Disney's Influence on Video Games

Note: Both of the games I mention here are NOT for children. Additionally, I suggest clicking on the pictures for the full res versions to see what I mean. Because of the hideous Blogger formatting, I had to shrink the picture sizes down :(

Over the past year I've become an avid Xbox 360 gamer. Two of my all-time favorite games are Bioshock and Fallout 3. While playing both of them, I've been noticing a very similar theming to Disney Studios' Hollywood boulevard.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Bioshock, it is a game about destroyed beauty. It takes place in a city named Rapture which was built under the sea, but is now rotting and leaking. Rapture is bathed in art deco detail, down to the carpet, wallpaper, archways, etc. What was a finely crafted paradise years ago, it is slowly being retaken by the ocean when you arrive.

Looking at some shots of Hollywood Boulevard, there are a lot of architectural similarities. Check out this shot of a Disney Studios' shop and the Tower of Terror and compare that with a shot from one of Bioshock's undersea tunnels. The architecture is both beautiful and haunting at the same time. You can see how the two share certain elements of the art deco style, in their own spoiled way. There was just something about that grandiose 40's style that is gorgeous. Both have that reassuring retro feel to them that everything is sunny and positive, but there is really something sinister at play.

Going even further than architecture, Fallout and the Studios use a similar visual style on their billboards, with the fonts and lettering. There's one particular billboard in Fallout that seems as if it crept out of the 50's Prime Time Cafe and into the digital wasteland that Fallout showcases. The billboard mentioned shows a very idyllic scene with a family and the white picket fence, but being in ruins, it also adds to that feeling of despair. The boards in Disney studios aren't dilapidated, but are very similar.

In addition to the visual elements, the two also have the same soundtrack. In Bioshock, the music is all old 40's tunes - especially the Ink Spots - as well as a bunch of old scratchy tunes that sound like they're being played from your grandmother's record player. As you walk through the city of Rapture, the music seems to seep out of various spots - never taking front stage, but always being present. This is very similar to the Tower of Terror queue, where you can hear that same haunting music (albeit with some added echo for ghostly effect) as you proceed up the ramp to the hotel's mouth. In Fallout 3, the music is taken from the same genre. This includes a song that would've been perfect for the Jungle Cruise (also a period-based attraction), Civilization by Danny Kaye and the Andrews Sisters (listen - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C60iYHFE2pI&feature=related):

Bongo, Bongo, Bongo, I don't want to leave the congo, oh no no no no no noooo

fantastic stuff.

Once inside Rapture and the Tower of Terror, the interiors are very much alike. Both contain very tiny details such as the crown molding, light fixture style, archways, and color palate. Both contain a lot of deep reds and browns that give that feeling of affluence.

I'm not saying that the the creators of Bioshock and Fallout stole their style from Disney Studios and Sunset Boulevard, but maybe they took a trip to Florida and were inspired by the Disney version of spoiled beauty.