The Lockwood Design Nuke
by BONZO, HSM team writer
Lockwood drops the style and design nuke yet again, blowing our proverbial minds away with a method and aesthetic that are the hallmarks of this developer’s trademark diversity. How can one publishing house can bring us contemporary style, classic elegance, fantasy apparel, retro chic, and futuristic fancies that somehow all coexist in one universe? Lockwood is the Big Bang of creativity that has spun off so many spiraling little galaxies of imaginative brands, with incredibly talented people behind every design.
These are the people that make avatar hair look awesome! They made a corral in the middle of a field with a big oak tree a serene retreat to show off fireworks; spacesuits which look retro and futuristic at the same time; a lifeless horse prop that became a runaway marketing hit. And they are the only developer to date to give us the ability to gift each other. No, SCEA’s venture into gifting doesn’t count, because it’s tied directly to specific estates.
From day one of my Home experience, I remember Sodium Hub being the coolest spot, and Salt Shooter the first game worth playing, and worth spending real money on, for my first virtual goods purchase. With so much content coming from this developer, you would think the well would run dry — but there seems to be no end in sight! Out of the depths of that ocean of creativeness we are bombarded with a whole new fantasy line, which hints at the mysticism of the upcoming game Mercia!
What is the big deal? There are plenty of fantasy clothing and costumes in Home already. Dragons have come and gone as companions, or lifeless ornaments that sit on our shoulders, or active items that suck up too much memory in our personal spaces. The big deal is that no one else has made original Home fantasy content look this cool.
From the press release of the concept art for Mercia to the Fool Throttle fantasy gear and the dragon companions, they have created an entire world that fits in Home, and yet exists completely on its own. This is a world that hints at some realism and even semi-recognizable cultural elements. And yet if you were told this is a different planet in a galaxy far, far away, you wouldn’t bat an eye.
Follow the Eye
The detail on the fantasy clothing is reminiscent of Final Fantasy without being overtly opulent or exaggerated. Moreover, it hints at a merger of Sherwood Forest with Middle Earth. This is what a Robin Hood costume should look like! It breaks the generic concepts we have grown tired of, and adds a twist that is part survivalist, part rogue, and part sexy as hell without being obscene.
Lockwood has shown repeatedly, not just with Fool Throttle, but also with Drey and their other brands, that sexy can still be sexy without showing too much skin! The form-fitting aesthetics they have adhered to show off the avatar’s figure, while still remaining respectable. The female’s asymmetrical corset draws your eye immediately, then guides it down the perceptual zigzag map it draws for you.
Even with the Retronaut outfits, we saw the exaggerated silhouette where the male outfit generated an iconic V shape, and the female the perfect hourglass figure without being overly sexualized. They adhered to the mores of the 50’s retrospective aesthetic, while modernized or rather futuristically conceptualized to bring something that looks familiar, yet is unique.
The dragon companions break the rules again. There have been a few dragon companions in Home, and I was blown away by the Chinese New Year companion reward. But the Lockwood dragons bring another cool element that blows all previous dragons out of the water.
For one thing, contrary to what you have heard, size does matter. The failing of many companions, particularly in the early days, is that they were too small. That is a trend that appears to be changing now, with Kubwa the gorilla being the largest companion we have seen to date. The Chinese New Year companion was large, but its snake-like body left a lot to be desired. I would have loved to have seen it curl itself up or circle its own tail, but it was always flying. Salvador or Gribbler, the largest of the dragons, has amazing expansive wings, and it was an exquisite touch to have him land and roar before taking flight again. Any time a new animated element is added to a companion, it makes it worth spending a little extra. The fire-breathing aspect is what made Loot’s Dragosaur worth the extra buck for me.
The showcase sees an update with the Fantasy theme, and an egg smashing game to unlock more rewards. If the splendid designs of the outfits aren’t enough of an incentive, the point multiplier function should push you right over the edge of indecisiveness or hesitance.
Form Fitting Shapes
The Fantasy Update is just the beginning for the game changer in Home. Bringing Mercia and its RPG elements into this platform is what many of us have been missing. Sodium hinted at this with the Vickie’s Sodium Hub Achievements, adding cross-media elements by involving the Sodium website. Mercia will be a monster all its own, adding another level of depth to the Home experience that continues to evolve.
You can love Lockwood for the awesome designs, but I can’t blame you for hating them for sucking your wallet dry. Any major update from Lockwood comes with the inevitable battle of wills: to buy or not to buy. That is the question we all have to ask and answer for ourselves, but I can provide this objective view. Home’s microtransactional structure is often set up with consumer satisfaction feeling as though it is an afterthought, with strict nonrefundable policies and occasionally inaccurate descriptions for virtual items. But I have been very satisfied with every Lockwood product I have purchased.
I have been looking forward to this update, as well as the Lion companion — a logical step for a company with a Lion logo — and the soon-to-come Sodium companions. I am poised at the center of the bulls-eye in the test range, ready for the Lockwood nuke to fall, and looking forward to rejoice in the fallout of awesomeness that is sure to follow.
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I agree Bonzo, Lockwood has never failed to make me happy with a purchase so far. I don’t buy everything as I can’t afford it, but what I have gotten over the past two years has always been a high quality product, and their pricing policies are great, the bundle packs are always worth the buy. Nice article. GOOOO LOCKWOOD! Can’t wait for Mercia!