thorns everywhere . Umbral is a bit more like a gateway to cosmic repulsion ; a bit more Lovecraftian where time and infinite does n’t occur , where the gravity is being uncanny , where you may see the moon is becoming a giant orb and there are titan skeletons that are frozen in fourth dimension . And this was the happy creative parts because we were basically free to do more or less what we wanted , but always centre on creating emotions for the player .
So when we saw , for case , our players or even during the caper mental test , some role player raising the Umbral lamp , so how having this keyhole to lurk a bit in Umbral and they had a visceral response of , " What is this ? " Or " What ? ! " And that we are like , " Okay , this part , we nailed it . It ’s o.k. . It ’s going to work . " And that was the main focus , overrefinement and contrast basically .
Were there any especial enemies or classes that were heavy to design or liven for any particular reason ?
Alexandre Chaudret : Almost all of them are hard . The action RPG general come with a raft of constraints too , because as I pronounce , the gameplay is focalise number one . The story is very authoritative , because you have this qabalistic narration , so you do n’t have full account with cut scenery all the time . You have to understand the story of a character just as by looking at him . So why does his arm is like this ? Why does he have this weapon ? Why this allegory ? Why this sigil on his back ? Et cetera , et cetera . So every fiber or every mob is like a complicated musical composition . The honcho even more , because we have to be super strict on the gameplay side , you ca n’t make an branch that is 20 feet long when you need 18 , so you have to carry on with it .
A character that was really difficult to create , there is one that ’s quite difficult , because it was come more from a originative standpoint and then it had to mix . I call up his name in the game is Mendacious Visage . It ’s like a giant Umbral monster who is just a giant headway with legs and arms , and this horrifying face can open at bottom . You see a smaller brute with an angry expression and everything . And I think of when I come with this design , that was tick the box of the gameplay restrictions , but everybody was like , " What is this ? " And I say , " No , no , do n’t concern . It ’s going to knead . We ’re going to make it work . "
I take inspiration from stuff of my childhood or movies , anything . It was coming from a Ghibli movie , Spirited forth , there were those giant read/write head that were drift , blowing , be active all around . And since we need something that was really the histrionics of grotesque , something that really feels weird when you discover it in the game , it feels like it ’s not meet , but it ’s still fitting exceedingly well and you ’re a routine unease . That ’s why I took this elephantine chief and I sum big foot and big arms to crush the player , and then the whole mechanics and everything add on top of it . But that was a fun ride on this character .
Beating Lords of The Fallen is just the beginning , with many dissimilar experience still waiting in the world of Axiom and Umbral after the credits .
And I mean , it might be the same response , but I was also queer if you just had a favorite design , whether it was because it was so intricate or weird or anything like that .
Alexandre Chaudret : I do n’t have necessarily a pet pattern even , because first of all , there are design I do , but most of the workplace , it ’s the work of the squad , as a squad . So there are several artists , there are type that we commission , character that get in , come out , that I retake or not . There is one I really wish because it was add up from a giddy idea , I ’m not certain of his name in game , but we nicknamed him Bellboy , because he ’s like a giant sinew pious warrior . But he has a jumbo bell on his school principal .
And I remember when we were thinking of doing another heavy persona , and I just came with this design , it was at the moment where I was choosing to sum more bell for the sentinels , more pricker and stuff , and I just take this beefy character , strong like a Kratos of God of War , and I say , " But if he was the most devoted character of the Sentinel , he would just put a bell on his point . " We put the buzzer on the head . And so , [ Saul ] Gascon the executive manufacturer , when he figure it , he ’s like , " That ’s just great . It ’s the perfect personification of this religious fanatic . " So yeah , I love Bellboy .
Can you talk a little bit more about what the collaboration procedure is like with the gameplay squad when it comes to designing each of these bragging fight ?
Alexandre Chaudret : So to be reliable , it ’s a lot of back and forth , because we are iterating a lot , constantly , and discovering everything . Plus gameplay is in the middle of a mickle of other parameters in this kind of game . You have the level intention , even the VFX that are fare on top , the sensation of the role player , the tv camera and everything . So usually we had a first , let ’s say in high spirits spirit level discussion with the director to get what would be the family brand . Then in this fellowship brand , for example , the sentinels or the unholy Rhogars , or the Umbral monsters , we get some sizes and different face and case of gameplay where we want , a heavy one that ’s going to kick you , a small swarmy character , a zombie patrol character , et cetera .
And from this , either we start straight from the cartoon and we create the character , and then we readapt the reference depending on the gameplay . Or the other way around , the type is created in gameplay and we adapt our creative process to fit the character in gameplay . It really look on each gang , and there were , I stand for , so many iterations , not that much changing the aspect of the characters themselves , but really adapting them so their function figure out as well as their flavor somehow .
And you lecture about this a little bit in the start , but sort of sustain some of the same aesthetic influence from the originalLords of the Fallenwhile also making something new . What was that equilibrise act like visually ? What were the most authoritative element that you wanted to ensure to keep while leave some others behind ?
Alexandre Chaudret : So from really from the get go , the one thing we were certain we wanted to sink was what we call might fantasy . So it ’s huge caldron and liberal armors , a morsel of World of Warcraft or Warhammer with a peck of decorations and everything . This we desire to knock off , because our keyword was immersion . And for concentration you need emotion , and so you needed to be a morsel more ground . So we wanted to base the game and the looks on the dramatisms , the tormented reality . I think it ’s horrible to live in Mournstead , the realm of this world . I would n’t wish to go for my education there . It ’s horrible . So to transpose this nontextual matter - wise , we had to make this variety . And making this variety is not nothing . It ’s like a huge shift that really almost reboots the intact art direction .
What we keep is part of the heart and soul of the first game , intend that they were already gruesome and meaty and with fury and stuff like this . We just pushed a bit the cursor , and even the game , our plot is 1000 years after . So it has implications . you could find small-arm of the first game here and there on some vistas or even some fictitious character , names that are dropped and everything . With a lot of respect of the first game , but we did our poppycock .
So yeah , it was honestly a big change . And I can say I think we almost kept nothing from the first game esthetically , but we had a slew of homage and tributes to it . For representative , one of the armor is a verbatim tribute to the armor of Harkyn , the first hero sandwich of the first game . So people who bet the first secret plan would get laid that there were some bite of it , but you’re able to completely set out our game fresh without even knowing the first one .
Are there any other fun Easter eggs like that that you’re able to guess of that were put in for devotee of the first secret plan , visually speaking ?
Alexandre Chaudret : Yeah , so I do n’t know if maybe now the game is out for a calendar month , so maybe spoilers , we can cocker . But yeah , there are some characters that are here . We keep some obvious thing like the giant hand deal that ’s coming out in the distance of our game . That was in the first drone . It ’s part of the universe of discourse . It ’s called the Hand of Adyr . Some character and specially let ’s say the main character is doing an appearance and not a pocket-sized appearance in our game , and he ’s wholly revisit and we continue his legacy . There are some other characters that are - peculiarly one that I opine the great unwashed will start to notice - I think it ’s already on YouTube and stuff like this , but there is this striver part from our blacksmith . He looks very eldritch , like a bit alien - ish and everything , and he can be used to craft runic letter in our game . And actually there was a runic letter crafter in the first game , and so you may easily do the connexion between those two .
And after there is a lot of modest stuff , not that much on the first game . Even if they are direct , not Easter eggs , but really derivation of the first one . Adyr is in our game , the Rhogars are in our biz . We talk in some place of the monastery where the first game was settled . There are bits here and there .
author : CI Games / YouTube
Godhead of the Fallenis available now for for PlayStation 5 , Xbox Series X / S , and microcomputer .
