Hello everyone,
Ignacio Trelles here, creator of Dying Breed. With release approaching, I wanted to take a step back and share the long road that led us here, from childhood inspirations, through countless setbacks, to finally seeing this project come alive. Also the game will be available on the 7th of October! How cool is that?
Childhood Inspirations
I grew up in Uruguay, where getting original PC games was not easy, but somehow we were lucky enough to have them. My first titles were Tiberian Dawn, Red Alert, Total Annihilation, and Age of Empires, all played straight from their original boxes.
Later came Heroes of Might and Magic III, RollerCoaster Tycoon, Civilization, Diablo, Warcraft, Empire Earth, Baldur’s Gate, and more. Most of the games I loved shared one thing in common: the 2.5D isometric perspective. That visual style shaped my taste and still defines how I approach game design today.
The Spark to Create
The idea of starting a business in games appeared in 2018. By mid-2019, I had decided to create one from scratch.
I began researching game development and rediscovered Xenonauts, a reimagining of the classic UFO: Enemy Unknown, the very first PC game I ever played, back when my cousin and I were 7 years old at a neighbor’s house. That gave me the idea: what if I could remake or reimagine something old, like cinema does with movie remakes (Invasion of the Body Snatchers, for example)?
I made a list of three potential inspirations: GTA2, Heroes of Might and Magic III, and Command & Conquer. My instinct was to avoid C&C, thinking it would be the hardest to achieve. But my investor thought the opposite: if others did it, why can’t we? And so, we had a plan.
A Name, a Story, a Vision
The name Dying Breed had been with me since the mid-2000s, originally the name of a clan in Lineage 2, back in the cybercafé era. Within two days, I wrote the story, mixing Lovecraftian tones with 80s B-movie sci-fi vibes (with inspirations from Commandos, Command & Conquer and Heroes 3).
From the start, I wanted Dying Breed to focus on drama and single-player storytelling, unlike many RTS games at the time that were multiplayer-focused. We even drafted a movie and prepared a music album to go alongside the project.
Early Struggles
In late 2019, I broke my Achilles tendon and spent three months at home in a cast. I played 0 A.D. obsessively, becoming one of the best players, meeting its devs, and befriending many Linux users in Europe. That “do it yourself” spirit became part of me.
Our first team struggled. The coder produced nothing after three months, the first artist left due to personal issues, and we lost a year (but we learned a lot about business and team management). The second team showed promise, but again, we lost people to bigger companies. Finally, in the third attempt, a 0 A.D. engineer joined, along with a dedicated new artist, and that’s when things really started to move.
Demos, Pitches & Publishing Drama
We launched our first demo on October 11, 2021. The next day, we had a publishing offer, but internal disagreements killed the deal. Frustrated, I staged what I call a “coup d’état” in the company and took over decision-making.
By late 2022, we pitched to 12 publishers. Six were interested, but one by one, they disappeared or delayed. Tired of waiting, I sent the second demo to Splattercat. He uploaded a video almost instantly, and Dying Breed gained its first real wave of fans.
That’s when I set up the Steam page. Within three months, MicroProse reached out. They had been part of my childhood, with Civilization and RollerCoaster Tycoon shaping my gaming life. When they said they wanted to publish Dying Breed, I didn’t hesitate.
Building the Game
From there, the team grew. We brought in new engineers, artists, and even won a state fund in Uruguay that allowed us to record FMV cutscenes with live actors, just like the old-school RTS classics.
We produced two OSTs, each faction having its own music style. Friends helped compose 19 songs, and even sold some to other games later on.
Map design became another passion. I personally designed many maps, but we now have four different designers whose styles you’ll notice in-game. We also integrated 3D FMV sequences, hired riggers and modelers, and kept building nonstop.
The Long Road to Launch
Making Dying Breed was never easy. We lost people, had setbacks with Unity, faced broken builds, and had to cut down the number of missions for launch. But we never stopped.
Over the years, I’ve helped over 20 other games get publishing deals, composed music and sounds for others, and met countless indie devs I admire. This journey has been life-changing, full of ups, downs, and lessons.
Our motto has always been: NEVER SURRENDER.
Closing Thoughts
Dying Breed is my love letter to the first generation of base-building RTS games. It’s also the result of years of persistence, friendships, failures, and victories.
I can’t wait for you to experience the world we’ve built, its story, its music, its FMVs, and its brutal, strategic battles.
P.S. I almost forgot, we have a manual! Have a nice read!