Getting
Down to the Nitty Gritty with Red Hook Studios' Chris Bourassa (Creative Director / Artist for Darkest
Dungeon)
An Interview by Glitchiee:
Darkest Dungeon is a rouge-like dungeon crawler focusing on the stress of adventuring
instead of just the slaughter of enemies.
Including gameplay elements such as darkness, starvation, and stress
relief, the creators of Darkest Dungeon, Red Hook Studios, have introduced a
fresh concept leading to an amazingly addictive game. For more information on Darkest Dungeon,
check out P&P's original review and the recent Fiends and Frenzy
addition. Since Darkest Dungeon is such
a great game that is not even out of the Steam Early Access stage, P&P just
had to sit down with Red Hook Studios' Chris Bourassa for a bit of insight into
the game and its development.
"Hey, Phil, it says 'full' right above your head."
"Dammit, Tom, I told you eight Boston Cremes was one too many. Let's just make this dungeon
quick before I crap my pants."
P&P: Welcome,
Chris, so tell us…did you come up with the idea for Darkest Dungeon first or
did the art inspire the game?
CB: The idea for a
classically-inspired RPG that focused on stress responses and the human cost of
adventuring came first, but the art wasn't far behind. I think the theme was strong enough that we
built both game play and art direction out of the same core ingredients.
P&P: Were
the Lovecraftian tones always part of the game design or an aspect that was
including at a later date?
CB: We're huge
Lovecraft fans, and given that the game focuses on the mental strain of
adventuring, it was a perfect combination!
The core design, art, and tonal influences like Lovecraft all came at
the inception of the project—they were our core ingredients, and we structured
each of them to reinforce the other.
P&P: Where
do the various themes for the dungeons come from? Such as the ectoplasms,
swine, etc.
CB: Diversity in
an RPG is important, so making sure that each dungeon had its own identity was
vital. We talked about color
temperature, types of monsters, types of objects you'd find—anything we could
do to make the regions interesting and distinct. Monsters were themed based on the dungeon
environment, and also have significant game play differences. The idea was also to make different heroes
more or less effective in the different dungeons, encouraging players to
experiment with their party comps.
"Psst...what happening now?"
"What's it look like? She's playing a mean air guitar and that's made the beastie burst into tears."
"Oh...makes sense."
P&P: There
is a good amount of humor in Darkest Dungeon. Who is the humorist of the group
or does the entire team contribute?
CB: There's some
black humor in there for sure—even a couple song cameos (check the Jester's camping skills)!
A dash of that stuff is important I think to offset all the bleakness
found everywhere else in the game. The
same way the characters themselves have just a hint of cuteness in their
designs, while the writing tries to incorporate just the slightest bit of
levity here and there.
P&P: Is developing
Darkest Dungeon a full-time gig with your lives on hold or is it part time?
CB: The only way
we've been able to get where we are is by making it a more than a full time
commitment. For the bulk of our
development, we've been using up our own personal savings/RRSP's, and spending
upwards of 55-65 hours a week with no weekends for 2 years. We're all experienced developers, and we knew
going into this that there would be no way we'd ever get across the finish line
if we approached it as a hobby. This
game was an all-in move for us, and we're so grateful that it has paid off.
P&P: So what
is the environment at Red Hook Studios then? Do you all work together in the
same office or are things done via telecommuting? Does everyone help with
everything or are certain aspects individual only?
CB: We were in the
same office for over a year, but recently we've been working from home while we
look for a new spot. It's been nice to
try both approaches, but each has its pros and cons (that steam library though!).
There's a good amount of collaboration across the team, but everybody
definitely has their core areas that they handle.
"Are you sure beating this thing with a sock full of soap is the best the plan?"
"Hey, it smells like corpse ass...so it can't hurt, right?"
P&P: How do
you feel about the success of the game? Are you guys shocked? At this point,
are you further along than you expected?
CB: We've been
blown away by the response to the game so far.
It's very humbling to see so many people engaged with it. It's definitely performed beyond our
expectations and that has been incredibly rewarding and exciting. We also feel a responsibility to our players
to make sure that each update improves and refines the experience. We want everyone who has joined our early
access community to enjoy the ride right up to our 1.0 release in October!
P&P: And
finally, what are the hopes for the future? Expansions? Possibly a Darkest Dungeon
2?
CB: We'd love
nothing more than to continue to expand and grow the core game, explore other
versions like board games/tabletop, and yes, if there continues to be a demand,
a sequel would be amazing. We love the
game and the world, so it's a dream come true to be able to continue developing
it!
P&P would
like to thank Red Hook Studios (especially Chris Bourassa), not only for making
an awesome game, but for also taking the time out of their busy schedules to
sit down with us and discuss Darkest Dungeon.
And P&P wishes them nothing but tremendous luck in all future
endeavors. Gamers, hold onto your butts,
because the full game release is right around the corner. Stay tuned to P&P for more Darkest
Dungeon coverage.
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