Yolings has been a passion project living in my mind since 2016. It started as a persistent thought, a conviction that a mechanic centered around grotesque, strategic sacrifices could offer a uniquely compelling puzzle experience.

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Inspired by the atmospheric worlds of Lemmings, Abe’s Oddysee, and Dungeon Keeper, I wanted to blend dark humor with horror. The goal was to create a game where the player convinces themselves that these necessary, grim sacrifices are ultimately for the greater good.

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Early prototypes featured stationary characters waiting for possession, which felt stagnant. Everything changed when the introducing constant movement; suddenly, the world felt alive and the puzzles found their rhythm.

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At first, this project was simply a way to grow my skills as both a programmer and a designer so I could look for other work or maybe even retrain as a designer. But as the project progressed I felt maybe this was heading somehere.

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I kept myself going by opening the project every morning and sticking with it. After 8 months, I had 50 levels and a beautiful, performant world. As friends playtested the game, I realised that maybe this could actually be a game I release on Steam one day.