Working its way through the fascinating creation story and cultural footprint of the WipEout game series, WipEout Futurism offers unprecedented access to the game's visual archives and reveals the creative processes behind the teams, tracks, vehicles, and iconography that define the series. Within these pages you will find original concept art, promotional materials, in-game photography, the monumental graphic design work of The Designers Republic, and much more.
WipEout crashed onto the scene in 1995, shifting games into the cultural fast lane with its unique 3D visual designs. It propelled a wondrous hit of antigravity, hyper-speed racing into the heart of the freshly released PlayStation console and, over time, the series grew into a cult phenomenon among graphic designers and gamers alike. With its clubland branding, devised by cutting-edge Sheffield agency The Designers Republic, and its on-the-pulse collaborations with electronic artists, from the Chemical Brothers to Kraftwerk, WipEout was not only a racing game, it was a vehicle for art.
WipEout Futurism chronicles the iconic game's vision, struggles, and achievements—from first conception to future plans—in a distinctive union of trailblazing artwork and graphic design. The book includes exclusive interviews with electronic duo Orbital's Paul Hartnoll, sound designer Loic Couthier, writer Damon Fairclough, game director Stuart Tilley, and more.
Contributors
Duncan Harris
Author
Duncan Harris is a game-industry artist who has worked for companies including Sony, Square Enix, Bethesda, and EA. His writing has appeared in such places as Edge, PC Gamer, and Rock, Paper, Shotgun. He also runs a website, Dead End Thrills, which explores the art of games through the hobby of taking screenshots.
Ian Anderson
Foreword By
Ian Anderson studied philosophy at the University of Sheffield (1979-1982), but as a designer he is self-taught. He declared The Designers Republic on Bastille Day 1986 in Sheffield (which he dubbed SoYo™ North of Nowhere™). Ian has lectured to over 100,000 people around the world, has had over thirty “solo” TDR™ exhibitions, and launched The People's Bureau for Consumer Information and The Pho-Ku Corporation. He continues to run TDR™ and is a member of AGI. Anderson is an educator, an exhibited artist, and when the moon is full, he DJs as Pho-Ku Polluted Rockers.
