Parents' Guide to Art Academy: Home Studio

Game Nintendo Wii U 2015
Art Academy: Home Studio Poster Image

Common Sense Media Review

Marcia Morgan By Marcia Morgan , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 7+

Excellent teaching tool for aspiring artists.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 7+?

Any Positive Content?

Parent and Kid Reviews

What's It About?

ART ACADEMY: HOME STUDIO is the latest game in Nintendo's Art Academy series. Players join Vince, a charming art tutor who appears in Claymation, and his dog, Bacon, in their cozy home studio, attending a collection of interactive art classes that help teach the basic techniques of drawing and painting. Completed artwork can be framed and saved in an online gallery to share with the Art Academy community on Nintendo's Miiverse, and time-lapse videos of your work can be posted on YouTube.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say : Not yet rated
Kids say : Not yet rated

This entry in the series encourages the creative process through more than 30 enjoyable and educational lessons. Ranging in difficulty from beginner to advanced, the lessons are broken up into steps, focusing on different skills such as sketching basics and color theory. For example, your first lesson, drawing a tomato, is broken up to focus on aspects such as shading and outlining. In-depth information on the artistic styles used, famous artists, and the reasoning behind each artistic process provide an enjoyable glimpse into the world of art.

For younger children not quite ready for the guided lessons, there's also a free-paint mode, making this a fun experience for all ages. Best of all, aspiring artists will end up with have a complete work of art to display in their virtual art gallery or to share online with family and friends by uploading their favorite masterpieces to YouTube or Nintendo's Miiverse or saving them to an SD card. Whether you're a budding artist or a casual creative type, Art Academy: Home Studio will provide you with a rewarding, educational experience.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about art as a hobby. What would be some good ways to continue to develop their skills outside the game?

  • Talk about appreciation of art. What types of art styles do you enjoy most? Why do you like certain styles over others?

Game Details

  • Platform : Nintendo Wii U
  • Subjects : Arts : drawing , painting
  • Skills : Creativity : making new creations , Self-Direction : academic development , achieving goals , Tech Skills : digital creation
  • Pricing structure : Paid
  • Available online? : Available online
  • Publisher : Nintendo
  • Release date : June 25, 2015
  • Genre : Art
  • Topics : Arts
  • ESRB rating : E
  • Last updated : October 1, 2025

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by

Art Academy: Home Studio Poster Image

What to Play Next

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate