DEVICE 6 followed Year Walk rather swiftly. The form came before narrative this time, as Simogo had already started toying with this weird text adventure format. In the early days, we talked a lot about some kind of institute, but I can’t remember what the discarded idea was really about, which is probably proof that it belonged in the bin. Out of that idea grew this story about a woman being abducted by a criminally insane tech corporation for product testing.

Without spoiling, a special doll plays a part of the story. I still have the doll in my office, but we briefly considered sending it to a player who e-mailed us that he absolutely did not want the doll. In many ways, looking back, Device 6 was an attack on smartphones on a smartphone. And the story could not be channeled to another medium, without losing its core.

The process was very experimental and enjoyable. Typically, I would write one chapter ahead, while the previous chapter was produced. There was a lot of synergy, and I could be asked to throw in some strange stuff as Simon had a puzzle concept or a cool visual idea he had in mind. I’m pretty amazed by how good the game turned out.