I recently came across this trailer for Monument Valley, an “M.C. Escher-esque” game that where architecture is the main character. To me the game looks really fun and explorative and it’s beautifully designed. The idea of turning the work of M.C. Escher into a game mechanic, is creative, and at least from my knowledge no one has made such a concept into a game.

According to its creators ustwo:

“The easiest way to explain Monument Valley to people is to say it’s a bit like an interactive M.C. Escher artwork. While the game as it now stands draws inspiration from many artists, films and photographs, Escher played a key role in finding what the game was about.

The team and I spent a few months sketching up ideas for mobile games that we felt hadn’t been explored yet by anyone else. Of the ideas we discussed, Monument Valley really struck a chord with the team and the rest of the studio, so we started work on a prototype. The games team is a perfect storm of imagination, workmanship and the desire to create meaningful experiences in video games. What’s really worked well is not having a solid distinction between programming and art. Several of us can do both, which is perfect when trying to create a game that lies at the intersection of art and mathematics.”

If you want to learn more about the game, check out this interview that ustwo’s Ken Wong did with FormFiftyFive where he talks about his inspiration for design and lots more.