Factsheet
Developer:
Thomas Waterzooi
Based in Gent/Brussels, Belgium
Release date:
Januari 26, 2021
Platforms:
Steam (Windows/Mac)
Apple App Store (mobile link)
Google Play Store
Nintendo Switch
Website:
linktr.ee\PleaseTouchTheArtwork
Regular Price:
| Mobile USD | $4.99 |
| Mobile EUR | €4.99 |
| PC/MAC USD | $9.99 |
| PC/MAC EUR | €9.99 |
Description
What happens when you DO touch the artwork? 'Please, Touch The Artwork' is a cozy puzzler with narrative where you get to break the golden rule of museums. You'll explore the secret world behind iconic abstract paintings through over 160 puzzles. An aesthetic journey to the origins of modern art, set to a soothing jazzy soundtrack.
Process
The idea behind this project is to take some of the most iconic abstract paintings, reverse engineer them and then add some gameplay. The project actually has two outputs: a game (available on platforms such as iOS/Android/PC/Mac/Switch) and 2 art-installations. This section only describes the game. For the installations, click here.The Game
The game bundles 3 unique puzzles each based on a different painting/style.
- De Stijl
- Boogie Woogie
- New York City
Gameplay & Stories
The first puzzle tells the origin story of pure abstract art. It’s a challenging puzzle where you’ll add colors and lines to a canvas to recreate paintings.The second puzzle is about Boogie & Woogie, two squares who just want to be together, but a rapidly growing world is making this harder and harder. You’ll help Woogie reach Boogie by figuring out how the obstacles influence Woogie’s path.
In the third puzzle you’ll move to the big city, only to be overwhelmed with mixed emotions. From joy and excitement to feeling homesick and missing your friends and family. You'll be maneuvering through the craziness of the Big Apple while collecting letters to form a poem.
Features
- Elegant puzzles
- Based on iconic art
- Each puzzle based on a different painting
- Randomly generated levels for replayability and uniqueness
- +160 puzzles
- Accessible
- Simple controls (single-click/touch)
- Fit for ages 12 - 99
- No skills required
- Color-blind mode
- Big text
- Zen
- No-stress puzzle-solving, no time-pressure
- Subtle challenges
- Jazzy-soundtrack that complements the time-spirit.
- Educational
- Get to know the story behind abstract art pioneers
- Fun facts & artist-quotes
- Playmodes
- Hints when stuck after a long work day
- Story mode with 3 unique stories
Inspiration
In 2018 Thomas was reading a book called ‘What Are You Looking At’ by Will Gompertz. In Dutch (his mother tongue) the title was changed and it freely translates to ‘My little sister can do this as well. Why modern art is art.’ Thomas has a technical background but very artistic parents. He's always had a complex relation with modern art so this title triggered him. It’s an anecdotal and informative book which sketches the chronology of the origins of modern art, from the impressionists to the present. You go on a journey and read about where these artists lived and worked, who their friends were and what drove them to make their art. It was the period after postimpressionisme - the period of cubism, suprematism, the style - that attracted Thomas the most.
The avant-garde abstract artists are considered one of the pioneers of modern art. They reflected the rapidly industrializing society. All artists portrayed their own inner criticism and opinions on that society thus their art became very personal. It is precisely that aspect - the emergence of the path of the artist - that he found so exciting about this period.
During a night of light insomnia Thomas wanted to try writing a Mondrian-painting generator which randomly generated paintings in Mondrian's famous Composition in Red, Blue, Yellow style. He thought it would be nice if the user could touch the painting, and the painting would react, as if there was a hidden world inside the canvas. A little puzzle mechanic was added and ‘Please, Touch The Artwork’ was born.
Videos
Trailer YouTube
Author Pitch YouTube
Switch Release Date Trailer YouTube
Images
Logo & Icon
Awards & Recognition
- "WINNER 'Belgian Game Awards - Category : Best Applied Game' 2023'" Brussels, 23 June, 2023
- "WINNER 'Belgian Game Awards - Category : Best Sound' 2023'" Brussels, 23 June, 2023
- "WINNER 'Google Play Indie Festival 2022'" USA, 3 September, 2022
- "FINALIST 'Apple Design Awards 2022'" USA, 6 June, 2022
- "EUROGAMER RECOMMENDED label from Christian Donlan @ Eurogamer" UK, 7 February, 2022
- "WINNER "Best Art" @ Tokyo Game Show with Please, Touch The Artwork" Tokyo, 1 October, 2021
- "WINNER "BIG Impact: Best Educational" @ Brazilian Independant Game Festival with Please, Touch The Artwork" Sao Paolo, 1 October, 2020
- "Finalist Indie X Festival 2020 with Please, Touch The Artwork" Lisbon, 1 October, 2020
- "Nominee "Innovation In Games" @ Ludicious with Please, Touch The Artwork" Zurich, July 1st, 2020
- "2nd finalist @ The Label Indie Showdown with Please, Touch The Artwork" US, April, 2020
- "Winner "Very Big Indie Pitch" @ Pocket Gamer Connects with Please, Touch The Artwork" Helsinki, 4 October, 2019
- "Official Selection @ INDIECADE Paris 2018 with Please, Touch The Artwork" Paris, 19-20 October, 2018
- "Official Selection @ INDIGO 2018 with Please, Touch The Artwork" Utrecht, 29 June, 2018
Selected Articles
- "2022's Best games so far"
- Keza MacDonald, The Guardian - "Top 20 games in 2022 so far
"
- Martin Robinson, EuroGamer - "Please, Touch The Artwork feels like The Witness but with a clearer structure and less frustration
"
- Rebekah Valentine, Reporter at IGN, IGN - "A jazzy puzzler with Style"
- Lu-Hai Liang, TheGamer - "I hesitate to call it "art Wordle" … but it may be the easiest way to get you to try it for yourself."
- Alexis Ong, PC Gamer - "A must-play for any lover of puzzle games or modern art"
- Charlie Wacholz, Windows Central - "Paid for the game, received a peace of mind"
- Natcha Chaiwong, Google Play Review
Additional Links
The Guardian - Top 20 games in 2022 so far
theguardian.com.
EuroGamer - Top 20 games in 2022 so far
eurogamer.net.
Eurogamer Recommended label - A zen puzzler that lingers restless in the mind.
eurogamer.net.
Windows Central - A must-play for any lover of puzzle games or modern art
windowscentral.com.
TheGamer - A Jazzy Puzzler With Style
thegamer.com.
The Game That Gets Easier The More Tired You Are
kotaku.com.
Simplistically The Best
thevillainsclubinc.wixsite.com.
Top games to try out in january
gameskeys.net.
"Lo que hace una historia interesante son los protagonistas, la gente" - Alerta Geek
alertageekchile.cl.
Interview during Indie X 2020
facebook.com.
20 Weird and wonderful indiegames - Polygon
polygon.com.
“Please, Touch the Artwork” brings more puzzling to abstract art.
theindieweb.com.
Press-start
press-start.be.
FreeAppsForMe
freeappsforme.com.
About Thomas Waterzooi
Boilerplate
Thomas Waterzooi is a game director from Brussels.
He previously worked on Divinity Original Sin (Larian Studios, Baldurs Gate) and Hitman (IO-Interactive ) before becoming a solo-developer in 2018.
He focuses on making accessible interactive stories and playful things driven by art, culture, society and human interest.
His games are not about skills or high-scores.
They are about relaxing, reflecting, playful tinkering, and being sucked into the story and aesthetics (often referred to as "wholesome" or "cozy").
"Please, Touch The Artwork" is Thomas's first big solo project. It's a cozy puzzle game about touching abstract paintings (from Mondrian and the Style) and finding out what happens. It has received several awards and international nominations such as the Google Play Indie award 2022, Apple Design Award nomination, 2 Belgian Game Awards, and a Tokyo Game Show Best Art award. The game was also featured in '2022's best of'-lists in The Guardian and Eurogamer.
The sequel "Please, Touch The Artwork 2" is releasing in february 2024. This time it will be a hidden object adventure set in the paintings of James Ensor. The game was created with the support of the Flemish Government on the occasion of the Belgian EU Presidency 2024. The game will be available for free on Steam, Apple Appstore and Google Play.
More information
More information on Thomas Waterzooi, our logo & relevant media are available here.
Please, Touch The Artwork Credits
Thomas Waterzooi
Design & Development, Studio Waterzooi
Lars Burgwal
Audio Engineer, Composer, Freelance
Contact
Inquiries
info@studiowaterzooi.com
Twitter
twitter.com/thomaswaterzooi
Instagram
instagram.com/thomaswaterzooi
presskit() by Rami Ismail (Vlambeer) - also thanks to these fine folks