Immersive World Building
for Video Games and Theme Parks
Clients who booked services like this:
Frictional Games, Volta Keywords, Embark Studios & others.
Project description
World building is arguably the most challenging and overlooked aspect of design for video games, films, and theme parks. While characters typically take center stage, environments and props are their essential extensions. As the saying goes, “You are what you eat”—a creature only looks the way it does because of the environment that shaped it. A shark evolved to swim fast, so it has fins. A fort is built to repel enemies, so its design reflects that purpose.
In the same way, props and environments are reflections of the characters that inhabit them. Though the protagonist may be at the forefront of a story, the world-building forms its foundation, grounding the entire experience in believability and emotional impact.
Details
Category: Art Direction, Concept Art, Illustration, 3D Design.
Caves moody ambient (left) and a abandoned fort at sunset (right).
Environment Concept Art for Amnesia Rebirth.
Bird’s eye view of post apocalyptic city, with squad of players moving through rubble and ruined cars, with fungus and flora taking over the landscape.
Environment Concept Art featured by CGSociety as Staff Pick of the Day.
Building Immersive Spaces with Function and Emotion
The goal is simple: design environments and props that would enhance player immersion and convey the story. In the following examples, this included everything from large-scale fort environments occupied by 1940s French soldiers to eerie props, like doors and furniture, that add weight and atmosphere to the gameplay. I wanted players to feel both a sense of unease and familiarity as they moved through these spaces, evoking Guillermo del Toro’s moodiness and Paul Evans' brutalist designs as reference.
It is important the player feels and reacts to the environment, adding to the experience we’re trying to sell and what the narrative design wants to convey next.
A sense of anticipation, expectation and human emotion is at the forefront of the designer’s mind, at every decision they take.
But this wasn’t just about creating visually striking assets. It was about building functional worlds, guiding players with subtle visual cues, and crafting environments that drove such narrative forward.
The environment design became part of character professor Herbert in Amnesia Rerbith video game.
Variations of Character Design becoming naturally mummified as the timeline goes on.
Final Gameplay footage on the right, concept on the left.
Prop concept art of a ww2 era radio.
Design iteration of medical supply box, prop concept art.
Prop design of a barricade, useful to steer the player to the pathway the game design wants them to take.
Prop design of medical box, using pop culture elements to lead the player to assume its contents and how useful it is for their journey.
Achieving Historical Accuracy and Narrative Weight
The biggest challenge was finding the balance between historical accuracy and the dark, surreal nature of Amnesia: Rebirth. How do you build a fort that feels real to 1940s Algiers while also unsettling the player as they move through it?
Historical Accuracy: I had to thoroughly research the era and understand how French soldiers might have repurposed old fort structures with makeshift engineering, blacksmithing, and DIY solutions. This required digging into military history, old architecture, and crafting narrative-based props that felt true to the story.
Narrative-Driven Props: Each prop needed to tell a story. The doors, handles, and machines I designed weren't just functional—they served as symbolic thresholds, helping the player transition between game levels or chapters, hinting at the events to come.
These challenges meant spending more time in the sketch phase, researching how I could add authenticity to each piece without losing sight of the overall visual language.
A sketch is often created to verify the alignment of our ideas, the director's notes, or input from other creative stakeholders. This ensures that everyone agrees on a direction before we proceed to refine any artwork. This approach promotes an iterative, open-minded process, allowing us to work collaboratively towards a common goal. If, at any point, we discover through this testing that an idea is not developing as we expected, we can easily discard it early on. This helps us keep the process quick and costs low.
An example video of reference I’d look for as designer. Showcasing the start to finish process to building such machine, thus, nailing the research into a realistic, immersive, and ergonomic foundation.
Using References in World Building
The research process for designing and building the world of Amnesia Rebirth focused on creating faithful references that align with the source material outlined in the creative brief.
The creators aimed to incorporate a DIY approach, emphasizing their skills and utilizing the materials that would realistically exist within the story's narrative. While some may consider using references in design to be unoriginal or lacking creativity, seasoned designers understand that this approach fosters exploration and validation.
By engineering ergonomic machines that not only look functional but also feel authentic, the design team was able to streamline the building process. These elements were crafted to be more than mere set pieces; they were intended to be interactive components suitable for a theme park or video game environment.
This meticulous attention to detail enhances the believability of the game world, allowing players to immerse themselves deeper into the narrative. By grounding the design in reality, the experience becomes more engaging, drawing players further into the intricacies of the story. Ultimately, this thoughtful world-building strategy enriches player immersion and strengthens the overall design aesthetic of Amnesia Rebirth.
Innovative Design Solutions and Story-Driven Props
The key breakthrough came when I embraced the idea of juxtaposing brutalist design with surrealism. Inspired by Paul Evans’ work, I designed moody, monolithic furniture that was both functional and emotionally charged. These pieces, much like the props, served dual purposes—grounding the player in reality while creating a sense of unease. The doors I crafted became symbols of transition, with their design evolving to reflect different psychological states, offering a glimpse of what lay ahead in the story.
Additionally, the research-heavy approach paid off. From blacksmithing tools to makeshift machines, each object had a practical purpose and story behind it, ensuring the world felt as if it could truly exist in the game’s universe.
A World That Feels Alive and Real
The result was a world that felt alive—a space that players could explore, understand, and connect with emotionally. Whether it was the eerie fort or the brutalist-inspired furniture, every detail reinforced the atmosphere and heightened the narrative tension. The environments and props I designed for Amnesia: Rebirth helped turn a series of levels into an experience.
By paying attention to every detail and thinking like a world-builder, the work not only enhanced the game but also demonstrated the versatility of my design skills. It bridged the gap between game environments and physical spaces, positioning me to explore new opportunities in theme park design.
Prop concept art of a pillar of the dark world, with production callouts.
Design iteration of concept art of another chair.
Many prop designs were made for this world, following this aesthetic.
Part of the world building solutions for Amnesia Rebirth.
A prop of a chair, crafted by an dark alien race.
Closing the Gap Between Games and Theme Parks
This project wasn’t just about designing game environments—it’s about laying the groundwork for future work in theme parks. The same storytelling, attention to detail, and ability to evoke emotion through space can be applied to theme park design. Theme parks, like video games, rely on creating immersive worlds that transport visitors, making them part of the experience.
Many prop designs were made for this world, following the ancient arabic aesthetic.
Part of the world building solutions for Amnesia Rebirth.
A arabic door from Algiers.
Prop concept art of a oil flask, used to re-fuel the player’s lantern.
Design iteration of concept art of a lamp.
Building Immersive Worlds for a New Era
In this case study, I explored how designing environments and props for video games can also translate to theme parks—creating spaces that feel both playable and emotionally resonant. Through the mix of historical research, surrealist elements, and storytelling-driven design, I created environments that are not only visually stunning but also functionally essential to the player experience.
Looking for something else? Maybe Sci-Fi Props? You’ll want to see this portfolio section.
Concept Designs © Miguel Nogueira
He is an easy to work with designer with good communications skills. I definitely recommend him.
Jane Chiu, Mobile Indie Game Developer
Miguel is a great designer, and he always provides options. His quick turnaround made working with Miguel a pleasure.
Richard Costa, VoteNet Solutions
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