Lushfoil Nourished My Fear of Flying // Summer Game Fest ‘24
Developer Matt Newell set out to craft an in-depth photography simulator that would both impress professionals and onboard newcomers alike. But it wasn’t until I got my hands on Lushfoil Photography Sim at Summer Game Fest that I uncovered a vital tool I never knew I needed: a lens into the wider world in the palm of my hands.
Back on September 2, 1998, Swissair flight 111 from New York City to Geneva crashed off the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada. My Uncle Ray was one of the 229 on board who tragically lost their lives that evening. I have been terrified of flying ever since that day, so much so that it took me until 2011 to finally muster up the courage to board an airplane. Unfortunately and foolishly, I decided to pursue a career in games where the fear of flying isn’t ideal. But if I didn’t make the trip out to Los Angeles this summer, I wouldn’t have gotten to experience the beauty Lushfoil has to offer.
My demo featured three locations; an Italian mountain scape, the Australian shores, and a Japanese forest lush with torii. Booting into each environment, I could not help but to feel pure awe. As cliche as it may sound, ‘uncanny valley’ is the most accurate term I could use to describe these environments. The attention to detail Newell achieved with the hyper realism is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced in a piece of interactive media. That not only applies to the outstanding visuals, but the audio design as well. As you enter each location, you are met with a serene sense of silence void of human interference. The wind whistling past your ears, the slight rustling of a bunny passing in front of you, the water rushing down the mountain. Despite physically being in a room packed with members of the games industry, I was immediately engulfed and transported to locations I never thought I’d ever get to experience first hand.
While the Italian and Australian environments were breathtaking in their own unique ways, it was the Japanese forest that honestly made me quite emotional. Entering the scenario, you are met with a line of torii scaling an ascending pathway. Paths branch, encouraging you to explore and take in every single ounce of your surroundings. One led me to an ancient temple with history carved into its outer walls. Another to a bench overlooking Tokyo with a paper airplane waiting to be tossed to a potential fellow traveler. Within one intersection, there was even a map with a QR code. Scanning it with my phone, I was able to obtain a hand drawn map of the area in the palm of my hands, further escalating the experience into reality. Each step led to a subtle, yet fascinating discovery brimming with the most delicate details.
As someone with the most basic knowledge of professional photography, the experience was elevated further using the camera as a tool to gain better insight into my surroundings. One corner, in particular, led me to a wooden gate that was slightly open. Manipulating the camera and utilizing various lenses, I was able to seek out a wooden porch with an antique door bell hung outside. Little moments such as this triggered my curiosity. Who was living here? Being so close by, was there a deep connection to the temple? Was this individual beloved by the community, or did they keep to themselves in peace? Being one instance within a wider world, I could only imagine what other potential stories Lushfoil has to offer within its vast scenarios.
Ironically enough, Italy, Australia, and Japan are three locations I’ve always dreamt of visiting for various reasons. Despite having multiple opportunities, my fear of flying has prevented me from ever doing so. But even with my brief time at Summer Game Fest, Lushfoil allowed me to have an authentic emotional response to the beauty found thousands of miles away from home. It may be a photography sim on paper, but for me, it’s a window into the wider world I’ve been missing out on all these years.
Preview by Mike Towndrow