The term "indie game" tends to elicit images of retro-styled platformers or art games. And that's what makes the upcoming mech game Hawken from Adhesive Games so impressive. Though it has only been in development for 10 months and is being created by a relatively small team, early footage of Hawken shows visuals that rival that of many AAA releases. Studio cofounder Christopher Lalli spoke with Ars about the importance of a strong art direction and how to "cheat" to make a game look better.

Adhesive Games was formed less than a year ago by several former Intel employees who had previously worked together on a cancelled fantasy FPS project. After setting out on their own, the team at Adhesive initially started working on a 2D side-scroller before making the switch to a sci-fi first-person shooter. A combination of factors led the studio to go down the mech game route. Not only were they fans of the genre, but by focusing on mechs as opposed to humanoid characters, Adhesive is hoping to set itself apart form the FPS crowd. But there was also a more practical reason.

"The futuristic techy theme suits our small team better," Lalli told Ars, "allowing us to efficiently reuse and recombine assets in ways that aren't possible in other settings."

It's tricks like this that have allowed the team to make such an impressive looking creation. Hawken is being built with the Unreal Development Kit, which provides a solid technical base for the game. But, according to Lalli, the real key lies in Hawken's art direction.

"A big part of our visual impact and overall appeal is just the outstanding art direction by Khang Le," he told Ars. "He has a great eye for the big picture, and how things come together on the whole to create depth and a believable environment. With our assets, the artists essentially cut corners and 'cheat' in clever ways as much as possible. They work efficiently and don't always focus on tiny details. Props and environments are quickly thrown together using a 'kitbash' method like they used on the original Star Wars movies. Assets are reused in creative ways to produce seemingly unique objects."

Though the game is clearly inspired heavily by other mech games such as MechWarrior and Virtual On, Lalli also cites several other, less obvious influences for the game. These include Shadow of the Colossus for "the sense of scale and cinematic feeling we hope to achieve," as well as films and anime like Blade Runner, District 9, and Ghost in the Shell, which inspired the gritty, sic-fi look. Though the game will take place in a world with a "desolate, almost post-apocalyptic feeling," story and world specifics are still being kept under wraps.

As for how it plays, the first gameplay trailer showed off quite a bit of vertical gameplay—with mechs jump around a gritty urban environment via jetpacks. But, in reality the gameplay won't be quite so fast-paced.

"The jumping is kept in check with a fuel gauge that must be carefully managed," Lalli explained. "You can't just constantly bunny hop around. Our video showed a lot of flying and jumping because it looks cool, but in actuality you need to conserve your fuel for strategic moments or you will just be a sitting duck in battle. Gameplay-wise we're trying to meld the slower, immersive realism of simulation-type mech games like MechWarrior with the fast paced action of an arcade-style shooter like Virtual On. Hopefully that can create a balance that will appeal to fans of both styles."

It may be some time before those fans get to experience Hawken, though. Lalli said that the game won't be released "until we are totally happy with what we will be delivering." And, as for what platforms the game will be out on, that too has yet to be confirmed, though it will likely be a downloadable, multiplayer-focused experience.

"We’d love to see it on PC, XBL, and PSN," Lalli told Ars, "but those details aren’t worked out yet and can’t be confirmed at this time."