Artistry of ‘Contre Jour’ Comes to the Web with Internet Explorer 10

Game’s creator brings his vision to life with Internet Explorer’s immersive multitouch capabilities.

REDMOND, Wash. — Oct. 9, 2012 — After a busy summer with The Find, Pulse and Atari, Internet Explorer 10 today brings another well-known gaming experience to the Web in HTML5. The experience immerses users into a game rich with artistry and music, all while main character Petit – the one-eyed creature – seeks to save his love, The Rose. This world is “Contre Jour,” which is now available to play online as an interactive multitouch experience on the Web with Internet Explorer 10.

“Contre Jour” is not your typical game. Designed by Ukrainian developer Maksym (Max) Hryniv, the game draws many of its visual features, such as the use of black-and-white environment, from modern film noir titles such as “Sin City.” This design aesthetic is at the heart of the game. When making the decision to bring it to the Web, Hryniv was concerned whether it would really be possible. Assuming he could even build it, would any browser be capable of supporting the rich design, visual features and gameplay that requires multiple simultaneous touch gestures (i.e., multitouch)? After seeing Internet Explorer 10, the browser for Windows 8 that is leading the industry in its multitouch capabilities, he was willing to give it a try.

“Contre Jour” on Internet Explorer 10. Unlock the “Contre Jour” chapters for more gameplay. Image credit: Microsoft

He says, “At the beginning, I thought that HTML5 just isn’t ready for this game; that we’ll have a lot of performance issues and things that are just impossible to implement using HTML5 or support in a browser. The biggest surprise for me was that performance is good, the physics are perfect and everything is just beautiful.”

With a modern Web browser like Internet Explorer 10, users become enveloped in the overall experience, seemingly allowing the browser to fade away and leaving only what matters: the content. In the case of “Contre Jour,” the user is thrown into the immersive environment of the game. And with the multitouch gameplay, it’s like being part of Petit’s world.

Composing a Visual, Audio and Interactive Masterpiece

The beauty of “Contre Jour” lies in the full experience — the artful design inspired by Hryniv’s favorite movies and book, a soundtrack by master composer David Ari Leon, and a fast and fluid browser like Internet Explorer 10 that is perfect for touch.

From an artistic standpoint, Hryniv partnered with the design team at Mokus Games to shape and design the game and to get the perfect minimal look and feel. To complement the game’s unique visuals, Hryniv collaborated with Hollywood movie and game composer Leon, a classically trained musician who started his career working with Danny Elfman, composer and collaborator for film director Tim Burton.

“Contre Jour” Internet Explorer 10 Gameplay. Move Petit through the rope swings to advance to the next level. Image credit: Microsoft

Leon’s instinctive response was to compose music that matched the dark, quirky style of your typical Burton film since there were similarities with the look of “Contre Jour.” But after playing, he was struck by its whimsical nature. With Hryniv’s feedback, Leon honed his original score from a rich, multi-instrument orchestration to a simple piano solo that complemented the game’s use of black and white.

“The music’s job is to evoke a feeling that enhances the mood of the game, which, in the case of ‘Contre Jour,’ is rather minimalistic,” Leon says. “The composer’s ‘palate’ of instruments is much like a painter’s palate of colors, and paring all of your instrumentation down to a piano solo is a bit like limiting yourself to a pencil sketch.”

Leon likens “Contre Jour” to an abstract, impressionist painting that bears many of the same magical qualities and the sense of wonder found in “Le Petit Prince” — the popular French children’s book from which Hryniv drew inspiration and after which the main character, Petit, is named . And to help tie everything together, Leon drew inspiration from some of his favorite impressionistic French composers, such as Debussy, Ravel and Satie, whose music he felt was perfectly suited for “Contre Jour.”

“There’s a lot of talk among film and TV composers about whether it’s a good idea to do music for games — especially mobile games,” Leon says. “People are spending more and more of their time in the mobile world of small screens, and to be involved in in creating these wonderful, immersive experiences like ‘Contre Jour’ is very exciting.”

With Internet Explorer 10, these immersive experiences appear to come to life, making content shine and providing the best experience on the Web. To find out more about how Internet Explorer 10 brought “Contre Jour” to the Web, visit https://windowsteamblog.com/ie/b/ie.

To step into the world of “Contre Jour,” visit https://www.contrejour.ie. Web enthusiasts who would like to try it out with Internet Explorer 10 can download the Windows 8 Release Preview. Windows 8 with Internet Explorer 10 is scheduled to be commercially available in stores Oct. 26.