Darkest Dungeon features both randomly-generated areas and permadeath, while also incorporating a stress mechanic that can literally lead your characters to insanity very quickly. While I like the element of surprise that naturally comes with randomly-generated areas, the punishing element of permadeath is something that has driven me close to insanity more than once. 'It's incredibly rewarding to see there was an appetite for it,' he said.I have a love-hate relationship with roguelikes. 'It's always a hope when you make a video game that people will respond to it in such a way and carry those responses with them,' said Bourassa.īourassa said so far the game has had a very positive response.

He hopes the game will help people realize that hero characters can be less than perfect in real life too. 'A lot of great tension comes from a group under duress,' he said. As a horror movie fan, he was also inspired by the films he watched. 'The game really tests the players' ability to roll with the punches,' said Bourassa.īourassa was inspired to create the game in part by watching how his fellow game creators reacted to stress. Rolling with the punchesĪll of their experiences become permanent personality traits that the players have to factor in. They can relieve stress by going to church, a tavern, or by gambling and drinking. 'When they hit their maximum threshold, they're kind of tested and they can develop what we call an affliction or a stress response,' said Bourassa.Ĭharacters can become paranoid, masochistic, and irrational and act differently as a result.

But the things they see and do affect them psychologically - sometimes with unpredictable results. In most video games, characters can be hurt or killed, but they rarely have any psychological damage as a result of all the death and destruction that surrounds them.ĭarkest Dungeon has a classic setup: a band of heroes questing through dungeons and fighting villains. 'But I feel like we pushed that envelope pretty far, and maybe there's some interesting game play to be found on the other end of the spectrum.' 'A lot of games celebrate the heroic ideal and these aspirational qualities of being immutable and untouchable' said Chris Bourassa, Red Hook Studios co-founder and creative director of Darkest Dungeon.

A new video game, Darkest Dungeon, is breaking the mould of endless violence and destruction, with its Vancouver developers focusing on their heroes' mental health and emotional wellbeing instead.

How to heal affliction darkest dungeon