Indie Spotlight – How Dungeons of Dreadrock 2 builds on its legacy

Christoph Minnameier released his indie game, Dungeons of Dreadrock 2 on iOS on December 29, 2024, with the Android release date still unannounced. The game delivers exciting puzzle gameplay, complemented by amazing pixel art and an immersive storyline. Developed by a talented three-member team, this beautifully crafted game features a new protagonist, embarking on an adventure through Dreadrock Mountain. With 100 new handcrafted levels, you can solve challenging puzzles to explore the ancient caves.

Game Overview

Dungeons of Dreadrock 2 is a narrative-rich puzzle adventure title and serves as the second installment to the Dreadrock Trilogy. The game invites you to navigate through ancient cavern parts of Dreadrock Mountain, by solving clever puzzles, protecting yourself from deadly traps, and facing fierce enemies. With its charming pixel art and engaging gameplay, this game is a perfect option for players who love challenging puzzles and adventure experiences.

The game features 100 carefully handcrafted dungeon floors, each with exciting puzzles to solve to uncover the ancient caverns, retrieve the Crown of Wisdom, and ultimately discover your true identity and destiny. Featuring charming visuals with two different endings, five bosses, and exciting gameplay, this game delivers an enjoyable and great gameplay experience for modern gamers who want to relive memories of old-school dungeon crawlers.

Why you should play Dungeons of Dreadrock 2

• Created by an award-winning indie team of just three members.
• Features 100 handcrafted levels, and every room is a puzzle.
• Charming pixel art and a new protagonist with their quest.
• Perfect for gamers who love clear and challenging puzzles, with options to use hints.

From concept to creation: Developer Insights

In a conversation with GamingonPhone, Christoph Minnameier, an indie developer based in Germany, shared fascinating details about Dungeons of Dreadrock 2. During our discussion, he provided insights into the game’s inspiration, narrative progression, the challenges of designing puzzles, balancing difficulty in puzzle design, and more.

Mr. Christoph revealed, “I developed the two Dungeons of Dreadrock games alongside my day job.” Based on the success of his two projects, he announced that he is “going 100% indie starting this year.” Speaking about his team, he explained that while he handles most aspects of the game’s development himself, he relies on his two artists, saying “I’m not an artist, so I’m very glad I can rely on Fabian and Dmytro for their amazing pixel art.“

We also talked about his background in detail, and I was surprised to learn that he also holds a
PhD in computer science writes children’s books, and “was a professor for Game Design until last year.”

The inspiration behind Dungeons of Dreadrock 2

With the game receiving positive reviews and winning several awards, I was eager to learn about the inspiration behind the Dungeons of Dreadrock series and how this sequel builds upon the foundation of its predecessor.

When I asked Mr. Christoph about it, he shared that his childhood was full of old-school dungeon crawlers as an 80s kid. “When Legend of Grimrock came out about 10 years ago, I played it partly for nostalgia and partly because it was a great game on its own,” he mentioned.

He noted that Legend of Grimrock helped him realize “the advantages of grid-based movement in terms of readability and puzzle design,” which sparked the initial inspiration for Dungeons of Dreadrock. “I wanted to make the genre accessible for a wider audience,” he added.

The storyline of Dungeons of Dreadrock 2 and its
progression in the trilogy

When I inquired about the storyline of this game and its progression in the series, Mr. Christoph shared some interesting details. He explained that while “the setup for Episode 1 was simple – maybe even a bit cliché – but still compelling,” Episode 2 introduces a new protagonist, who appeared as an NPC in the first game. This time, she has her very own quest.

He gave a brief description of the storyline: “She was sent by the Order of the Flame to obtain a mighty artifact to help them in a war against an opposing faction.” This game offers two different endings, allowing you to “decide whether to complete that mission or to save the siblings instead.“

Reflecting on the narrative of the first episode, he revealed that, “your brother was never meant to stand a chance against the king, but was sent instead as an annual sacrifice by the village elders.” In Episode 1’s conclusion, you can kill the king.

The biggest challenge in designing fresh and engaging puzzles

“Having used all the obvious puzzles that I could partially borrow from those classic dungeon
crawler games meant I had to come up with new ones,” Mr. Christoph shared. He described that the puzzles also needed to be more complex because “players of Part 1 wouldn’t want to go through a 30-level onboarding process again.“

He admitted that it felt very difficult and challenging at first, saying, “My initial levels for DoD2 were ideas I’d left out of Episode 1 because they didn’t make the cut.” Reflecting on it, he revealed how that wasn’t a great place to start, “none of those levels made it into Part 2 in the end.” He became emotional in the end, expressing how much effort he had to put in his game, and that he “was lucky to find some enemy designs that allowed for new puzzles.“

Balancing puzzle difficulty to create a challenging and enjoyable gameplay experience

Coming to how he balances the puzzle’s difficulty, he explained that he begins by designing a relatively simple puzzle, without focusing on difficulty right away. With great enthusiasm, he shared, “I want the solution to be interesting, fun, and have a bit of narrative flavor.”

He further elaborated on his process, saying that once the puzzle feels authentic to him, he tries to assess its difficulty. If the puzzles look too easy for him, he adds “a twist—something the player initially misses so they see their solution almost works, but they missed something.“

According to Mr. Christoph, this twist makes the puzzle more challenging and engaging. Additionally, he shared that if an original idea turns out to be too complex, he nerfs them. “Maybe by simplifying the solution path or adding hints like visual cues or notes from an earlier dungeon visitor,” he noted. He concluded, “Of course, playtesting is vital, and if my friends say something’s too hard, I’ll nerf it again.“

Influence behind its visual design and distinct art style

Mr. Christoph shared that he originally started Dungeons of Dreadrock 1 as a hobby project, using stock assets, adding “I never dreamed of hiring someone to create art specifically for my game.“

However, he stumbled across a piece of high-res pixel art by Dmytro, “and fell in love with it, and not long after, I found Fabian.” He went down memory lane and said that he “hired them
both to gradually replace the stock assets” that he had been initially using.

He mentioned, “For Episode 2, we were able to tune everything up, especially the animation quality,” and thanks to the success of Episode 1, he had “the budget to pay the artists for their additional efforts.“

How the audio and music enhance the atmosphere of Dreadrock Mountain

“I think it’s a lovely and compelling contrast to have pixel art on the one hand and relatively
authentic audio on the other,” Mr. Christoph described, noting how the sounds of torches, water, and dungeon ambiance draw you back to the game, especially since the “top-down perspective distances you from the action a bit.“

While talking about the initial design of the game, he shared how the team aimed to introduce contrasts throughout the game, improving the experience.”You have traditional fantasy music that enchants you, and then you hear a rewarding chiptune on the stairs after solving a puzzle, signaling your progress to the next level.”

It was nice to learn that he wrote a song to inspire himself, using their piano. He revealed, “The song is now in the trailer and the game,” while also mentioning that there is a chiptune version of the melody that is used for the stairs.

The most rewarding experience of creating the series as an Indie developer

When discussing his most rewarding experience, he mentioned that there are many, making it difficult for him to just choose one. He recalled doing the first playtests with his friends, which he described, as “almost replaced social interactions during the pandemic.“

While the positive reviews of his game are quite evident, he shared his joy over “tens of thousands of appreciative reviews on Google Play,” noting that he read and responded to all of them, along with “a number of industry awards the series has received.“

Expressing his gratitude to everyone, he said “I’m very proud and very grateful at the same time, and the feedback so far has motivated me to keep going.“

What can you expect in the final episode of this exciting trilogy

With the game featuring two endings, he revealed that one of them could be taken as the right ending, “in which the sorceress is left in a rather desperate situation.” He plans to begin Episode 3’s story with the siblings returning to help her, creating an exciting setup for the last part.

What impressed me the most was his attention to detail and the continuity of the story, as he shared, “This would also tie Part 3 to the ending of Part 1.” Without providing too many spoilers, he hinted at the storyline of Episode 3, where the brother asking his sister what they should do next, to which she responds “Let’s go home, little brother.”

He expressed his excitement about his plans, sharing how much he loved the idea of the brother replying, “Well, we can’t go just yet,” because he knows the sorceress is still down there.“

His advice for indie developers trying multi-episode projects

With the interview coming to an end, I asked him what advice he would give to other indie devs pursuing multi-episode projects, to which he replied, “I think it only makes sense if your first episode has had some success, and if that’s the case, I believe you’re almost obliged to do it.“

Mr. Christoph acknowledged the challenges of gaining visibility in today’s game market, which I also agree with. He advised, “If you can build on an existing IP, I’d say go for it.” However, he also noted the difficulty of offering advice as his situation was unique. “Part 1 was a narrative game with a completed story so I couldn’t just add “more levels,” he explained while emphasizing how he wanted “to make sure the second episode wouldn’t marginalize the first one.“

Engaging with his community is very important for him. “I listened to the ideas of the community and combined them with my ones,” he added. He described how he created a high-level plan to exactly determine what needed to be added to the game, to make the sequel feel like a genuine upgrade for everyone. “Only then did I fill it with content and narrative,” he said.

Offering a final piece of great advice, he remarked, “I could say, know your product, your audience, their expectations, and weigh every design decision carefully.”

Final Verdict from the Editor

Priced at $7.99, Dungeons of Dreadrock 2 is an engaging grid-based adventure puzzle title, that offers the new episode, The Dead King’s Secret, featuring 100 polished levels. I found the game quite engaging, with a parallel story that continues in the universe of its predecessor and a compelling female protagonist, who was previously introduced as a NPC. With its charming pixel art and a new quest for you, this is a must-play title for anyone who wants to enjoy a puzzle adventure gameplay experience.

You can experience this adorable yet engaging game, by downloading it from the App Store and also make sure to pre-register it via Google Play Store. While the game will be available for Android devices through Google Play Pass, the official launch date is yet to be announced.

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