Beyond The Frame is a horror game set in the dreams of an 11-year-old child. Game director Nash and producer and co-developer Jay Badcock of Backyard Games shared how they build spaces that change around the player.

Most of the environments come from Nash’s own dreams. Others come from stories friends have shared or that the team found online. Nash picks dreams that suggest a goal, giving players something to work out as they explore. Jay wants the settings to feel familiar too, like somewhere you have been but cannot quite place.

The team sometimes changes a room while the player is looking elsewhere. They can also teleport the player without drawing attention to it. A door may lead to a different room the next time you go through.

The harder part has been making sure players know where to go. During playtests, people got stuck in an area called the Overwhelming Kitchen. The team reworked it to play more like a platformer than a puzzle.

Even in the strangest areas, Nash tries to make the next goal and the tools needed to reach it clear. Jay adds small signs of progress: a sound or a change in the room lets players know they are on the right track.