Devlog May 2026 – Building the Bite

Picture of Carla Valdés

Carla Valdés

Lead Writer

Stay Dead - Blog #47

After months of prototypes, broken systems, and trying to figure out what Stay Dead actually wanted to be, we finally built our first playable demo of the year! (Insert round of applause for our sleep-deprived dev team here.) It’s messy and held together with duct tape and hope, but we’re ridiculously proud of it and can’t wait to show you what we’ve been building.

📣 About this Devlog

Ever wondered what happens when you throw five passionate, (and slightly overworked)  game developers into a game jam? Consider this month’s devlog our official case study.

Earlier this year, we hit a point where progress started feeling slower even though everyone was working nonstop. We had combat ideas, prototypes, systems, experiments, and a whole pile of mechanics, but nothing fully clicking together yet. So we stripped things back and focused on one thing: the bite. What followed was a month of rebuilding systems, replayable rooms, accidental bugs, emergency fixes, late-night playtests, and the kind of chaotic energy that somehow reminds you why you love making games in the first place. 

Somewhere between emergency fixes and “okay just one more run,” the demo finally found its pulse, and that gave the whole team a massive second wind. 

📺 What You’ll See in the Video

  • How our latest game jam completely changed the way we’ve been developing Stay Dead
  • Why the bite mechanic slowly became the backbone of the demo
  • Some of the less glamorous (but still important!) technical work that helped us move faster
  • A few of the cursed bugs we created along the way
  • What this latest demo proved to the team

💛 Thanks for Watching

There’s still plenty to rebuild, clean up, redesign, and probably completely break again next month. But after spending so much time experimenting, it finally feels like we’ve found a direction worth pushing harder toward.

If you want to follow the journey, wishlist Stay Dead on Steam, join our Discord, and follow us on socials for more behind-the-scenes updates as development continues.

en_USEN