Jak współczesne estetyki wpływają na kreację fikcyjnych rzeczywistości. Analiza zjawiska na przykładzie gry Stray oraz estetyki internetowej lo-fi

Abstract How Contemporary Aesthetics Shape Fictional World Building. An Analysis of Lo-fi Aesthetic in the Video Game „Stray” Internet aesthetics are one of many forms of meme defined by Richard Dawkins, which allows them to influence any type of culture, not only digitalized one. This article presents an analysis of an example of such relation between Internet’s trend – lo-fi aesthetic – and a world creation in a video game Stray. Lo-fi is both an artistic and a music genre, which defined itself at the turn of the 90s and 2000s. With growing interest, Internet users began to produce illustration based on the ambience of the style, subsequently creating specific concepts and characteristics of the aesthetic.The world presented in Stray was inspired by cyberpunk aesthetic, which was confirmed by producers, and is clearly noticeable in the world design. However, the atmosphere, and immersion that comes with it, are not representing the cyberpunk ambience. The genre includes specifics topics, such as exploiting the poor and the natural resources which leads to social class conflicts – these elements create the dark reality of the world filled with violence. Stray offers a different perspective – in this world, the humanity went through catastrophic stages and led to its own demise. Players, through a cat protagonist – an animal detached from human concepts – discovers the world left to itself. Human violence remains in a past, although is partially copied by robots mimicking their creators, which makes it a clear reference to cyberpunk. Yet, the most dominating topic is an overwhelming emptiness. Abandoned apartments filled with personal belongings are open for players to explore and participate in an intimate life of not just long gone humanity, but single individuals.That is how the game refers to lo-fi aesthetic by underlining individuality, nostalgia, and a sense of loneliness. The music genre creates this feeling by using disruptive audio effects imitating old recordings. The same ambience is presented in visuals, that mostly show empty streets, or gloomy rooms filled with personal objects.Combining these two aesthetics – cyberpunk and lo-fi – creates an unique feeling of the world “in a process of healing from the cataclysm,” letting players to interact both with tragedy and beings lost to it.