Tag: interview
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Interview: How Weird Beluga Built the 3D Clockpunk Action of Duskfade
Weird Beluga made their debut with Clid the Snail, a top-down twin-stick shooter. Their new game, Duskfade, shifts to a full 3D action-platformer set in a sunless, clockpunk world. Moving from a locked camera to a fully player-controlled 3D environment requires a complete overhaul in how a team designs levels, combat, and movement. We spoke…
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Interview with Kornelius Briedis about Building Rogue Drone
Kornelius Briedis is developing Rogue Drone, a game that combines active resource gathering, base-building automation, and tower defense. Merging these genres often leads to complex, clashing mechanics. In Rogue Drone, players mine crystals during the day and manage a shared power grid to survive automated enemy raids at night. We spoke with Briedis about how…
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Interview: How Hit Start Nailed Co-Op in Brave Escape
Making a game where two players have to move in perfect sync is tough. Hit Start Studios took that on with Brave Escape, a platformer that makes players rely on a core set of rope and boost moves. After a solid PC launch, the studio brought the game to consoles. Game Designer Steve Ciaramitaro explained…
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Interview with Tim Berce: Designing the Mechanics of Sensory Overload
When solo developer Tim Berce started working on a prototype inspired by Minecraft’s dropper maps, he wasn’t expecting it to go viral. Yet, his upcoming game Sensory Overload has amassed over 70 million views and 90,000 wishlists ahead of its demo release. This interview would not have been possible without the wonderful people at Two…
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Dragonsword Giveaway & 5 Hard-Earned Lessons From Game Devs (#2)
Welcome to the second edition of the Dev & Play Media newsletter. Before we get to the games, I just want to say thanks. Over at Linkedin, we crossed 100 subscribers this week! Watching this list grow so fast has been great, and I really appreciate you taking the time to read this. Our small…
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Interview: Mastering the Cozy Chaos of Book & Horn
At first glance, Book & Horn looks like a relaxing fantasy retreat. Wrapped in warm pixel art and gentle audio, it promises a charming adventure featuring a cauldron, a witch, and her half-demon apprentice. Scratch under the surface and you’ll also find a engaging hybrid that mashes together lane defense, roguelite progression, and real-time crafting.…
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Lessons from the Frontlines #1
The past two weeks have been incredibly busy for us, and we’ve had the privilege of sitting down with developers from all corners of the games industry. From solo creators working on their first title to experienced teams with ambitious new projects, every conversation offered a different perspective on what it takes to make games.…
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DragonSword: Awakening: The Gacha-Free RPG We Always Wanted
We have a strange love/hate relationship with games like Genshin Impact. We love the vibrant worlds, memorable casts, satisfying combat, and the simple joy of wandering off the beaten path just to see what’s over the next hill. What we don’t love are the gacha mechanics. After spending more than 400 hours and far more…
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Interview About Forging DragonSword: Awakening: UE5, Anime Worlds, and Action
For the development team behind DragonSword: Awakening, building a new open-world action RPG meant heavily modifying Unreal Engine 5. The game pairs a bright, anime-inspired aesthetic with a 19-character tag-team combat system, all set across a massive map. In this recently released game, we follow a boy named Lute across the Continent of Orbis. It’s…
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How OFFBEAT Hides a Working DAW Inside a Tycoon Game
The digital audio workstation—or DAW— can be a major roadblock for aspiring musicians. Modern music software offers limitless creative potential, but it can be scary staring down a dense interface packed with digital dials, endless menus, and complex routing pathways. We’ve tried and we know how frustrating it can be. Ed Sibley, Studio Head at…
