“PLEASE, do your market research first,” Polish developer Adrian Chmielarz tells industry legend Ron Gilbert after the underwhelming release of Death by Scrolling
A legendary developer, a promising idea, and a disappointing launch. Adrian Chmielarz has his own “lesson” for Ron Gilbert.
Ron Gilbert is the mastermind behind the iconic point-and-click Monkey Island series from ‘80s and ‘90s, also co-creator of the SCUMM engine that powered so many classic adventure games. He’s known as a pioneer of story-driven, humor-packed games and a true industry veteran. In 2014, he started his indie studio, Terrible Toybox, and went on to release games like Return to Monkey Island. His latest, Death by Scrolling, just launched and another developer isn’t shy about sharing his thoughts on its underwhelming reception.
When a brilliant concept meets harsh reality
Death by Scrolling is a vertically scrolling roguelike where we race upward through Purgatory, fighting monsters, grabbing gold, and dodging the Grim Reaper. With Ron Gilbert’s signature humor and quirky design, it sounds like a winning formula, at least on paper. But after launch, the game started getting some negative reviews.
I did two runs and was already bored. I loved the concept and idea, was looking forward to it. I’m not saying it’s a bad game, I just found it, for me, to be too boring and not how I imagined it to be. I assumed this to be a bit slower in pace and packed with more actual combat action. You know, Vampire Survivors but wall of death scrolling slowly up.
Usually, these games tend to be super addictive as soon as you start them, this one isn't. Movement is too slow, weapons have ammo for some reason, killing enemies gives you nothing but waste your ammo for the Reaper to spawn and kill you.
- AB3NG3R
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Death by Scrolling didn’t draw a huge crowd of players in its first few weeks, and that’s exactly what Adrian Chmielarz (Painkiller, Bulletstorm, The Vanishing of Etan Carter) pointed out in his post on X.
Source: X @adrianchm
Adrian Chmielarz also added that even if it’s tough to step out of a famous franchise, you can succeed elsewhere – “but please, PLEASE, do your market research first.” Understanding your audience and how they actually play is just as important.
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Author: Olga Racinowska
Been with gamepressure.com since 2019, mostly writing game guides but you can also find me geeking out about LEGO (huge collection, btw). Love RPGs and classic RTSs, also adore quirky indie games. Even with a ton of games, sometimes I just gotta fire up Harvest Moon, Stardew Valley, KOTOR, or Baldur's Gate 2 (Shadows of Amn, the OG, not that Throne of Bhaal stuff). When I'm not gaming, I'm probably painting miniatures or admiring my collection of retro consoles.
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