No Player Character: How a Gimmick Becomes a Game | RAM Dev-log 2

The roguelike with no player character returns! Building a gimmick into a game is no easy feat, but we've taken a damn good stab at it. Random Access Mayhem has come a long, long way in the last seven months, so allow me to show you around.
PLAY THE FREE RAM DEMO: store.steampowered.com/app/22...
Join the official RAM Discord: / discord
Listen to the RAM OST: • Bootup & POST - Random...
Sources document: docs.google.com/document/d/1J...
Testimonial credits:
JayDee
Mel
Timeless
SOUNDTRACK:
0:00 - ELSE I + Grumblebum (Rain World OST)
0:18 - The Choice (Undertale OST)
0:28 - 14.3 Billion Years (Outer Wilds OST)
0:34 - Travelers (Brittle Hollow) [SiIvagunner]
0:40 - OMORI (OMORI OST)
0:49 - Forced Shutdown (RAM OST)
0:56 - In Case of Trouble (Bastion OST)
1:54 - Boot & POST (RAM OST)
2:34 - Dr. Wily's Castle (Megaman 2 OST)
3:20 - Death by Glamour (Undertale OST)
4:59 - Landmarks (Rain World OST)
5:38 - Friends (Sonic Mania OST)
5:51 - Resurrections (Celeste OST)
6:12 - House of Cards (Neon White OST)
6:41 - Your Fat Ass Slows You Down (Pizza Tower OST)
6:45 - hmmm look what u done did you found a secret :) (Pizza Tower OST)
7:23 - Chemical Plant Zone (Sonic 2 OST)
7:32 - The Last General (Hyper Light Drifter OST)
8:05 - Out of Tartarus (Hades OST)
8:51 - Ohhh Yeah (Yello)
9:06 - Boot & POST (RAM OST)
9:19 - Team, This One's Stronger! (Bug Fables OST)
10:59 - Death and I (Hades OST)
11:22 - Harlequin (Homestuck OST)
11:49 - Smart Race (Deltarune OST)
12:20 - Lightvessel (Thip Trong)
12:25 - Hive Flight (Celeste: Strawberry Jam OST)
13:09 - Technicolor Jam (Celeste: Strawberry Jam OST)
14:00 - The Cyber Grind (ULTRAKILL OST)
14:55 - Kayava (Rain World OST)
16:39 - You are the End (Furi OST)

[@andrew_cunningham]

Note: There is no beef with Ceave Gaming. It's just funny to call challenge runners "degenerates".

[@stellanovaluna]

I’m a huge Ceave fan So I can confirm that we are indeed degenera-

[@hot_chocolate7626]

I’m just glad he’s entering the public consciousness again.

[@LitPinata]

@@hot_chocolate7626 Probably because he's uploading on KZbin again.

[@sirpeach6468]

i love the irony because he's getting married today lol

[@wax2414]

Is it alright if you make it available on steamdeck?

[@frankmckenneth9254]

Having fitness score as your currency makes it really feel like you're an neural ai being trained towards a desired outcome tbh.

[@asher879]

murder The desired outcome is murder

[@menaatefadly]

​@@asher879hm not a bad one

[@mrretektor]

About to farm these on router with his dash-roll-speedy boost, running 2000 steps in 15 seconds. Pretty calorie burning 🔥 (rubber on wheels included)

[@mystrenula3911]

​@@asher879 murder in a cool way

[@vanderkarl3927]

@@asher879 Mayhem

[@xsewer2406]

We need an enemy named "Ramhead" and an achievment for beating a game using only Ramheads named "Yeah im a real Ramhead" i imagine him as guy with a grey ramhead that charges at you with high speed

[@yahtoobaylmao6266]

he just ramheads all over the place

[@forcommentingpurposesonly2918]

why is that actually such a good idea

[@unknownnstuff9635]

Ima be honest the router beat you to it with that one power up

[@doodlebro.]

his gimmick is that as you are hurt you fill a meter that you can use up for invincibility, but for like 0.2 seconds before and after it takes effect it wastes it or smth

[@RushWheeler]

Isn't that just the router with the protection override upgrade?

[@auramaster2068]

Finally, I can Access the Random Mayhem.

[@menaatefadly]

ARM?

[@thegreenrobby7402]

I believe nintendo owns that one

[@icicleditor]

no, no, that's the plural of arm, there's also game on steam called A.R.M.: Absolutely Reliable Machine. the demo is in my library

[@RushWheeler]

*Randomly Acces the Mayhem

[@smokey8301]

I know Gecko over Discord, and you and this game are single handedly the reason she's not been playing DnD as much with us. I will get into contact with my lawyers.

[@icantdraw3781]

Can't believe Andrew and Toby actually managed to make tilesets entertaining

[@nbtwall7287]

I like how each game you stream adds to the inside jokes of the videos. Can't wait for all of the _epic_ Deadly Premonition references in devlog 3!

[@nbtwall7287]

in a year or so you'll have to consult the _Andrew Cunningham in-joke_ wiki in order to parse anything that happens on screen and I am Here For It

[@The-Uh]

Stranger

[@Bnnettennba]

I don't think you realize how excited I am for this to release. I also am so happy I can play the demo now.

[@_kartofeleek]

The JaruJaru “Numerous” killed me

[@whim165]

Truly RAMtastic, the RAMifications of this devlog should be gRAMcious For real, lets go, this is cool to see, you could say RAM means a new awesome rogue-like... You could say RAM-li-

[@firaelle6962]

10:49 Wouldn't it be interesting if upgrades affected not only you, but all the enemy bots of specific type that you chose? I think that would gradually increase difficulty over time in a digestive way, plus it will discourage players from trying to upgrade 1 specific type of bot too much Though i can see why this might be a bad idea

[@sergame567]

Thats what i was thinking too. it would not only made it imposible for you to become too op, but would also create tons of space for enemy synergies, and would require player to adapt to enemies attacks making gameplay alot more engaging. (that sounds good on paper but upgrades also need to both change gameplay, and be well balanced.)

[@exotic1405]

This could be really cool if executed nicely

[@fkknsikk]

Great idea for a difficulty modifier if nothing else.

[@pikakip3792]

I think this idea would work best as like a difficulty modifier or somethinf

[@RushWheeler]

The Giant Elite Steeltoes are already bad enough, don't try to make them WORSE.

[@TriMayGame]

Baldur's Gate 3 and Hades were both early access games. So that definitely would be awesome if you guys decided to go for that! Everyone plays games differently so I think things like bug testing will be way easier. Excited to see where this goes!

[@Manoman017]

Thanks for letting me chip in on this one! :)

[@RemnantCult]

18 naked routers in the oil showers in RAM Ranch, big hard throbbing pipe bombs wanting to explode! 18 naked routers wanting to be gunked! Routers in the showers at RAM Ranch on their wheels wanting to blast router nuts! RAM Ranch really rocks!

[@andrew_cunningham]

True, I've often said this.

[@user-zw7zp3jg5f]

Downloading the game as I type! A suggestion, if you don't mind. I'd love a small indication for a local swap juice bar filling up akin to what some fighting games do with their 'super' meters. Guilty Gear Strive for example adds spinning gear icons to the 50% and 100% thresholds when those are reached and removes them when the meter is used. It's a really minor thing, sure, but i feel like it still *can* help with visual feedback. (and perhaps with adding juust a bit more style!)

[@mrretektor]

Also, i played a RAM and i have some idea: What if you can have an x% chance to get corrupted RAM instead of regular one. Corrupted RAM can provide you with upgrades (or more rare ones, if you implemented system of rarity of upgrades) but because of its corruption, this buff applies to you AND to enemies. So it's like 50/50 upgrade, which let player to decide: take it and get more risk of dying or skip it. Or you can pay a double/triple upgrade price for fixing it, sacrificing a lot of fitness points

[@sergame567]

I would love to see all upgrades work like this, its honestly alot more fun.

[@gallalameblook9911]

Seems like a great idea

[@grargknathe170]

Kinda like the Mercurial Rachis from Richard Rain 2.

[@TheAdvertisement]

Honestly these dev-logs are probably the best way to advertise your game during development. Giving us all an in-depth look into how you put the basics together, while admitting the actually spoiler-y stuff, brings so much attention to it that, while both building hype and faith that it's being developed steadily. Great job! Also YOU KNOW NAHU PYROPE?!

[@LIONGAMEGAME]

Hello Andrew. It goes without saying that this video is fantastic, and that i am a victim of this unsubtle marketing ploy. I am a gigantic fan of your videos, not only because my fervent interest in the subject manner grants me the official status of "loser" - but because i humbly believe that your videos are by far and away the best on the platform. I make videos myself, so i've spent a lot of time analysing your videos and transcripts to understand what makes them so good, and while this has been very fruitful in helping me find my voice, style and humor - i know there's something i'm missing. Your scripts just... feel better than mine do (than everyones do, excuse my egomania). Better in every aspect; voice, tone, clarity, momentum, thesis, funniness, brevity (well, sometimes not brevity) I know that saying it "feels better" is the least useful way to describe it, but the fact that i can't figure out WHY your writing is so good is why it has been quite hard for me to replicate. (quite hard as in impossible) It's like you're the only chef who knows to use salt, and i'm out here wondering why my food don't taste as good. What is the mechanism behind your writing. What makes it good. Is there something that you do, that you often see others neglecting? An axiom that i'm forgetting to exploit? Alternatively, are there any resources that you would recommend? Books, articles, youtube channels, blog posts - that you thought had good writing advice. I've looked for stuff like this on my own and all i've found has been... bad... Not like good bad, either.

[@mrretektor]

Maybe it's because of fast speeching, some jokes and visual part of video including some montage, memes and just cool effects? Also, i don't think you're so worse than him. Of course he, maybe, have some more experience at it, but it doesn't mean that you wont get this good. Just keep practicing and you'll achieve anything, bro ❤️

[@LIONGAMEGAME]

@@mrretektor i agree, but you have to know what to practice. I don't know what aspects he's better than me in, so i don't know where to focus on improving.

[@andrew_cunningham]

So I gave your most recent video a watch out of curiosity, and the presentation was actually pretty damn good. When people ask for writing tips it's often hard to know what to say besides "here's everything you did that's not like my videos", so if that's actually the advice you're looking for I'd say to reconsider the value of cutting to "text over black void" every 0.5 seconds since it chops up the already breakneck pace to the point where I can't actually perceive what the gags are. You could just as easily say that's a unique part of your style, though- channels like Maxor push ADHD editing a lot further than that and get away with it. What might be more universal advice, at least from what I saw in the Mario video, is to spin the video's thesis in a more interesting way ("Mario is Good" is a bit last-decade tbh), and be more careful to actually articulate that thesis before getting completely swamped in gags. I generally open with a barrage of bullshit, but make sure to slow down before long and properly state my case for why I made the video and why the viewer should give a shit about anything that's to follow. Your Mario video felt more like a true stream of consciousness, where I was never entirely sure what point you were actually working toward. Long story short, I think your second-to-second scriptwriting is fine, and you should instead focus on giving your videos' more solid structure, since that will generate a lot more momentum than increasing the frequency of edits.

[@onlysmiles4949]

1:54 For some reason, my headphones decided to bass boost the absolute shit out of this segment and gave me a genuine jumpscare

[@Pufftarot]

I liked when Andrew said "it's RAMming time!" and RAMmed all over the place.

[@Quiethings]

I LOVE RAMM!! I GOT THE DEMO EARLY AND HAVE BEEN AN ADDICT EVER SINCE

[@iciclepops]

the bot designs are so charming i want all of them as roommates

[@lplasters]

de algum jeito o algoritmo te jogou pro brasil cara. ótimo vídeo, vou tentar baixar o jogo, tomara que rode na minha batata

[@BRiMtheBot]

Just played my first run of the demo now! It's very good and I suck total ass at it, can't wait for more!

[@socksinsoda9517]

The new artwork and music are awesome, and I think the new style system sounds really fascinating. Can't wait to give the demo a try ASAP. Keep ramming on ❤

[@cult_of_22]

Art style went from risk of rain 1 to risk of rain returns and it's poggy

[@roadkillwaffle9847]

I think early access is a great idea, getting a lot of community feedback early on is part of what made Hades (and recently Baldur's Gate 3) so good

[@timesmy668]

00:00 ram means everything to me

[@literallymalware]

You're editing style is so off the walls snd crazy its such a huge inspiration

[@underarmbowlingincidentof1981]

Cortex Command is one of my favorite games with that gimmick. Favorite thing to do is to hide the "brains" aka the "if they die you lose"-objects and just duke it out endlessly with my brother on a grass map until its only craters, holes, tunnels, and mountains of starship debris and we are crawling over crushed bodies.

[@gamingmonkey0549]

I've played the demo for a bit and I have a few recommendations: 1) An uncommon upgrade option that gives two upgrades but both the bot and buff are unknown (this would be most useful after the other bots are added so you can upgrade two at once). 2) An endless mode with a shop that opens every 5 waves. 3) Potential mod support (I recommend this one for the full release, not early access, in case you need to practically rebuild the game from the ground up with a different engine). 4) A way to repot bugs and give recommendations in-game to make early access testing and bug reporting easier. Overall, very few complaints for a demo. Usually I can come up with quite a few things that need some smoothed edges and some polish, but this is probably the most "complete" demo I've ever played. Sorry If I come off as "that guy" who pretends to know more than the actual game dev, that is not my intention. Official mod support is very much optional.

[@mistermamamia]

Super excited for this game, the main mechanic looks like it'll have so much fun stuff to play around with, and the style meter implementation looks fantastic!

[@alvin_row]

This is looking incredible, and what a greatly edited devlog!!! I dont usually care much for new releases but I'm looking forward to this one!

[@mint7767]

You've done it, Andrew. I'm RAMMING OUT now. You've done irreparable damage to my psyche and I hope you're happy

[@maxxanox3728]

i hope you see this mr gamedev andrew guy (hopefully constructive) Feedback: Things i want in the game from playing the demo: -to have an option to leave the ram stick upgrade menu as a second button [a close next to the discard] -maybe a hint that there is a second upgrade place where you need extra fitness points -i found a bug where i tried to pull an explosive barrel into a new room where it got stuck in the door but it was still grappled to me -some more feedback through light effects (post processing?) -automatically pausing when you tab out of the game -have the music continue playing in the pause menu maybe a little bit muffled -a random pick feature in the upgrade pickup -more effects when destroying boxes -gui settings and performance settings(i get frame drops when theres a lot of things going on) -have a shadow on the brick/grenade to tell how much it will drop -show what upgrades you had and other stats when you die -crashed 2 times in 1 hour playtime whats up with that -was able to go in an new room with old one still full of enemies -have a sound telling me that the ability is on cooldown (maybe like an error buzzer sound) -make some burnin noise when firing with aphid

[@tippi4394]

It's amazing to see how much has changed in between the last dev log and now! It looks wonderful

[@maxifire32]

I've been waiting for this since the first devlog

[@molly__m]

finished this some mins ago and fucking dope vid as always and still managing to hit new levels of unhinged! i’m really happy to see how far the game’s come already, and y’all have a lot already set up that should make future work on it at least somewhat more streamlined from what i could tell. i haven’t played roguelikes in a hot minute but with what i have played of this, it feels and looks really really good and i can tell how much attention was given to making sure it just Feels good to play each character and the encouragement to switch out between them kicks in pretty thoroughly with how everything’s been implemented. also v curious abt the lore of this game from what I’ve seen of it … to me this looks like the foundation’s been set for shit to only get even more interesting from here and i’m all for supporting it in any way i can, thank you for the dose of RAMs accessible memories ^_^ i’d play more of it but currently my power went out to some extent so for now my best wishes and luck are the most i can provide for the next…24 hours or so maybe since writing this. i hope it helps ^^

[@Ryuu28_voidgames]

This is probably one of the best devlog series I’ve watched And it only has 2 devlogs

[@candybluebird]

I saw the thumbnail and recognized the game despite my only introduction to it being the previous 7 month old devlog, which I watched at it's release time.

[@MBoy2000_]

Man i cannot wait to try this later! Been wondering how development is going and couldnt be more happy about, you guys are making a really cool game and hiring that artist was such a good idea, this shit looks so damn smooth

[@nomnombathbomb8134]

put down the video and picked up the game at 5 minutes in. i can already tell from the demo that you are going to murder my sleep cycle with this amazing game. will be buying 100%

[@m_29]

Damn, this looks lit! Like, you can already see the love that went into this!

[@fkknsikk]

There are some great design decisions here. Respect to the devs for really putting some thought into making the game's mechanics not conflict with each other. Edit: Played the demo. Not only is the gameplay rock solid but the technical details and small conveniences are there too. Doesn't freak out when you use m/kb with a controller plugged in, shows the correct prompts depending on controller type, separate audio sliders for music/fx and so on. I see these sorts of things overlooked in full titles and from big studios way too often not to give a nod when it's done properly. I hope RAM does well and I won't be surprised when it does.

[@Kapcpa]

I was waiting for that devlog for so long but oooh boy was it worth it

[@mmmk6322]

Its on my wishlist ever since I saw the first video! The demo was great and I can't wait to play more!

[@mrretektor]

It's Devlog i've been waiting forever! Thanks, Andrew

[@poimon5607]

just a few days ago I was thinking of your game but couldn't remember the name of it at all, thank you for making this video it showed up in my feed

[@XxguaxinimxX.]

That was great! Wish you luck in the expo!

[@D3ltus]

It would be cool for the sides of the mountain you can see sometimes to have stuff in them like pipes, cables, gears, warehouses, hallways, characters, etc...

[@mr.calamity8886]

Ever since I saw a video about this game like... I dunno a year or more ago? I've had it wishlisted ever since. Good to know the demo's finally out!

[@legendsoflaughter3313]

It would be amazing to see some generic upgrades like making a bot explode when you swap away from it damaging nearby enemies or making swapping into dead enemies cost the same as normal swaps. It's fun when upgrades can be strong enough to be run defining and I am excited to see what kinds of upgrades you guys add. I love the concept of the game and I'm so happy you made it a roguelike - if you're planning to release on switch I'll totally buy it

[@vukasinjordanovic6098]

1:28 I died here 😂😂😂 Anyways great game Andrew, I hope you and your team will finish it soon. Best gameplay concept and design I've ever seen btw great job on that.

[@kluk8284]

The amount of layered inside jokes in the editing gave me sensory overload and I noticed I missed parts of what u said, so I guess I'll rewatch. Also rainworld moment. Great addition to the editing ecosystem

[@ItsJayDee]

Aww yeah I'm a real RAMhead!

[@luisslavov9546]

Feature Idea: when you die you can't swap directly with the enemy that killed you. May cause the game to be harder idk but it sounds like a cool idea. Love how the game looks. You make game development sound soo fun!

[@Eldritch-One]

In love with the art for the Steeltoe! Little dude!

[@hallwaerd]

Awesome video, I’m so excited to play the demo. In regards to early access, I don’t mind waiting for the game to be fully released before playing it, but early access certainly has its advantages. It’s really just up to you.

[@bayjammer2748]

I hadn't even seen the first part of this video before, nor any others you've made, but beyond the editing already being just really good, the gameplay already looks insanely interesting. I'd recommend the early access personally, but whatever seems fit later down the line would be more than welcome as long as the development is taken with care like it obviously has been so far.

[@Joao_BC]

I'd wait as much as needed to have the most polished and juicy game you guys can create, doesn't manter if it takes 1 year, or as much as silksong, this game is going to be great and i want it to be the best it can. Good luck

[@solveforx6662]

STRAWBERRY JAM OST MY BELOVED (will purchase RAM on release, your ad has worked)

[@Some_Goose]

8:24 You know what? That little detail… I am now obligated to wishlist

[@TimelessTinka]

been waiting for this devlog for awhile, glad to see the game im playtesting release its demo :))))

[@ItsJayDee]

hi hello r u the real timeless i'm ur biggest number 1 fan : )

[@TimelessTinka]

@@ItsJayDee who r u

[@templatename2143]

I love that the chapters of the video are just the soundtracks it makes it easy to find the music

[@ravenb3048]

Sounds great, will install the demo.

[@viviblue7277]

Omg your demo is actually mac compatible. That insane thank you.

[@CrabOnABeach]

yooooo more on this game! I'm looking forward to seeing this

[@NotABean_]

holy damn this game has so many ideas that i love i can't wait to try the demo!! :D

[@low_bandwidth6163]

I SO WANT TO GET INTO GAME DEVELOPMENT!! Me and my friends have been wanting to try it for a while, and this makes me feel like it’s so possible! Such a simple idea, and yet such fun gameplay! Love it❤❤❤

[@unknownnstuff9635]

I love how you can see Tobias difference from Andrew because he has so many more memes and goofs “This baby can hold so many memes”

[@Samwow]

I played the demo, and I greatly enjoyed my time with it! The gameplay was exhilarating, the enemy swap mechanic is so much fun! I'll leave more detailed feedback once I get the chance, but everything I've played so far felt great.

[@skelly1555]

This game looks like it could be a ton of fun. Excited!

[@stinkyratman]

Love you guys, big inspiration for indie devs

[@RottingBear]

Boosting for visibility, great video

[@nacnud2115]

this video should definitely have more views, also I liked the second version of the thumbnail more

[@MadamLava094]

This game is a really cool concept and Im happy to see it progress

[@chrisheartman9263]

I love the Glados-like gentle bullying of the narrator of RAM. also, now that I played and entered the ULTRAfandom................ yeag the fitness model is basically the style meter from ULTRAKILL lmfao (affectionate)

[@Bnnettennba]

I would love to play the early access

[@thom14777]

oh hell yeah, i was wondering when the next devlog would be!!!!!!!!!!

[@Jay2480]

The amount of references in this is wonderful

[@dutchthenightmonkey3457]

RAIN WORLD CLIPS. Already liked the vid edit:omg you just name dropped it I’m subbing

[@elijahkeay3906]

Ive said it before and I’ll said it again. Never thought I would be interested in dev log content. But you’ve made it really entertaining to watch

[@faunixmoon]

this looks so cool! im excited

[@BowManVids]

Great dev-log! Can't wait for more updates on the game! Also may I request the mechanic of swapping into Ronald McDonald, and shooting large fries and happy meals at people

[@nk-cn9sv]

dude yall should make a 'style' gamemode that's just like a never ending horde, and the point of it is to make the most style points before dying, like an arcade

[@MxPokirby]

Game's looking sick so far. We're already hyped for it to release one day. Of course with that being said, take your time to make RAM as great as possible.

[@craz2580]

In the first video and at the very start of this one i could have sworn that i knew that artstyle, and yes, i did know! I have been following the artist for years on Instagram lol

[@Roy-gw8gm]

funny seeing the stark uptick of rainworld clips used in this devlog compared to the last

[@AnUsername]

The demo has been super fun, it’s been a while since I’ve had a good new roguelike to play!

[@BunnyCrypt]

the lil homestuck things here and there made me happy. The song early on, the reader sprite, the fact that the musician is Pyrope-

[@andrew_cunningham]

I more or less subconsciously wrote the whole style system intro as a Homestuck parody, then decided to lean into it while editing. Also, when I first met Nahu I assumed his name was an Undertale reference...

[@waffleman368]

Your choice in music is immaculate sir.

[@CreepyboomGamer]

This game looks really fun. I can’t wait for release.

[@bellop9848]

This is so cool, I didn’t know you were making a game

[@vesselunknown7961]

It would be cool if there were optional minibosses hidden throughout the levels. These minibosses are bigger, and cannot be swapped to until defeated. When defeated, the boss gets added to a sort of "reserve" bar, and can be dropped into the game at any time using the number keys, kinda like a special ability for when you get into rough spots. Then, you can switch to the boss with its double HP and higher damage to beat through an area quickly or save yourself from a death where you cant swap to any other robots nearby.

[@tourtle1497]

Tried it out and it seems quite fun! It’s really really hard tho, could barely get past the first area before I die horribly

[@larsthememelord3383]

hey so an idea popped into my head when I saw that the main gameplay is taking control over robots that can also be enemies, so like what if there were really powerfull (or atleast unique) upgrades with the caveat that they also get applied to the enemy versions of that bot, its probably really unbalanced because there are most likely many more enemy bots then the one player controlled one but it sounded cool in my head.

[@bzzrtzzzrteertz2724]

My catalog of robot style based indie games grows

[@recursiveslacker7730]

Ok, this is the funniest devlog I think I’ve seen. I’m gonna give this game a look.

[@SWAGMONEY_DX]

RAMBROS. WE WON.

[@sspringNG]

pretty sure i already commented, but i’m so hyped for playing the demo + game. cool that you got a booth