Tiny Team, Huge Sales (Dorfromantik & Star Birds)

This is a conversation with Timo Falcke and Zwi Zausch, two of the devs at Toukana Interactive, the developers of Dorfromantik and Star Birds. This is a game dev success story with some theory crafting about how to potentially reproduce an outcome like this.

Links to my Guests

➤ Star Birds on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2719750/Star_Birds/

➤ Dorfromantik on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1455840/Dorfromantik/

Listen to the podcast on the go (Spotify, Apple Podcasts, etc.):

➤ https://tyrollerjonas.podbean.com/

0:00 - Intro

0:35 - Meet Toukana Interactive & Dorfromantik

1:28 - Founding the studio and shipping Dorfromantik in a year

4:17 - Early Access launch: Next Fest momentum, streamers, and the Steam algorithm

7:46 - The itch prototype and Ludum Dare origins

8:27 - Expectations vs reality on launch day

11:45 - Prototyping many ideas and choosing Dorfromantik

16:49 - Building a unique look: trees, outlines, and shader tricks

18:44 - Visual inspirations and tips for finding your art style

21:31 - Iterating the rules: rotation, edges, lakes, and quests

27:15 - Performance war stories: PC instancing to Switch optimization

38:07 - Early Access strategy, 1.0 launch, and getting featured

41:50 - How Steam featuring works (Steam reps and slots)

43:15 - Hiring after success and staying small by design

45:52 - Turning Dorfromantik into an award-winning board game

53:37 - Why the board game works (campaign, accessibility, depth)

57:48 - Partnering with Kurzgesagt and choosing Star Birds

01:06:20 - Who did what: Toukana vs Kurzgesagt on Star Birds

01:09:41 - Tech art & pipeline: 3D that looks like 2D, procedural asteroids

01:14:13 - Designing systems: logistics across asteroids and big economies

01:16:07 - No fail-state: keeping it chill and puzzle-like

01:19:13 - Scoring without time pressure (and the most hated achievement)

01:23:39 - Why Early Access again and the plan for Star Birds

01:26:44 - Community feedback, roadmap, and lots more content

01:29:53 - Moving launch for Silksong and the pricing debate

01:34:10 - Can success be reproduced? Sequel vs new IP

01:36:55 - What gets attention now: polish vs recognizable "trash"

01:39:00 - Two big levers: Steam visibility vs content creators

01:40:56 - Familiarity vs originality and making it readable at a glance

01:45:40 - Marketing realities, scope choice, and staying a lean team

01:49:49 - Our workflow: prototype, evaluate, refine, decide

01:54:04 - Appeal prototyping vs gameplay prototyping

01:55:54 - Appeal, player fantasy, define intrigue early

01:58:03 - Star Birds' appeal vs Kurzgesagt's high-tension vibe

02:01:03 - Narrative vs systems, constraints, and "polish what matters"

02:04:40 - Wrap-up

My game "Thronefall":

➤ Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2239150/Thronefall/

➤ Discord: https://discord.gg/gVYctptyg8

➤ Nintendo Switch: https://www.nintendo.com/en-gb/Games/Nintendo-Switch-download-software/Thronefall-2669627.html#Overview

My game "Will You Snail":

➤ Play Will You Snail on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1115050/Will_You_Snail/

➤ Join the Will You Snail Discord: https://discord.gg/G3mRDrK

For the game developers among you:

➤ Join our creative game dev community on Discord: https://discord.gg/Ye6zzfQ