dev_hell card interface
Image via Unhinged Studios

Dev_hell is a deckbuilder that lets you live the nightmarish existence of a corporate programmer

Excuse me for a moment, I'm having flashbacks.

Unhinged Studios has officially announced their roguelite deckbuilder, dev_hell based on the soul-crushing experience of working as a programmer in an office environment. It’s set to release on PC this year.

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Before getting paid to write bad words, I spent nine years working in I.T. as a technician. That’s not the same as being an office programmer, but it is adjacent. The biggest difference is that people at least understood that I was going to fix their computer. For normal people, programmers just perform whatever magic they’re told to. And if they can’t perform that magic, they have failed.

Dev_hell puts you in the shoes of a new hire at a tech company looking to “change the future.” Not only do you have to program a lot of questionable features and meet the company’s expectations of you, you also need to exert constant positivity and build relationships with your co-workers. Because when shit hits the wall, you may need a few human shields to protect your career. You constantly add to a growing deck of cards that help you do your job better, or at least make it look like you’re doing your job well.

I feel like most people who have experience working in the office will find the trailer to be unsettlingly familiar. Everything from superficial interactions with co-workers to bafflingly ineffective “incentive” programs. It’s absolutely too damned real. Looks like fun!

Dev_hell is coming to PC sometime in 2024.


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Image of Zoey Handley
Zoey Handley
Staff Writer - Zoey is a gaming gadabout. She got her start blogging with the community in 2018 and hit the front page soon after. Normally found exploring indie experiments and retro libraries, she does her best to remain chronically uncool.