Chains – Making a Rhythm-Based Settlers-Style Game | Devlog #1

Hello, my name is Magnus, and I’m working on a game called Chains. 

What is Chains all about?

Chains is inspired by classic building games like The Settlers II. In these kinds of games, you place production buildings that generate specific goods. These buildings are connected through a road network to deliver those goods to a central hub. That creates the foundation for increasingly complex production chains and technologies.But Chains does things a little differently.

First, you play as small monsters living in a cave system. Second, there are no roads—these monsters throw goods to each other instead. And third, the game demands a sense of rhythm: to deliver goods on time, you have to adjust both the beat and the direction at which your carriers throw the goods.

Future Plans

You may see that the game still looks pretty basic. That’s partly because I’m still learning how to draw — and partly because I’m focusing on finishing the tutorial for the first playtest, where I hope the core idea turns out to be as fun as I imagine it to be.

Later on, I plan to add polished sprites, animations, and a fun story to make Chains a unique and enjoyable building game. And that’s why I’m doing this dev vlog: to keep myself motivated and document the journey of building my rhythm-based Settlers-style game. If you'd like to follow along, feel free to subscribe. In the next episode, I’ll focus on finishing the tutorial and adding new buildings.