Popular games published by company JODI

Sod is an extreme modification or "hack" of id Software’s action game Wolfenstein 3D, in which the goal was to escape from a Nazi dungeon. In Sod, Wolfenstein 3D’s representational renderings (considered state-of-the art at the time of the game’s release in 1992) have been replaced by pure geometrical forms in a limited palette of black, white and gray. The result is a game space that is loosely architectural and extremely disorienting; it is easy to get lost, and it can be difficult to distinguish the walls from the targets one is supposed to shoot. Paesmans and Heemskerk complement the game-play difficulties with a cryptic interface (setting game preferences is no easy task!) and tongue-in-cheek game instructions along the lines of "If you are tough, press N. If not, press Y daintily." With its stark elegance, Sod offers a compelling alternative to the computer game industry’s mindless pursuit of representational realism.

Untitled Game was made just as game modifications began to gain widespread recognition as an art form unto itself. JODI made the piece by altering the graphics of Quake as well as the software code that makes it work. Their mods reduced the complex graphics of Quake 1 to the bare minimum, aiming for maximum contrast between the complex soundscapes and the minimal visual environment. For the mod 'Arena,' JODI took this principle to the extreme: they completely erased every graphical element of the game, turning monsters, characters and backgrounds all to white. The more psychedelic 'Crl-Space,' the earliest of the set, is not based on a static image. Instead, it features a swirling black-and-white background. The game engine generates this effect as it continuously tries, and fails, to visualize the interior of a cube lined with black-and-white wallpaper.