Of the handfuls of video games already scheduled for 2025 — which incorporates among the largest franchises and most anticipated titles within the historical past of the trade — one explicit title stands out for the way uncommon and interesting its premise is: Date All the things, the debut title from Sassy Chap Video games. It might not be 2025’s largest title, but it surely’s actually the funniest on premise alone. However the staff behind it, in addition to writer Team17, is actually critical about its growth and launch, regardless of the market nonetheless being in a difficult place after 2024.
This courting sim’s pitch is true there within the title: The participant character can — by way of a little bit of magical eyewear — meet, befriend and ultimately date each animated inanimate object inside their house. From the washer and dryer (who’re voiced by David Sobolov and Neil Newbon, respectively), your grand piano (voiced by Pleasure Ofodu) and your doorways (voiced by Ben Starr); to your personal overwhelming sense of Existential Dread (voiced by Sungwon Cho).
Sassy Chap itself was based by a bunch of voice actors, together with Robbie Daymond, Ray Chase and Max Mittelman. I bought the possibility to talk with Daymond on the Anime Frontier conference about Date All the things and launching such an uncommon title — the studio’s first, no much less — into what by all accounts is among the most tough markets in gaming historical past. Under is an edited transcript of our interview.
GamesBeat: How are you feeling in regards to the launch to date? What’s the reception been like?
Robbie Daymond: Our advertising and marketing numbers are type of unhinged for particular person views. That is an indie recreation, so these advertising and marketing budgets are at all times big, and a lot of the suggestions that we bought was simply natural. So, , got here out of nowhere — the trailer, I believe, has 400,000 views on, like, one type of it. Now we’re entering into the tens of millions of views. After which we’ve a pair viral Tiktoks and Reels, and the subsequent factor , we’ve bought, , views with Bs. So we’re tremendous completely satisfied, and the wishlist numbers are superb.
I believe the enjoyable half is everyone will get it. That’s good to see. That was the concern. Are they gonna suppose that is only a joke, or are they gonna get that it runs deeper? And I believe there was a second the place individuals have been like, “Oh, we at all times get these courting sims the place you may date the bathroom.” And I’m like, okay, that’s one a part of the joke. You don’t write 1.5 million phrases for funsies. We’ve created some actually deep and endearing characters with some clearly shaggy dog story traces, but in addition some fairly critical ones. After we hope which you can come again to those characters and deal with this as an actual courting sim. We tried to create over 100 particular person individuals.
GamesBeat: Entering into the background just a little bit: I believe I’ve an concept of the place the essential concept got here from. There’s an entire historical past of bizarre courting simulators. Hatoful Boyfriend, I believe, was the inflection level.
Daymond: Hatoful Boyfriend, Monster Promenade, Dream Daddy — proper, Western courting sims have a enjoyable spin on it. We have been simply riffing on concepts about what we wished to make. And the concept was, what can we do this hasn’t already been finished? What if it’s simply every little thing? What if we take this style to its logical conclusion and simply allow you to date every little thing?
GamesBeat: Since we’re speaking about it, did you will have any skilled or private expertise with the courting sim style?
Daymond: I performed them, however largely for homework. (Rachel: “Certain you probably did, Robbie.”) I do know loads of the historical past of it, however I might say that wouldn’t be on the highest of my checklist for one thing that I might play till I began making one. Then I used to be like, “Nicely, I higher do my analysis.” And we performed loads of them — the nice ones, the heavy hitters. And we kind of discovered, I consider, the place among the weaknesses are within the format, after which how we will strengthen that, after which the best way to play into the issues which are that folks get pleasure from most about courting sims. And as I mentioned earlier than, like one of many issues is forming these significant relationships.
GamesBeat: It’s not nearly sizzling individuals.
Daymond: It is in regards to the sizzling individuals, however that was one thing that we wished to try this leaned into extra like Japanese and conventional courting sims, the place it’s such as you’re actually courting somebody. I used to be like, yeah, we will do this. Each expertise may be intense. Some characters are simply humorous, however largely they go fairly deep.
GamesBeat: Did you will have any background as a recreation developer earlier than this?
Daymond: No, that is our first recreation. We — “we” being me, Ray Chase and Max Mittelman — have been doing different artistic endeavors outdoors of voiceover for the higher a part of a decade. About six years in the past, we determined we wished to make a factor, a tangible factor. Is it going to be a present? Is gonna be a podcast? Is it gonna be a recreation? Ray Chase, who’s the lead designer and recreation director on this, had at all times had an curiosity in recreation growth. He’d been going to PAX and and a bunch of different recreation growth conferences for years. He mentioned, “What a few recreation?” And that was the place the concept got here from.
What sort of recreation will we need to make? We had zero programming abilities. All of us discovered the best way to work with all of the programming instruments, the best way to construct in Unity. We’re utilizing a language-writing software program known as Inky. And, , it’s a wild expertise, doing one thing we’ve by no means finished earlier than. We’ve additionally by no means managed a staff of 40-something individuals. We’ve by no means labored with a longtime online game writer. It began as three guys in my storage, however now we’ve an organization with staff that we’re chargeable for. I’ve actually loved watching everyone step as much as the plate and produce. Our programmers, our artists, our musicians, the voice actors that landed their voices. All people’s simply superior on this. So, yeah, we’re actually pleased with the place we landed.
GamesBeat: I admit, when this was first introduced, there was part of me that thought… that is such a weird atmosphere for this type of recreation, proper?
Daymond: Who’s making an enormous courting sim in 2024? I believe it’s been lengthy sufficient the place we want, like, an enormous banger courting sim to leap again within the zeitgeist. And I believe, in accordance with the suggestions, , we’ll see after launch day, but it surely looks as if individuals are going to play it, which is admittedly thrilling.
GamesBeat: It’s most likely one of many higher genres to place out proper now — doesn’t require the huge funds of an enormous RPG or an open world Soulslike.
Daymond: I really feel like we’re just a little bit above the true “indie low-budget” funds, however we’re kind of hovering on this decrease double-An area the place we will get gifted individuals on board, and we will make one thing that feels high-quality and preserve our overhead low. Our complete staff is distant. Our publishers are within the UK, so that that offers us the flexibleness to make one thing high-quality, after which what we’ve to promote to recoup isn’t as a lot as say, , in the event you simply poured $50 million right into a recreation or one thing like that.
However right here’s the factor too: We additionally discovered we’d get actually gifted individuals on board if we shared just a little bit. So we’ve a wholesome rev share program inside our growth staff, so those who have contributed essentially the most to the sport will get some actual back-end, together with our efficiency, our expertise, our musicians, our artists, a few of our programmers, , not everyone, however the core members, if the sport does nicely, they’re going to get a bit of that, and it comes out of our pockets as executives. However for me, it’s price it. Not solely is it the precise factor to do, but it surely permits, it motivates individuals, and it provides them, permits them the eagerness to work on one thing. So, yeah, I believe we will develop a tradition of that inside video video games the place, , these big properties are making billions, and our recreation gained’t, however we’re small, and if we will share, the massive canines can share too, proper?
GamesBeat: What are you most curious to see after the sport launches?
Daymond: Clearly the primary query is who will get essentially the most love.
GamesBeat: Who finally ends up being the preferred?
Daymond: It’s a recognition contest whenever you create 100 individuals. That’s simply human nature to be inquisitive about it! However I’m truly curious. The sport tracks your metadata of the way you play, which is one thing we actually have been vital about placing in, and we’re working proper now and making a sharing platform, probably for a put up launch, for you to have the ability to present somebody IRL, “Hey, that is how I performed!” And, , clearly we’ve to have that information. We’re not farming it. We will’t have a look at it as an entire proper now, however will probably be cool simply to see how the populace is taking part in. And , each datable, you may get three completely different endings with 4, in the event you embody the truth that you could by no means meet them.
GamesBeat: There’s a shoebox in a closet someplace who’s like *checks watch.*
Daymond: There are some laborious characters to search out. A few of our secret characters require, like, actually particular in world, issues that you just’ve bought to do to unlock them.
GamesBeat: These individuals higher be actually sizzling, Robbie. I’m simply saying.
Daymond: They’re tremendous sizzling, and however they’re going to be price it, as a result of they’re enjoyable and in contrast to the opposite characters. So the cool half is, I’m largely wanting ahead to seeing how individuals play after which assembly different individuals inside the group discussing how they performed. The chances of assembly somebody who has the very same play by way of are actually virtually one-in-a-million. However that’s what I’m most enthusiastic about: Listening to suggestions. I’m excited to see how individuals play. I imply, I’m a theater child. I need to know what my viewers is feeling. And we actually tried to permit loads of completely different voices to be heard. We had a bunch of various writers and artists all like creating these these characters from their views. So I need to understand how individuals reply to them. And clearly everyone at Sassy Chap and Team17 loves all of our characters.
GamesBeat: Any individual’s gonna must be the least fashionable.
Daymond: It’s gonna be any person I voice, I simply realize it.
Date All the things launches on February 14 on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Sequence X/S and Nintendo Change.