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desolus.bsky.social
Mark Mayers
@desolus.bsky.social
1.1K followers 61 following 99 posts
Creating Desolus: explore a city of Gothic architecture torn between time.

Previously worked on Outer Wilds, Manifold Garden, and a few other titles!
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desolus.bsky.social
Mark Mayers @desolus.bsky.social · May 19
After nearly a decade of development, I am very excited to finally announce Desolus!

Explore a city of Gothic architecture torn between past and future in Desolus, a first person puzzle game.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxfV...
DESOLUS Announcement Trailer
YouTube video by Mark Mayers
www.youtube.com
desolus.bsky.social
It's no longer #Blocktober, but wanted to chip in.

Blockout version vs. Final version.

#gamedev
November 1, 2025 at 4:56 PM
desolus.bsky.social
Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh yea this is 100% how trees work in real life.

(I think it's a shader error).

#gamedev
November 1, 2025 at 1:01 AM
desolus.bsky.social
SpeedTree rocks
October 31, 2025 at 10:56 PM
desolus.bsky.social
I was fortunate enough to catch golden hour on the way back to NYC. Took this picture from the train.
October 27, 2025 at 1:58 AM
desolus.bsky.social
This website is fantastic for any type of geometrical calculation you would ever need. I've been using it for years.

rechneronline.de/pi/triangle....

#gamedev
October 9, 2025 at 12:59 AM
desolus.bsky.social
Some artistic reference pictures I took for a new area I'm creating in Desolus.

It's a historic fort in New Jersey, this place is pretty neat.
October 6, 2025 at 11:23 PM
Reposted by Mark Mayers
playtester.io
Explore Desolus, a first-person puzzle demo where you navigate a Gothic city caught between past and future, solving Escher-like puzzles with black holes to mend time-fractured architecture.

Play the demo: playtester.io/desolus

#IndieGaming #GameDev #Gaming #IndieDev #IndieGame
August 30, 2025 at 10:19 AM
Reposted by Mark Mayers
seattleindies.bsky.social
Here it is, the supercut of all 40 games from the Seattle Indies community that will be featured at Seattle Indies Expo (SIX) 2025! Go to six.seattleindies.org for more information on the games. Mark your calendars for Sunday August 31st for a chance to play the games at SIX. youtu.be/8pirxbbWRvE
Seattle Indies Expo 2025 Supercut Trailer
YouTube video by Seattle Indies
youtu.be
August 13, 2025 at 5:32 PM
Reposted by Mark Mayers
seattleindies.bsky.social
An Inside Look at Indie Game Dev with Ty Taylor of Quantum Astrophysicist Guild

The world of indie game development is a unique mix of…

https://seattleslice.org/2025/08/20/an-inside-look-at-indie-game-dev-with-ty-taylor-of-quantum-astrophysicist-guild/?utm_source=bluesky&utm_medium=jetpack_social
Post Image
August 20, 2025 at 8:03 PM
Reposted by Mark Mayers
themix.bsky.social
Dropping a few of the awesome games you can catch during our Fall Showcase, Aug 29th! 💪

🔸 SacriFire
🔸 As I Began to Dream
🔸 Desolus
🔸 One Way Home

➡️ bit.ly/MIXFALL25
August 27, 2025 at 9:01 PM
Reposted by Mark Mayers
gamersegames.bsky.social
DESOLUS: Jogo de puzzle em primeira pessoa com portais é destaque no Smithsonian

#GamerseGames

Resolva puzzles temporais em uma cidade gótica com DESOLUS. Demo grátis na Steam (29/05 a 05/06). Criado por ex-dev de Outer Wilds

www.gamersegames.com.br/2025/06/02/d...
DESOLUS: Jogo de puzzle em primeira pessoa com portais é destaque no Smithsonian
Resolva puzzles temporais em uma cidade gótica com DESOLUS. Demo grátis na Steam (29/05 a 05/06). Criado por ex-dev de Outer Wilds,
www.gamersegames.com.br
June 2, 2025 at 8:03 PM
Reposted by Mark Mayers
4gamer.net
4Gamer 🔗https://www.4gamer.net/games/911/G091129/20250520010/
過去と未来に介在しながらゴシック式建築都市の風景を元に戻す。空間パズルゲーム「DESOLUS」を正式アナウンス

“だまし絵”で知られる画家マウリッツ・エッシャー氏の作品のようなパズルを解き明かしていく。ゲームプレイは一人称視点で展開する
過去と未来に介在しながらゴシック式建築都市の風景を元に戻す。空間パズルゲーム「DESOLUS」を正式アナウンス
www.4gamer.net
May 20, 2025 at 2:58 AM
Reposted by Mark Mayers
gamespark.jp
過去と未来に引き裂かれた都市を復元する一人称視点パズル『DESOLUS』正式発表―エッシャー作品から影響を受けた奇妙な世界
過去と未来に引き裂かれた都市を復元する一人称視点パズル『DESOLUS』正式発表―エッシャー作品から影響を受けた奇妙な世界 | Game*Spark - 国内・海外ゲーム情報サイト
ブラックホールやタイムトラベルを駆使してパズルを解き進めます。
www.gamespark.jp
May 19, 2025 at 3:34 PM
Reposted by Mark Mayers
gamingmistress.com
I legit love these types of games that not only incorporate gorgeous scenes but also PUZZLES. The demo is a great, teaching the mechanics along the way while introducing new ones and giving you time to learn.

I did try to jump off an edge immediately and was thwarted, so no fear of falling off!
cipherzerogame.com CIPHER ZERO @cipherzerogame.com · May 30
It's Day Two of #CerebralPuzzleShowcase!

Looking for a demo suggestion?

Check out Desolus (@desolus.bsky.social) and explore a massive city with rich Gothic architecture, torn between time, and find a way save it from its destruction.

store.steampowered.com/app/1003460

#indiegames #indiedev
A scene of a large, Gothic city, parts of it broken, misaligned. A broken set of stairs lead up to a glowing archway, as several glass-like pieces float in the foreground, indicating a break in the reality. In the back, a massive crack spreads across the sky, the sun's lights blazing everything in harsh backlight. A long curved walk way leads around an open cliff, large clear crystals along the safe edge between tall trees. A large glowing gate with two glowing tree sigils is at the end of the walkway, the sun behind it all casting harsh light. A dim hallway with roots running along the ground. An archway with three glowing circular sunburst/snowflake rounds with a crescent mood and a flower in the center of each. A massive cathedral stands in the background, massive orange cracks racing along the sky in front of it. Glass-like shards of reality float in front of it as well.
May 30, 2025 at 7:02 PM
Reposted by Mark Mayers
cipherzerogame.com
It's Day Two of #CerebralPuzzleShowcase!

Looking for a demo suggestion?

Check out Desolus (@desolus.bsky.social) and explore a massive city with rich Gothic architecture, torn between time, and find a way save it from its destruction.

store.steampowered.com/app/1003460

#indiegames #indiedev
A scene of a large, Gothic city, parts of it broken, misaligned. A broken set of stairs lead up to a glowing archway, as several glass-like pieces float in the foreground, indicating a break in the reality. In the back, a massive crack spreads across the sky, the sun's lights blazing everything in harsh backlight. A long curved walk way leads around an open cliff, large clear crystals along the safe edge between tall trees. A large glowing gate with two glowing tree sigils is at the end of the walkway, the sun behind it all casting harsh light. A dim hallway with roots running along the ground. An archway with three glowing circular sunburst/snowflake rounds with a crescent mood and a flower in the center of each. A massive cathedral stands in the background, massive orange cracks racing along the sky in front of it. Glass-like shards of reality float in front of it as well.
May 30, 2025 at 6:07 PM
desolus.bsky.social
Desolus is now playable on Steam for the very first time as part of the #CerebralPuzzleShowcase!

Go download the demo!!
May 29, 2025 at 10:58 PM
desolus.bsky.social
After nearly a decade of development, I am very excited to finally announce Desolus!

Explore a city of Gothic architecture torn between past and future in Desolus, a first person puzzle game.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxfV...
DESOLUS Announcement Trailer
YouTube video by Mark Mayers
www.youtube.com
May 19, 2025 at 4:17 PM
desolus.bsky.social
Desolus will be playable at #DreamHack #DHDallas May 23-25, as part of the Indie Playground!

Explore a city of Gothic architecture torn between past and future in Desolus, a first person puzzle game.
May 16, 2025 at 11:27 PM
desolus.bsky.social
Incredibly thorough article on 2D camera design- highly recommended read

#gamedev #indiedev
untame.com Itay Keren @untame.com · Nov 15
Hard to believe that a decade ago, in preparation for the release of my game, I spent a month researching 2D cameras by playing through all my favorite 80s classics.
If you haven't yet, check out this fun, GIF-heavy paper!
docs.google.com/document/d/e...
April 9, 2025 at 5:16 AM
desolus.bsky.social
Haha technically this could be a tensor and not a matrix because you can combine multiple mechanics together not just two
helbl.ing Caleb Helbling @helbl.ing · Apr 6
Not pictured: the 10 dimensional hypercube
April 6, 2025 at 1:10 AM
desolus.bsky.social
Created a puzzle matrix for Desolus to figure out what combinations of mechanics I'm missing in the game.

10x10 has a lot of potential puzzle combinations!

#gamedev #indiedev
April 6, 2025 at 12:47 AM
desolus.bsky.social
Accidentally created an Old Testament Angel by using an FBX exporter which didn't work properly.

BE NOT AFRAID

#gamedev #indiedev
March 15, 2025 at 12:22 AM
desolus.bsky.social
Really neat video devlog on art design and camera perspective tricks in 2D games! You should check it out.

#gamedev #indiedev
dannyweinbaum.bsky.social Danny Weinbaum @dannyweinbaum.bsky.social · Feb 9
First devlog in a while! This ones about art tricks we've learned making a top-down fixed camera game! youtu.be/JPQ2NVwm1Xk
Making Beautiful Top-down Worlds | Devlog #5
YouTube video by Eastshade Studios
youtu.be
February 13, 2025 at 8:01 AM
desolus.bsky.social
Results from today's work. I switched my Render Pipeline to Multiple Render Targets, so I could combine a lot of the passes together.

10% faster render thread
-1k draw calls
-10m verts/tris

This is from code only optimization too, like I haven't touched the meshes at all.

#gamedev #indiedev
January 10, 2025 at 8:20 AM
desolus.bsky.social
Put off a rendering problem for 2 1/2 years- unfortunately I am now Future Mark and it is my problem 😭
January 9, 2025 at 7:29 AM