Angie Wang has garnered some impressive notoriety for her fresh and surrealistic illustrations as well as her comic work (such as GIRL APOCALYPSE and SP7 to name a few), but this next project for the Portland-based illustrator extraordinaire takes her work into a (literal) new dimension. Working with LA Game Space, a nonprofit center for video game art and design, Angie’s newest creation is WAKE UP, a hypnagogic interactive game where the player is faced with breaking free from a dream cycle of false awakenings. 

Angie’s WAKE UP game is set to be part of a fundraising game pack (as seen on their Kickstarter page) that boosts work from some very well known names, from Pendleton Ward to Katamari Damacy’s Keita Takahashi. The games can be run via Windows or Mac and represent LA Game Space’s innovative output in an emerging independent gaming movement. If the game is anything like her whimsical and breathtaking artwork, Angie’s contribution should be a refreshing example of the possible aesthetic fusing of illustration and gaming.

So far, the only sneak peek available of WAKE UP is the Kickstarter promo image, yet it seems to stay true to Angie’s depictions of haunting, Japanese-inspired narrative. When asked about her new venture in crafting a video game, Angie had this to say:

“I’m interested in exploring a medium where the audience is expected to be a participant in the creation of the work. I think the idea of reader or viewer participation gets kinda lost in art and writing, where the artist is supposed to be the final arbiter of meaning, with total control of the work, even though the readers/viewers are the ones who bring it to life in their minds. I find it refreshing that video games make it clear that it’s a more equal relationship, and that’s something I keep in mind when I play or design.”

The LA Game Space Kickstarter has only 7 days left to meet their goal of $250,000. Without a doubt, it’s going to be interesting to see the results of this creative venture. I’m curious to see if the games work moreso along the lines of video art or if they can accurately fit into an already established and marketable gaming industry. If games like WAKE UP are successful, it may even mark a trend in possible future work for comic and illustrators alike.

For more information on LA Game Space’s work, check out their complete Kickstarter listing.

 

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