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I’m a sucker for a cool deckbuilder, and dev_hell scratches the itch with an interesting concept, with something many people are familiar with: development hell. Thankfully, you don’t have to be a programming expert to feel at home playing this, according to developers Don Westendorp (Game Director) and Del Sharratt (Creative Director). Roguelite deckbuilders are always an interesting experience, and it can often feel hard to do something different in that genre.
However, dev_hell certainly seems to have done exactly that. While it’s still in development, it aims to let players flex their creativity, while also coming up against deadlines and other stressful coding challenges. It promises to be a genuinely interesting title, and here’s what the developers have to say about it.
Unhinged Studios discuss what inspired dev_hell and more
Q. First, thank you for taking the time to speak with us. For those not familiar with your game, could you describe it for us?
Don: dev_hell is a first-person roguelike deckbuilder where you take on the role of a newly hired software developer at an intensely ambitious but ambiguously-intentioned startup company. Over the course of each run, you must build a deck to complete “coding challenges” and defend your reputation at the company to avoid getting fired.
Important note: there is no real coding in the game. dev_hell is purely a card game meant to parody the struggle of working in the tech industry, not to literally force the experience upon you in any real way, shape, or form.
Q. As a long-time fan of deckbuilders/card games in general, dev_hell is a really interesting proposition. What inspired you to work on this style of deckbuilder?
Del: We wanted to develop a game that motivates replayability and has potential for deeply complex mechanics. But we also wanted to be able to create an immersive and engaging environment that would support a compelling narrative. In recent years, roguelikes have seen major success, especially in situations where games have broken format in order to tell stories throughout and beyond the runs.
Hades, one of the best roguelike success stories, did a fantastic job narratively outside the runs with just enough overlap to allow the gameplay to still drive the story. Meanwhile, Inscryption convinced us that it would be possible to get away with making a card game within a 3D environment, while still mechanically involving the space “outside the board.”
We very intentionally made choices to try to push what is typically seen within the genre. Our studio aims to be bold if nothing else.
Q. How does the gameplay loop work in dev_hell? What will players be doing?
Don: Gameplay is structured around runs that consist of five acts. With each run, players will acquire new cards and items, earn modifications to enhance and customize their decks, and attempt to survive through multiple rounds of card games to accomplish their objectives.
While going through typical deckbuilding activities, they will also have to manage relationships with coworkers, which can result in getting even more powerful cards and items. These connections can be immensely beneficial to their status at the company, but may also pose major repercussions.
Each sprint (act) of the game, you have to complete a certain amount of “features” during development, otherwise the final encounter will be significantly harder (though certainly not impossible). Development sessions present puzzles where you have to contend with all sorts of problems simultaneously. These are limited to a certain amount of turns, so there will never feel like there’s enough time to do everything!
Q. I've seen a wide assortment of very interesting cards, but how do players unlock more of them? Is it through grinding, completing missions, or other things?
Don: Cards can be earned in a variety of ways, whether that’s through gameplay, as rewards from certain characters, or from card matches that reward different types of cards. The main strategy will be to find the route with cards that will best compliment your build for that particular run.
Additionally, there are sidequests the player can explore within a run in order to unlock special cards that are related to the characters involved. Certain cards may only show up in future runs after you’ve progressed the narrative by successfully completing these storylines, though there are no “grindy” systems that prevent cards from being available.
Q. dev_hell appears to accurately encapsulate the hellish environment of software developers in many real-life situations, but in an over-the-top way. Is this something you as a developer experienced elsewhere?
Del: I think I can speak for everyone on our small team at Unhinged Studios when I say we’ve all had our fair share of hellish experiences in the industry. And this isn’t us trying to say, “boohoo, working in tech is awful.” However, there are toxic levels of engagement that have become status quo in most tech workspaces, and this is often the outcome of working on highly-monetizable projects characterized by excessive self-importance.
Kinder, more humble workspaces do exist, but the majority, given the dramatic ratio between team size and scope of influence, fall “victim” to what we all fondly know and recognize as corporate culture. These companies encourage people to place an immense amount of significance and self worth into jobs that ironically and quintessentially treat their own staff and user base as “just more code.”
All software – no matter how much big tech tries to argue for the humanity of their products – is designed to be inherently objectifying. Anything that can reduce behavior, organic or algorithmic, to simple lines of logic, will always be stripped of real emotion or empathy. I think it is impossible to build something meant to engage with the world in that way and expect the environment it fosters will not reflect the same.
Q. Though this is a deckbuilder, not all deckbuilders have an opponent. Is this game something where you're working against someone else, or is it a single-player experience?
Don: Our game is single player and narrative-driven, and the main function of cards is to basically play against “situations” that a developer would typically have to resolve during their workday. It’s about managing your resources and time wisely to make sure you can finish your features on time. There are a couple situations where you may occasionally end up playing cards against a coworker more directly though!
Q. I was going through the screenshots on Steam, to get a better idea of what to expect, and I saw "Concentration," "Inspiration," "Code," and "Influence" - are these how other deckbuilders would have their "factions," or how MTG has the different color identities?
Don: MTG is one of the big inspirations for our mechanics. “Concentration” and “Inspiration” are essentially the “mana” types used to play cards. Concentration is generated through normal play (+1 per turn), but can also be boosted with cards, snacks, and coffee. Inspiration is a rare resource acquired through different special actions in the game and can be used to play much more unique and powerful cards.
“Code” (Green) and “Influence” (Purple) are the two numbers represented on the card. If either value is reduced to -1, that card is removed from play. The player can build specifically into either Code or Influence or strive to keep a balanced approach.
We’ve taken to calling the different builds “Green,” “Purple,” or “Green/Purple” decks. However, you can also build heavily into Inspiration instead and have a “Yellow” deck. A few other colors represent support mechanics: “Pink” cards generate concentration and “Blue” cards are utility/control cards which don’t have either Code or Influence values.
Once you have a deck developed, you can usually reference the colors of your cards to get a pretty good sense of what your deck is capable of.
Q. So this is a deckbuilder about development/coding - do people who have a grasp of coding have any kind of advantage when playing this game? Or will someone like me, who can't code their way out of a wet paper bag, be okay?
Del: Absolutely no prior coding experience is required to play! We’ve aimed to make this game mechanically accessible, so you should be able to get into it regardless of your background with video games or deckbuilders. Although if it happens to stroke your ego: anyone who possesses the skills to truly master our game would likely make a fine developer.
The only real benefits to having a background in tech would be appreciating some of the inside jokes found in flavor text and card names. If it wasn’t obvious from the name alone, dev_hell isn’t exactly trying to glamorize this line of work. So for anyone who’s worked in a corporate or office environment, there will be something relatable to find.
The tech industry has earned itself a rep in recent years, for better or often for worse, and to this end, everyone should be able to appreciate the story this game tells.
Q. What do you hope people take away from dev_hell, after they've spent some time playing it?
Del: In dev_hell, you are first and foremost an employee. Your sole purpose is to do your job and complete your features, and yet, if you only ever engage with the game in a way meant to build the best deck, you will be holding yourself back. Work isn’t everything.
Doing a “good job” is not necessarily your primary objective. In a perfect world, we would like to see those who are able to completely finish the game walk away with a new perspective on what the tech industry is all about. By the time you’ve shipped your last app for the company, while you are celebrating your deployment with the team, I hope we will have left you with something to think about.
Q. There are a number of really interesting deckbuilders in the roguelike genre. Were any of them games you looked to for inspiration?
Don: I’ve personally played so many, but Inscryption and Griftlands would probably be the main inspirations, with CCGs like Magic, Hearthstone, and Eternal also shaping some of the mechanics and deckbuilding systems.
We’ve been very into the immersion of Inscryption, and while our “horror” is a little more figurative than literal, the combination of its story and world-building played a heavy role in shaping how we structured our own approach.
Q. What does the future hold for dev_hell? Any features or updates you'd like to add to the game after it launches?
Don: We absolutely plan to keep adding to the game as long as players are still interested in playing. One of the main things we’ve thought about for after launch is an “endless” mode that’s quicker to play and themed to working from home. And of course, we’d also eventually love to be able to support more languages and platforms.
Unhinged Studio's dev_hell is presently in development, and is scheduled to release sometime in 2024. The demo will be available on April 24, 2024.
