This has been an entirely different experience from every other game I've worked on. Pitch Black took months to become slightly fun to play and even longer than that to have a story. Home Grown is still in a Closed Early Beta with no real gameplay. And Six Hours at Diddle's is whatever Six Hours at Diddle's is.

But Lights: DIE OUT has been a real eye-opener. The difference with this game is that I'm taking my time in the prototype phase, whereas I didn't add much gameplay until late in production with each of my past games. With Lights: DIE OUT, I'm designing and implementing a gameplay loop before I create the world.

Instead of thinking of some cool moments with little gameplay and sticking to that (like what I did with Pitch Black), I'm deciding to make a test level and change it as I design the gameplay. But what do I currently want the gameplay to be like? Luigi's Mansion inspires the current concepts, but I'm making it more puzzle-like with less action. Originally, I was going down the route of dark and gritty horror with mostly running from monsters and only puzzles for alternate gameplay—too much like early Pitch Black (which isn't to say Pitch Black's gameplay is bad, it's just more story-focused). I still want some dark moments, but I also want it to be fun.

I'm unsure if this will be in the final game, but I like where my ideas are going and want to flesh them out over the next month or so, and then decide if they fit the story I'm writing. And if I like them (and a lot), then that's where the full demo begins production! If unsure, I may release a beta build to get opinions on the gameplay and continue prototyping. And then there's always the possibility of delaying the game further if I hate it.