Inspired by Studio Ghibli, non-violent video game Hoa will draw you in with beautifully illustrated scenes that make you want to linger
- Hoa is a video game with a difference, featuring amazing hand-drawn scenes and engaging characters
- Its director and art director talk about the gentle game and its Vietnamese influences
Think of Hoa as an interactive children’s novel, a fairy tale set in a lush, elegantly imagined forest world inhabited by luminescent creatures. And although it’s a game, it’s best not to rush through Hoa. It’s a work that inspires patience, asking us to linger on each of its carefully drawn screens.
Hoa, from a small Vietnamese studio, is one of 2021’s must-play games, a charmer that at its start literally forces you to pause and look at the scenery.
The fantastical natural wonderland that has drawn comparisons to the work of Japanese anime film masters Studio Ghibli – which the team, of course, welcomes – is a place you’ll want to spend time. Whether it’s a snail who wears a leaf like a top hat, flowers that act like wind chimes or purple-glowing sea creatures, Hoa is brimming with personality.
“I think heavily illustrated done right is always a joy to look at,” says Son Tra Le, the game’s art director.
As Le talks about one of her favourite Studio Ghibli films, she pauses to twist her camera to capture the commotion behind her, where her cat is treating hanging kitchen utensils in her Hanoi, Vietnam, apartment as musical instruments.
