Video Game Art From Across The Ocean: A Conversation With deviantART’s Orioto

If you guys didn’t know, TrueGameHeadz not only care about video games, we also care about art, and the creators of these games (that we like to tear apart) as well.

Browsing deviantART, one of the hotbeds for hot artists worldwide, we came across this artist who touched our hearts with the Wacom. He doesn’t design for major games yet, but he can capture what’s true about some old school titles that make us all stop and stare. Without further ado let me introduce you to Mikael Aguirre aka Orioto. I’m sure you’ll find inspiration in his work.

TGH: Thanks for the Interview man. Introduce yourself to our fans and those who may not know you.

O: My name is Mikaël Aguirre. I’m 28 yrs old and living in Paris, France. Currently you can find me playing, NDS, PS3, and I have a 360 collecting dust in the closet.

TGH: Ok in the closet? So we won’t ask your gamertag then, what’s your PSN?

O: Orioto

TGH: How long have you been creating video game art?

O: I’ve been doing it for a while, but didn’t start seriously working at it until about a year and a half ago.

TGH: Can you let us know a little bit about your process?

O: I’m using what’s called photomanipulation and painting over, mixed with some digi painting. It’s a big mix of a lot of thing actually!

TGH: How do you chose a game to recreate? Do you pick colorful levels? Iconic moments?

O: Sometime it’s a request, and other time it’s an idea I have. I need to find a good point of view to begin a piece. It’s a long process (about 20 hours minimum) so I need a strong reason to stick with it. Sometimes it’s the idea of developing a certain aspect of a video game, or a level… For example I tried different ways for Mario, because I wanted to see how it could look in many different styles.

TGH: Do you think the industry has more room for artful games like “Okami”?

O: It definitely has, yes. The video game audience is constantly evolving, and it’s become more and more accepted as a culture, so I don’t see why there wouldn’t be some room for this kind of game.

TGH: Have you been approached to lend your style to any games?

O: I’m actually working on an indie game, but no big company approached me yet.

TGH: Where can we see some of your art, I know you’ve been commissioned by some of the larger video game outfits?

O: You can see it on my deviantART, at orioto.deviantart.com. I’m commissioned by IGN on a monthly basis also.

TGH: Do you do work for individuals?

O: If the money is there yes

TGH: How much would it cost for a commission?

O: It depends on the type of commission actually!

TGH: Where can people contact you if they’d like an original piece?

O: orioto.deviantart.com

TGH: What is your work environment like?

O: I’m working on a PC with a tiny Wacom tablet, A6 cause my old A4 is dead..

TGH: What kind of music do you listen to for inspiration?

O: I’m generally listening at the music of the game i’m working on! or even some Speedrun on YouTube sometimes. I did that for my last “Metroid” art for IGN.

TGH: If for some reason there was a digital erasure of all your work everywhere on the planet, which is the one piece you would save if you could?

O: The “Mario World” is my favorite and the most representative of my work I guess.

There you have it peeps. Make sure you check out Orioto on deviantART if you want to get your hands on the full res versions of these beauties. If you have some sick piece of game art, let us know!

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