openindie - your indie game podcast

Author: by Sarah and iV

We love indiegames! If you are reading this, so do you. We tell the stories of passionate indie game developers across the world making them. We explore their motivations, goals, funding experiences, and valuable advice for aspiring creators. You can find us here: https://linktr.ee/openindie Have fun listening and if you do, make sure to Follow us for updates on new episodes and tell your friends (and enemies) about us.
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Language: en

Genres: Leisure, Video Games

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#40 - Skogdal - Kirkebøe Brothers - Norway
Episode 40
Wednesday, 16 April, 2025

Your host Sarah sits down with Norwegian brothers Erlend and Kay, the duo behind Skogdal, a roguelike deckbuilder set in a '90s small town where everyone’s slowly losing their minds. With hand-drawn art, a quirky card system, and a love letter to strange corners of Norwegian life, this is their first game together—and it’s already something special.They discuss how the idea came to life on an 8-hour car ride, Kay’s hand-drawn “slacker style,” and combat followers like “Pizza Friend” (who serves Swedish banana slices). We also get into what it’s like building a game as siblings, killing your darlings, and how a placeholder death animation accidentally became canon.If you’re into Slay the Spire, comic books, Magic cards, or games with a strong point of view—this episode’s for you.Episode Timestamps:Introductions: Meet the Brothers (0:00)Development Status & Dev Feelings (2:46)Skogdal Deep Dive: Gameplay World & Mechanics (4:41)Art Style: Hand-Drawn Slacker Style & Naming (8:30)Inspirations & Influences (15:49)Favorite Feature in the Game (21:12)It's Not a Bug It's a Feature! (22:59)Playtesting Feedback (25:01)Post-Release Plans & Vision (28:11)Origin Story: How the Collaboration Began (32:08)Magic Moment as Game Developers (38:22)Challenges & Joys of Indie Dev (As Brothers) (39:40)Lessons Learned During Development (45:32)Advice for Aspiring Gamedevs (49:37)The Team & Future Studio Plans? (52:14)Funding Community & Norwegian Scene (58:40)Outro (1:04:31)As always, have fun listening! If you like what we do, tell your friends (and enemies) about us.