Visual Style Of Darkest Dungeon

Visual style Of Darkest Dungeon

World

The rules, visual presentation and the world of the darkest dungeon. Darkest dungeon is fantasy, based on a point and click mechanic world with a unique system and a very interesting story behind it. The only elements and playable areas of Darkest dungeon's world are the Hamlet, 5 different dungeons with unique bosses, and the camp near the hamlet which is occasionally available in an event. The visual style of the game speaks for itself as the first words associated with the style are, dark, rough, difficult, worn. Unfortunately for the player, the experiences of the game only reinforce this setting.

Image source: http://cdn.gamer-network.net/2015/usgamer/ddpreviewscreen1.jpg

The art of the game is 2d and is very cartoon alike however it is still very dark and depressing. There is a custom pose for each characters affliction and normal state. The art essentially make the game look like a moving painting. The art is extremely suitable for the game and is also a very unique feature as not many games nowadays aim for a dark, cartoon alike painting look. The art style of the game is outstanding causing it to be a very important aspect of the game and its setting.

Character Of Darkest Dungeon.

Many people consider Dismas, Reynauld, Paracelsus and Junia to be the main characters of darkest dungeon as they are the first four heroes that complete your first party. Using these 4 characters you complete your first quest after the tutorial. Every character is 2-d cartoon designed with unique abilities and stats.

Image source: http://i.imgur.com/S6uPDid.png

Each character has unique attacks and animations. The art style highly matches the characters and the dungeons matching the depressing difficulty of the game. Character's art style is just as dark and gloomy as the dungeons and the enemies. Instead of giving the party members a hero alike look the art provides them with a characteristic mysterious style of a dark adventurer.

NPC - Non Playable Characters
Apart from the playable "main" characters. There is a very important NPC that is with the player throughout the whole game, the narrator. The player is never told the real name of The Narrator and the only piece of information about the narrator supplied to the player is that it is your Ancestor who sent you a letter requesting help. The narrator is the most important because his narrations slowly reveal the story to the player. Narrator also ends up being one of the bosses in the late game.

Image source: https://www.destructoid.com//ul/336403-ancestor.jpg

Apart from the narrator there is a lot of different enemies which can be found in different dungeons as well as the NPCs in the hamlet which you can pay to upgrade the buildings and characters or purchase trinkets which are used in expeditions. All hamlet NPCs have portraits which suit the buildings they are assigned to. Moreover all the enemies are well designed to suit the dungeons they can be found in. Some enemies are neutral and can be found in every dungeon,these enemies have a more human alike look. Other enemies which are dungeon specific have more suitable design to match their dungeons. An example of this would be the enemies in the dungeon called a cove have a more fish alike design. This is a very important aspect as it gives each dungeon a unique look and feeling when playing them, therefore the game doesn't look like you're fighting the same enemies in every single dungeon.

Feedback interface
After each expedition a feedback interface appears. This window allows the player to review how much gold and how many treasures such as busts, herbs, portraits, deeds and trinkets the player collected throughout the last expedition. The window and rewards are different depending on whether the main objectives of the expedition have been achieved or not.

Image Source: https://lockesjourney.wordpress.com/2015/10/27/darkest-dungeon-then-and-now/

Image source: http://www.spritesanddice.com/file/darkest-dungeon-quest-victoryjpg

After the player has viewed the amount of gold and treasures collected another window will show up informing the player of all the new quirks and diseases that the explorers got while or after finishing a dungeon. If any of the party members died it will also be displayed in this window. These windows are nicely styled, fitting the whole mood of the game and all the characters. Displaying all the portraits of your party members as well as showing their resolve experience and stress. A very nice feature not only gives the satisfaction of finishing an expedition, it also provides a lot of information and is nicely styled to fit the game and its dark style aspects.

Perspective
The perspective of the game and the characters is essentially a point of players view. In darkest dungeon it is a 2d third person point of view. We as a player see the party members and the enemies from the side. while travelling and exploring the dungeon we are slowly scrolling from one side to another through the corridors.

Image source: http://www.usgamer.net/articles/darkest-dungeon-pc-review-perched-on-the-precipice

Personally I believe that the perspective is not that important in this game as it is about making the best out of a terrible situation. The game has fantastic art and an extremely well designed characters and stress system. This game is all about thinking and trying to reduce the stress and increase the chance of success. The perspective at which the characters are controlled perfectly suit the game and it's mechanic. Everything is easy to understand and clearly visible on the screen from this perspective.