Background

BRUTEFORCE is our third project, and was created as an entry to the 49th edition of the renowned game development contest Ludum Dare.

BRUTEFORCE is a unique project in our portfolio, as we were joined by two guests who each brought along skills that would help us to realize our vision for the project. Hanna404 joined the team as a talented artist, while TheDovah offered his services as a programming assistant.

Development

While developing BRUTEFORCE, we wanted to make this project stand out from the competition through its sheer scale. With a story spanning a cast of vibrant characters, and a simulated digital landscape that could be freely explored by the player, we set out to create an interactive experience that our players would remember.

Keeping with Totteri’s theme of historical references, the gameplay elements and aesthetic impressions of BRUTEFORCE are heavily inspired by real-life operating systems. When we create a game, it is important to us that not only should the story be memorable, but the actual experience of playing the game should be engaging and, preferably, unique.

Early concept art for BRUTEFORCE.

BRUTEFORCE is played through the navigation of digital databases and servers using a simulated computer terminal. Authenticity and immersion were important factors during the design phase, and much effort went into developing gameplay elements that would feel immersive to many.

BRUTEFORCE also offers the player a noticeably unique gameplay experience, as we recommend players in the beginning to reach for a pen and paper to complement their investigation. BRUTEFORCE is in many ways an extension of the ‘mystery’ genre of novels, in that the player is given a mystery to solve along with a sandbox environment to do so in. What is unique, is that the game itself, by design, does not hold the player’s hand throughout the playthrough. Notes are to be taken by hand, and information must be kept externally.

This design philosophy introduces certain challenges to the development of the narrative. On one hand, we wanted to keep the experience fully immersive and mostly realistic; but on the other hand, it is often not worth sacrificing the enjoyment of the player to achieve this. In many ways, BRUTEFORCE offers the player a balanced combination of realism and convenience, all while the game still remains interesting to play. Meanwhile, the game remains not overly convoluted to the point where players should fear grabbing pen and paper.

Screenshots of the game during development. Shows the early stages of the in-game boot sequence, medical database and chat application.

Results

BRUTEFORCE received great praise for its immersion and atmosphere, scoring in 60th place out of 2204(!) submissions. Alongside this result, we managed to score 32nd place in one of the contest’s specialized categories.

Room for improvement?

Because of the tight deadlines of the game development contest Ludum Dare, development of different aspects of BRUTEFORCE had to be prioritized. Certain issues arose, and some elements of the game had to be put aside, or scrapped for better alternatives. (BRUTEFORCE was developed in only 72 hours!)

Due to the tight deadline, BRUTEFORCE suffered certain performance issues when played by some players. This bug was fixed around the deadline, but it still clearly shows how developing a contest entry for a contest such as Ludum Dare is not a straightforward process.

If given more time, the story of BRUTEFORCE could be expanded to include more characters, and integrated a wider set of gameplay elements and systems. While the atmosphere and storyline of BRUTEFORCE is already well-received and loved by many, we do think that it could be made even better if we could apply some of the ideas that were scrapped due to time constraints.

As you can tell, developing a game is not a straightforward process. Many ideas go through multiple rounds of consideration, and every integrated system and chapter of a story needs to fit together like a digital puzzle. But when it all fits together, and the result is appreciated by so many players around the world, it inspires us developers and designers to continue doing what we do, and developing our methods.

We would also like to thank our guests for this project again; TheDovah and Hanna404! They really helped to make this project unique, while adding some important nuances and perspectives to the way we usually develop our projects.

BRUTEFORCE is currently published on itch.io, and can be played for free here.