Let's Build a Dungeon Simulates Game Dev So Deeply Your Game Can Get Hacked

Ever dreamed of making your own video game? Let's Build a Dungeon, the upcoming sim from Springloaded (Let's Build a Zoo, RollerCoaster Tycoon Wonderworks), lets you do exactly that—and then some. You'll dig dungeons, populate them with monsters and traps, design quests, and watch simulated players dive in. You can even let real players try your creation. But the real meat is the studio simulation around it: you'll hire devs, manage investors, finances, the press, crunch, conventions, hackers, and yes, even texts from your mom.

During a recent preview, lead developer James Barnard revealed just how deep this rabbit hole goes. The sim mimics Steam's backend and sites like SteamSpy, complete with hundreds of fictional games. "We have, like, 700 [fictional] games or something, and the list keeps on getting longer," Barnard said. Your game competes for wishlists, impressions, and chart position—just like the real thing.

Your fictional game runs on fictional hardware, and as time passes, tech advances. You'll upgrade from CGA to VGA, which means bigger assets and more hard drive space. "We drew every single component of every computer, so there's about 150 components that we drew from," Barnard explained. The soundtrack even changes based on your simulated audio card.

Sending devs to showcases is a "ridiculous minigame" that simulates flights, hotels, and layovers. "The flights kind of curve up in price as you get closer to the day, but then sometimes there'll be a bargain right at the end," Barnard said. Where your office is matters—if you're in London, EGX Rezzed is just down the road. And when your employees travel, they vanish from your design board, potentially wrecking your schedule.

Remember Cyberleek? That could happen to you. A hacker might follow your investors' flights, demand ransom, and either leak your game or force you to put him in it. "There's lots of different outcomes," Barnard teased. Meanwhile, your mom calls to ask if you've eaten, sends pie recipes and cat videos, and even inspires in-game pies your players can eat.

If studio management isn't your thing, you can just design dungeons in campaign, build, or creative modes—or play games made by other players. Let's Build a Dungeon hits early access in February, with a demo available now. Will you be picking this up?