Game design · UX · Economy design

DARK TIMES

Turning battles into a journey.

Connecting tactical combat, narrative, progression and economy through system-level design and clearer player flows.

Client: Gromov Studio
Engagement: Client project
Team: 3 specialists
Engine: Unity
Work period: July — September 2024
Project status: Released · 9 February 2025
Platform: Steam
Genre: Tactical RPG / Roguelike / Dark fantasy

The project.

DARK TIMES combines turn-based battles, character progression and narrative in a short-session format. Flat Reality’s engagement focused on making those layers work together: turning a mechanically driven series of encounters into a more cohesive emotional journey.

The challenge

Combat, progression and the in-game economy were separated by friction in the player flow. The design needed clearer tactical decisions, systemic narrative continuity and more useful entry points into the shop and progression systems.

Designed around
the challenge.

Narrative between encounters

Campfire dialogue and character-driven interactions introduce narrative beats between battles. Emotional progression follows the pacing of the gameplay rather than sitting outside it.

Campfire dialogue scenes
Character interactions between missions
Narrative continuity across the gameplay loop

Readable tactical decisions

The turn structure was formalized around character, target and action. A Safe Spot mechanic lets players temporarily remove characters from combat to recover and reset status.

Clear turn-by-turn decision flow
Planning and tactical flexibility
Recovery as a strategic decision

Economy within the player journey

Shop and skill systems were separated more clearly. High-value items, contextual recommendations and progression-based unlocks make the economy easier to discover at relevant moments.

Post-battle and failure-state entry points
Clear visual hierarchy
Contextual offers and progression-based unlocks

What we delivered.

Flat Reality’s scope within this project.

Full game design documentation (GDD)
Gameplay system structure
UX and interface design strategy
Economy and monetization design
Narrative integration
Production-level design support

From brief
to delivery.

01Existing-system and player-behavior analysis
02Friction-point identification
03System design and GDD
04UX flow restructuring
05Client validation
06Production integration

Quality throughout

Validation focused on coherence between gameplay layers, usability of core interactions, progression clarity and alignment between UX and the economy.

The outcome.

The game released on Steam. The source case study reports that the project reached financial breakeven and enabled the client’s next production cycle. These are project-reported outcomes, not independently audited results.

Purchasers who launched the game: ~66%
Reported refund rate: ~9–10%
Reported financial milestone: Breakeven

Historical, client-reported figures from the source case study. Review counts and store ratings change over time; visit Steam for current information.