Sometimes you go into a talk and expect a step-by-step guide to success, only to stumble out even more confounded. That's one way to describe a talk on the last day of 2026's Develop: Brighton by Gerben Pasjes, an art director who previously worked on indie titles Deliver Us The Moon and its sequel, Deliver Us Mars.
His talk was about applying a first principles approach to art direction, referencing a principle described by philosopher René Descartes, who famously wrote, "I think, therefore I am." The idea of first principles is that if you were to break down all preconceived notions or influences, you would arrive at undeniable fundamental truths. It's an idea that can be applied as a way of arriving at a game's art direction that is unique to itself.
