There are all kinds of places where people find their style inspiration but, until pretty recently, video games probably wouldn’t have been one of them. It used to be that gaming was seen as part of the ‘nerd’ subculture, but in recent years gaming has taken off hugely amongst almost all groups.
It could be that computing capabilities have become so much better that the quality of games is almost too high to resist, or it could simply be that video gaming has been around for so much longer now that it has become the norm. Whatever the reason for the higher number of gamers nowadays, one thing we can totally get behind is the influence that this has had on style.
Of course, there’s the casual and cozy gamer style itself, but there are also increasing trends that are clearly influenced by video games and their characters. We’re going to take a look at some of the video games that have styles that we really love.
Everyone – Stray
We’re kicking off with a game that we’ve got no particular favorite character from, but that we love the general style of. Stray allows you to play as a stray cat, navigating your way through the streets at night. It’s mostly gloomy and grey, with the gentle buzz of neon lights in the background. It’s compelling gameplay for those that are into gaming, but even those who aren’t won’t be able to take their eyes off the colour palette.
The overall atmosphere in Stray is so spectacular that we’re almost positive there’ll be a collection that takes inspiration from it next year. The neon colours against the grungy grey background belong at New York Fashion Week.
2B – Nier Automata
Next up on our style inspiration list is YoRHa No.2 Type B, or 2B as she’s known in the game. This character is brilliant on so many levels. Firstly, her style is excellent. She shows a bit of skin in a mini-skirt but also remains mysteriously blindfolded. If we had to pigeonhole her as part of a subculture it would be the Kawaii goths, a little cute, a little dark.
However, what’s really great about this character is the comment she makes about female characters in video games. Her creators wanted to make a point about the male gaze, calling her blindfold ‘military goggles’ and her short skirt ‘effective ventilation’. It would seem that they’re having a bit of a joke with the teenage boys so infatuated with the overtly sexualized anime style. So, if you’re after a kickass meta character then 2B is your woman.
Chad Muska – Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4
Whilst 2B embodies sexy and sculpted style, Chad Muska is kind of the opposite. This character is actually a real pro skater and featured in all of Tony Hawk’s games. His style is understated, comfortable, and real baggy. Back in the 2000s, skater style was just making its way into the mainstream. Muska’s style in this video game played no small part in that.
He wore maybe the baggiest clothes in the whole game, round-toed skate shoes and a perpetual jauntily angled baseball cap. Accessorize with a basic backpack, worn with the straps way too long and some shades, and you’d got the skateboarder that everybody wanted to be. Of course, there were a plethora of skaters to choose from in this game, but it really did seem that Muska had more of an influence on style than his peers might have done.
Wesker – Resident Evil 5
Finally, there are plenty of video game characters that exist in all black all the time, but Wesker from Resident Evil 5 gets our vote as the most ominous of the lot. The leather trenchcoat is a classic shorthand for badass, but the quilted patterning in black and dark grey elevates this look to something a little more high fashion than The Matrix. He combines this unique coat with tight black clothes, a turtleneck, black drainpipe pants and clumpy combat boots.
When it comes to villain-chic, Wesker takes some beating.
