Review – The Art of Alice: Madness Returns by R.J. Berg (5/5 stars)

Reading level: Adult
Genre: Art
Size: 184 pages
Publisher:  Dark Horse
Release Date: May 17, 2011
ISBN-13: 978-1595826978
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: eGalley through NetGalley.com
Rating: 5/5 stars

I got an eGalley of this book from Dark Horse through NetGalley(dot)com.  I loved the artwork from the first video game, American McGee’s Alice, and this book goes into great detail on how the artwork was designed and detailed for the second game Alice: Madness Returns.  The artwork was absolutely stunning, it has a very dark overtone to it, and the explanations about artistic decisions that were made are engaging and interesting.

I am always a bit surprised about how much planning and work goes into the art for certain video games.  This second game in American McGee’s Alice series, Alice: Madness Returns, had an incredible amount of thought put into the artwork.

Not only is the artwork absolutely breathtaking, it is also very iteresting to see the different renditions of things and to see how the art progressed as planning for the game evolved.  There is a whole chapter just on Alice and her dress and all the thought that went into how Alice would portray the game.  There are chapters on the worlds and why they were decided on and how they were built.

The developers went to great lengths to make sure scenarios from the first game are echoed and portrayed similarly in this game; it is apparent that this is the Wonderland Alice originally went to but somewhat changed.

This is a very dark book filled with very dark artwork.  If you are a fan of the first video game you know this is dark.  That being said some of the images are scary and disturbing; probably not a book you want to look through with a young child.

Overall I was very impressed with this artbook.  The art is stunning, the explanations behind it interesting, and the whole thing is very nicely put together.  Everything is well-written and easy to read.  This is a great book to pick up if you are a fan of dark fantasy art.  It is also a great book to pick up if you are a fan of this game series.  This book made me look forward to the game release of Alice: Madness Returns (out in June 2011) even more!

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– 100+ Reading Challenge