Dogs, Roguelites, and The Australian Indie Scene with DDmeow Games
An interview with the developers of Cyber Paradise and Psycho Bathroom.
Meet DDmeow Games!
DDmeow Games is a wife and wife development team based in Melbourne consisting of Sze, who hails from Hong Kong, and Uly, who comes from Taiwan. The pair made a splash in 2022 with the release of Psycho Bathroom—a free boss rush game where you play as a toothbrush fending off evil toilet plumes that balances absurdist humour with genuinely emotional storytelling.
The success of that game led to their next project, Cyber Paradise. Featuring striking pixel art, slick 2D action gameplay, and a sci-fi narrative about connection and memory, this upcoming roguelite promises to be one of the most exciting new titles coming out of Australia’s indie development scene. And with the recently announced funding from Vicscreen, DDmeow Games now has the support to hit their 2026 release date for Cyber Paradise and commit themselves even further to their passion for game development.
Sze and Uly were kind enough to answer some questions I had about Psycho Bathroom, Cyber Paradise, storytelling in roguelites, the personal touches that go into animation, the games that inspire them, what it’s like trying to make it as indie game developers in Australia, and so much more!
Oh, and in case you were wondering, “DDmeow” is both the name of the studio and a character that appears in their games. The “DD” stands for “Dog Dog”, while the “meow” is, well, because the dog meows! That alone should sell you on this studio.
The Video Game Storyteller:
Your previous game, Psycho Bathroom, based its gameplay around an inherently silly concept about a toothbrush fighting off toilet plumes, yet still managed to tell an emotionally engaging story about feelings of being an outsider and friendship. Was it challenging balancing these narrative tones, and how did you ensure that the story and gameplay complemented each other without the toilet humour becoming too overpowering?
Uly:
The story of DDmeow had been brewing in our heads long before the game (Psycho Bathroom). When Sze was designing the narrative, she wanted to use dark humour to carry this heavy subject. Balancing the story and gameplay really came down to making sure neither went overboard, while keeping a common theme between them.
The enemies' design, art style, and story all had a certain degree of absurdity. On the emotional side, the idea of a toothbrush fighting to protect her master goes together with the cuteness of their dialogue. Brushy (the toothbrush and main character) herself was designed to be adorable; seeing the world through her perspective helped tie everything together. Her design in both combat and her personality, as well as how she interacts with DDmeow, created a mix that was cute, dark, and humorous all at once.
Sze:
The cutscenes revolve around three themes: toilet hygiene, being an outcast, and the friendship between Brushy (the toothbrush) and DDmeow. We had to constantly move the dialogue around and play it to make sure we did not bore the audience with too much exposition at once. We made sure to juxtapose funny or absurd dialogue in between the informational dumps, yet at the same time, build character dynamics and the main narrative quickly as this is a short game.
And guess what? The dialogue was still being edited, re-sequenced, deleted, and moved out of trash a month after the game’s release based on the reaction of players. In a sense, it was a public collaborative effort!
TVGST:
Your new game, Cyber Paradise, is aiming to tell a rich story within the repetitive and incremental structure of the roguelite genre. While I understand the game is still in development, are there any other games—roguelites or otherwise—that you are taking inspiration from to thread this storytelling needle, and what lessons are you taking from them?
Sze:
The way the cafe story progresses, regardless of whether you win or lose a fight, is inspired by Hades. This approach was indeed already used in Psycho Bathroom. But what's different is that you can even beat Psycho Bathroom without winning a single battle. You just have to keep pushing forward. It was designed this way because we wanted the core message to come through no matter what. This was noted positively by streamers many times. That's why we decided to implement a similar narrative structure in Cyber Paradise.
Another narrative layer in Cyber Paradise is Mini's memory. Mini is a beloved dog of the cafe who has passed away. The player's goal is to collect her memories to revive her digitally. Currently in the demo, the memories are spawned linearly, but in the main game, we plan to let players revisit the same places and dig deeper into the memories through repeated roguelite runs.
TVGST:
What inspired the story, concept, and design for Cyber Paradise?
Sze:
The idea of digital resurrection came from years of watching sci-fi shows like Black Mirror—especially the “San Junipero” episode—Doctor Who, Upload, and many more. Many of them involve uploading the mind to a digital device.
However, in Cyber Paradise, the world itself is a computer simulation, making it a resurrection within the same world. Of course, there's always a catch. But that's for you to find out in the game!
VA-11 Hall-A is another major inspiration for the narrative design. We love how they painted the entire world through just conversations in a bar. Combined with Hades' approach, this is what inspired the cafe sequences that followed every battle.
Uly:
Narratively, I really love the story of To the Moon. Other games like Spiritfarer and, as Sze mentioned, VA-11 Hall-A, have also inspired us; they’re full of emotion, rich detail, and dramatic tension. Of course, much of Cyber Paradise’s story comes from life itself, especially our own feelings and observations about the world around us.
TVGST:
The models and animations in your games are so expressive and full of character. When it comes to video game character design and animations, how do you ensure they are filled with the vibrancy and subtle character details that add so much to the enjoyment of the game? And do you have any personal favourite character designs/animations from your games and/or other games you’ve played?
Uly:
When designing the characters, we wanted each to have a very distinct personality, with their own obsessions and approach to life. I believe everyone carries some kind of trauma or shadow, and it’s often those very reasons that give people their unique charm, along with the drive to pursue their lives.
I love observing people, like how they react in different situations, their facial expressions, body language, the words they use, and their tone of voice. I also observe myself, how I deal with situations and my own state of mind. I bring those observations into my characters. I design each one’s mental state and coping style. People are complicated. What they think, what they show, and what they hide don’t always align. That dissonance is what makes them intriguing.
For the main characters, I have tried sketching out their lives from childhood to adulthood as much as possible. So when I write their stories, I can get into their mindset more easily. I’ve watched numerous anime, and I tend to like characters with strong internal conflict, some kind of flaw, or a particularly unique appearance.
From our own games, my three favourites (not ranked) are Shirley, Jane, and Felix. Designing them was especially funny, interesting, and cute, with maybe a touch of darkness.
Sze:
On the animation side, since I have been playing action games since I was young, the inspiration is probably a mix of what I have consumed over the years. But there are two games in particular that I spent a lot of time playing and studying in recent years (that's before the production of Cyber Paradise): Hollow Knight and Dead Cells. Players who’ve played those titles will probably notice the influence. The animations were created, tested, and refined repeatedly until they reached the right feel.
A fun fact: some animations were deliberately adjusted to stand out in trailers. In a way, trailer production also shaped our design choices.
TVGST:
What do you make of the current state of the game development scene in Australia—particularly for independent developers? And what advice would you give to anyone who is starting out and trying to make it as an indie game developer in this country?
Sze:
We might still be too new to give advice, as we have yet to release the game. But we'd like to share our experience as indie developers in Australia, especially Melbourne, where we're currently based.
We have exhibited Cyber Paradise in a few countries now, and so far, the gamers at PAX Aus were the most enthusiastic ones. It was our first exhibition, and the feedback (and wishlists!) we got there helped the direction of our development in the early days. We also got a lot of help and feedback from early testers and streamers, too!
The government support for games here is also worth highlighting. They not only provide funding for game development but also support many gaming events. Melbourne International Games Week by Creative Victoria runs every October, featuring conferences, events and activities. We were fortunate enough to be included in a few of them.
And this year, we have the new Frosty Games Fest supported by Screen Australia. The amazing team was able to get the event partnered with the famous Summer Game Fest. It was huge, and it got many cool games from Australia and New Zealand onto big outlets like IGN. We're so honoured to be featured in the inaugural showcase!
Happening right now is the ANZ Indie Fest hosted by Indie Brew. Alongside producing an awesome video showcase, they also secured a front-page feature for the ANZ region on Steam, which gave our game another wishlist spike. Be sure to follow them on social media for indie game news and future events!
Lastly, the most significant support we have received from the state so far is the Victorian Production Fund from Vicscreen. It doesn’t cover everything, but it will allow us to get extra help and confidence to push the game further with less financial stress. Uly was polishing up her resume and preparing to take on part-time jobs to sustain development when the news came through. Instead, the grant allowed us to stay fully focused on the game.
You can play Psycho Bathroom for free on Steam.
And you can wishlist or play the demo of Cyber Paradise on Steam, scheduled for a full release in 2026.
Stuff From the Stack
The Pause Menu has done an amazing job writing about the quieter moments in games and how the medium is an ideal tool for relaxation, switching off, and learning valuable lessons on how to be kind to ourselves and others. Their latest article about the beauty of aimlessly wandering in Sea of Thieves really spoke to me and reminded me of the value of goaless gaming. Wonderful stuff.
The Video Game Storyteller is a Substack written and formatted by Harry Fritsch on the lands of the Jagera and Turrbal people, the Traditional Custodians of Meanjin (Brisbane).
All images were either captured directly by the author or sourced from publicly available promotional screenshots.
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