Hey, Buds!
To kick off our DevLog series properly, we wanted to take a step back to where it all began, with the events leading up to the founding of Glueplant Games and how a simple student project turned into something bigger.
Arídea: The Forgotten Desert
Our story begins in late summer 2023. As part of our bachelor’s degree at the University of Inland Norway, Mathias and I teamed up for the final project: to make a real game. One that people could actually play!
This was the moment we’d been waiting for, the sole reason we went to this school in the first place. We had huge ambitions for the project, a lot of concepts on paper, were highly inspired and motivated, but most of all: we thought we came prepared (spoilers: we did not!).
After weeks of brainstorming, we landed on Arídea; a survival-adventure game inspired by “Subnautica” and “The Long Dark”, but set in a scorching desert landscape. Mathias took on the role of the designer, while I did the programming part.
The plan was to build a “starting area”, a glimpse of a much larger game that we could expand post-graduation. But with just the two of us and a mountain of ambition, the scope quickly grew out of control.
But needless to say, we tried!
For nine months, we worked tirelessly, mostly 80 to 100 hours a week. The project became our lives. And as we reached March and entered the final stretch, we face-planted into a “mid life crisis”.
We hadn’t given the pre-production any thoughts. Our early momentum had us jumping straight into building systems and content without a clear end goal in mind. Suddenly, time was running out, and we had way too much left to build only to show a glimpse of the gameplay we had hoped for. So we started cutting, and we were cutting hard!
So hard that by deadline day, we only had a bare minimum of a playable game. It wasn’t what we originally envisioned, but it was something. And even in its stripped-down state, Arídea: The Forgotten Desert received awards for Best Gameplay and Best UI at our school’s game expo that year; awards we had just dreamt of achieving. Subsequently, this validation has helped us believe in ourselves; that we are able to make games that others will enjoy.
Ending our bachelors, we had learned a big lesson about the importance of a solid pre-production and proper time-management.
A Signature Style Emerges
In the middle of all the chaos, something unexpected happened: we found our creative voice.
As Arídea took shape, we began gravitating toward a specific style of telling our stories. When we create, we tend to drift towards worlds that look cozy and inviting on the surface, while they carry darker truths underneath. This contrast became our signature.
One example: the ghost-like creatures of Arídea were used as adorable, mysterious mascots of the game. They roamed the land and could only be seen in the light of an Arídean crystal. Mechanically, they could be captured to power machines in our crafting system. But in reality, the player was draining their life force, erasing them one by one for the sake of progression. It is later revealed that these creatures were remnants of the ancient civilization of Arídea, trying to protect their land. So, as you try to find the forgotten city, you destroy what’s left of it in the process.
We love the moment when a story flips your perspective, when something you trusted turns out to be more complex than it seemed. That’s a feeling we want to chase in our future games.
We want our stories to feel cozy at first glance, but with hints of unease, layers to peel, and truths to uncover as the story progresses. If that sounds like a journey you’d enjoy, we’d be honored to have you with us.
That’s it for this chapter. Thanks for reading^^
Next time, we’ll continue the backstory of the founding of Glueplant Games.
See you next month ^^