Timelapse footage from the very beginning of development

Game development can be along process, and those on the outside of it rarely get to see what goes on at the very beginning other than concept art. The reason is typically that the early iterations of any game are generally ugly, buggy, and unpresentable.

Indie developer Nick Donnelly does not mind showing the ugly beginnings of his projectThe Dungeoning. Wanting to document the entire process, he snapped more than 3,000 screenshots over the course of two years of the pixel art roguelike platformer, then stitched them together into the video above. The result is fascinating; what starts out as a hot mess gradually transitions into something that looks worth playing, with dynamic lighting on pixel backgrounds that give it an almostLegend of Dungeonlook. Also, there is a funny death message that briefly replaces “You Died” at around the 3:38 mark of the video.

Article image

The Dungeoningis currently onSteam Greenlight, hoping to release on PC, Mac, and Linux.

John and Molly sitting on the park bench

Close up shot of Marissa Marcel starring in Ambrosio

Kukrushka sitting in a meadow

Lightkeeper pointing his firearm overlapped against the lighthouse background

Overseer looking over the balcony in opening cutscene of Funeralopolis

Edited image of Super Imposter looking through window in No I’m not a Human demo cutscene with thin man and FEMA inside the house

Indie game collage of Blue Prince, KARMA, and The Midnight Walk

Close up shot of Jackie in the Box

Silhouette of a man getting shot as Mick Carter stands behind cover