An interview with the director of Whispers of the Eyeless

From Modding for Fun to Making Games for Real

Many people dream about turning their passion for games into a job, and it’s easy to see why. Who wouldn’t want to earn money making the things they love? But let’s be honest - getting into the games industry was never easy, and it certainly didn’t become easier in the last 2-3 years. There are fewer junior roles, more competition, and we're still learning how to incorporate AI into our workflow. Despite that, it's not uncommon to read success stories of solo devs or small indie dev studios. This is one of those stories - but with a twist you might not expect.

Press Play to Start a New Game

For Venris, game development didn’t begin with a fancy degree or a big break. It started with just wanting to make his favorite games a little bit better. “I started modding because I didn’t like the fact that Warriors of Chaos, my favorite faction, was just a placeholder,” he says about his early days with Total War: Warhammer. Before that, he’d already been tinkering with mods for games like Gothic 2, Skyrim, and Mount and Blade. But it was the lack of depth in his favorite faction that really got him going.

There weren’t any step-by-step guides for what Venris wanted to do. “All I could find were some guidelines, but mostly for older games in the series, and not everything worked with Warhammer. So, I needed to figure things out on my own, through trial and error,” he explains. It wasn’t always smooth sailing: “There was A LOT of error and very little success at the beginning.” Venris admits. But that’s how he learned - by trying things, messing up, and then trying again.

Steam post image From Modding to Making Something New

Soon enough, modding turned into more than just a hobby for Venris. He started sharing his progress on YouTube, and as his presence in the Total War: Warhammer community grew, the patrons started to flood in until it became his full-time job. However, creatively it wasn't enough. “I love modding, but it’s polishing someone else’s work. I wanted to create my own game to have more control over the project,” he says. Unexpectedly, a different game came into his life and became a turning point. “After playing Hades, I was sure I wanted to make a game focused on story and unconventional narrative.”

With a clear idea in mind, Venris and Tadeusz Chełkowski started Evil Gingerbread Studio. The team came together naturally: “Our programmers were my patrons on Patreon. The main artist was recommended by a close friend, and my co-creator helped me write texts for modding.”

Steam post image Wearing a Lot of Hats

As the director of Whispers of the Eyeless, Venris does a bit of everything. “We’re a small team, so I have many tasks. I wrote the story and world, designed gameplay and UI, created concept art, edited cutscenes, and selected game sounds. Basically, a bit of everything - except programming and final graphics. The world isn’t ready for my talent in these areas,” he jokes.

At first glance, Whispers of the Eyeless doesn’t look much like Total War: Warhammer. However, Venris does see some similarities: “They are indeed very different games, but they do share some elements. Both have several layers of gameplay that are independent but still connected.” In Whispers of the Eyeless, you’ve got story missions, cult management, and turn-based combat - all separate, but at the same time, all tied together.

Some elements were in the vision from the beginning - the city and the Dead Gods. The idea of playing as the ‘bad guys’ seemed like a lot of fun. “Usually, we save the city - why not destroy it for once?”

Steam post image The Ups and Downs

Of course, it hasn’t all been easy. “So many ideas seem great on paper but turn out uninteresting when implemented. The art of eliminating what actually works was the hardest part,” Venris admits. At the same time, “There’s nothing more rewarding than the moment when everything started to come together: when completing a task in the city gives you an artifact you can use in the cult, and the experience gained unlocks new abilities for the Prophet, etc. When this complicated machinery, after months of looking like a pile of rocks, starts to become a smooth wall.”

When asked what was Venris’ main takeaway from years of modding, he said “Organization. Nowadays, I always have everything documented and sorted. Thanks to that, everyone involved in the project can have my knowledge without my presence. And if I don’t write something down, the Dead Gods will punish me for negligence.”

Steam post image Never Stop Playing

Venris’ story isn’t about dropping everything to chase a wild dream. It’s about sticking with what you love, making things better, and seeing where that takes you. From modding his favorite games to building his own, Venris shows that with dedication, creativity, and a willingness to learn from mistakes, you can turn a hobby into something more - and maybe inspire others to do the same.

Steam post image

🌀 Steam Community | 💬 Discord | 📜 Reddit | 🐦 Twitter/X | 📘 Facebook | 🌤 Bluesky

─────────────────────────────────────────────

Previous News

[dynamiclink href="https://steamcommunity.com/games/2523890/announcements/detail/523117384689516683"] ─────────────────────────────────────────────

🎮 Follow Anshar Publishing on Steam! 🎮