WAILING HEIGHTS

A monster musical set in the murderous hamlet of Wailing Heights.

Concept Art - Character/Environment Art - 2D Animator

ROLE

I started my Games development on Wailing Heights. I was hired as a Concept, Character & Environment Artist with an move into Animator later on in development. I Helped establish and develop the game's visual identity while also learning the basics of working in a studio for the first time.

I Created concept artwork to explore and refine visual ideas of the camp-horror nature of the game. It’s tongue-in-cheek style comic book art direction meant the game was visually very unique.

Alongside my concept art responsibilities, I worked as 2D Environment and Character Artist, contributing to the design and visual composition of game environments. This involved considering how spaces would look and function within the game in 2D, balancing visual presentation with gameplay requirements. The game is set on a 2.5D plane, so environments had to fit the games aesthetic and function as levels.

I was asked to try my hand at animation during the development. Coming from a more tradtional hand drawn animation background, I developed a small number of complex hand drawn 2D animations. I also learned how to develop puppet animation through the use of Spine, bringing characters to life through puppet rigged animation. The animation style fit the brief of the game quite well, giving the game an almost pop up style look.

The games art direction was nominated for a TIGA award the year of release, If I remember correctly we were beaten by Batman: Arkham Aslyum.

LINKS

STEAM

XBOX

PS

Illustrated outdoor concert stage with colorful spotlights, DJ equipment, stacked speakers, and a crowd silhouetted in the foreground
Detailed black-and-white line drawing of a medieval fantasy village street with timber-framed buildings, stone walls, rooftops, a mountain, and a large moon.
Colorful hand-drawn fantasy village street at night with a large moon, timber-framed buildings, glowing lanterns, and a central shopfront.
Detailed black-and-white illustration of a cozy café interior with round tables, mugs, pastries, flowers, a counter, fireplace, and small stage.
Colorful cartoon-style bar and lounge interior with tables, chairs, drinks, stage lighting, curtains, and a small performance stage.
Illustrated horror-themed clothing shop with zombie mannequins, a blood-stained tailor’s workbench, sewing tools, costume displays, and a glowing dressing-room mirror.
Abandoned theater stage with torn red curtains, skull artwork, ornate gold decor, broken lighting equipment, and rows of purple seats.
Dark, cluttered wooden attic workshop with a seated masked figure, stacked boxes, hanging tools, a lantern, and green light streaming through an open doorway.
Stylized dark fantasy art deco hallway with cracked stone columns, a skull-and-demon elevator entrance, and a finger foods shop.
Illustrated overgrown ancient Greek-style ruins with columns, vines, stone steps, and a turquoise tiled window or gate.
Illustrated abandoned subway station with vine-covered columns, a boarded ticket booth, overgrown platforms, and a bright pink graffiti-covered staircase.
Black-and-white illustration of a cluttered gothic artist’s studio with easels, paintings, candles, skull decor, books, curtains, and a castle view outside.
Gothic theater dressing room with vanity lights, security cameras, candles, skull, makeup table, and stage curtains
Detailed black-and-white illustration of a spooky haunted mansion with a ghost, rooftop weather vanes, gravestones, utility wires, and twisted trees.
Illustrated haunted Victorian mansion with a tall church-like tower, weather vane, glowing windows, gravestones, and tangled utility wires.
Illustrated anthropomorphic wolf musician playing a banjo while seated, wearing a green shirt and orange pants
Illustration of a muscular anthropomorphic boar soldier wearing a green military uniform and helmet, holding a wooden club.
Cartoon black flying fox bat with large ears, pink nose, and outstretched wings
Full-body illustration of a green-skinned woman with long black hair, wearing an orange patterned dress, pink gloves, and purple high heels.
Illustration of a green-skinned woman with long black hair, pointed ears, and hoop earrings wearing an orange patterned dress and purple heels.
Illustration of a green zombie wearing a dark blue trench coat and sneakers
Cartoon green zombie drummer in a blue suit playing a drum kit labeled “Deathwig.”
Cartoon gargoyle-like winged demon balancing on a tiered green stone fountain with red water.
Illustration of a bald woman in glasses working at an ornate antique desk with a vintage computer, books, cables, and potted plant
Cartoon anthropomorphic elephant wearing a yellow shirt, blue jeans, and wristbands
Anthropomorphic gray wolf wearing a beige suit and red polka-dot tie
Gray wolf-like dog wearing a red polka-dot collar, running with its tongue out and large curled tail raised
Illustration of a tall green Frankenstein-like monster wearing a long blue-gray trench coat and sneakers on a pink background
Black-and-white illustration of a spooky graveyard with tombstones, coffins, bones, and scattered debris.
Illustration of seven stylish vampire characters in colorful punk and gothic outfits
Illustrated lineup of four supernatural rock band members: a werewolf guitarist, ghostly female bassist, vampire vocalist, and zombie drummer.
Illustration of a grim, zombie-like man in a suit and red shoes, shown standing and reading a newspaper
Digital illustration of a blue-skinned vampire with fangs, pointed ears, pink hair, and large earrings looking at a smartphone in Adobe Photoshop
Black-and-white comic collage featuring a snarling monster, a guitarist, performers, zombies, and a cheering concert crowd.
Black-and-white comic illustration of a bandaged, monstrous superhero crashing through a building wall while a young woman watches in an inset panel.
Comic book panel showing a masked, club-wielding mutant attacking a silhouetted figure, with an inset of a blue-haired woman wearing red glasses and a second panel depicting the mutant crashing through debris.
Black-and-white comic strip showing a guitarist performing onstage, a goblin-like customer at a diner, a lively bar fight, and a character emerging from a damaged building.
Black-and-white comic page showing anthropomorphic fox characters in a forest near a house, with panels labeled “STAG” and “SANGY.”
Jennifer Wilde
Game Jams