FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SEATTLE, WA - May 19, 2025 - Mark Mayers and The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild are announcing DESOLUS, an upcoming first person puzzle game.
Explore a city of Gothic architecture torn between past and future in Desolus, a first person puzzle game. An enigmatic cataclysm has fractured reality, opening portals which lead to other times. Explore the past and future versions of an expansive city. Solve Escher-like puzzles through the use of black holes, traveling back and forth through time to make architecture whole again. Challenge your spatial thinking by navigating impossible architecture, as reality distorts and time becomes increasingly unstable. Activate holograms to move massive portals between floors of crumbled cathedrals, allowing you to traverse structures which only partially exist in one time. Partner with the city's guardian to prevent a cataclysm which threatens to merge past and future. Save the City of Desolus from annihilation.
Desolus has been selected for several festivals, including an exhibit at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, The Indie Megabooth, The MIX, Boston FIG, MAGFest, and most recently, DreamHack in Dallas from May 23-25, where Desolus will be playable in the Indie Playground section at Booth 18.
This announcement comes with a first-look trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxfV0AvwSIs
A free, public Demo of Desolus will be available on Steam from May 29-June 5 as Desolus is featured in the Cerebral Puzzle Showcase. The Demo can be accessed at that time at https://store.steampowered.com/app/1003460/DESOLUS
Desolus has been primarily developed by Mark Mayers, a former developer of Outer Wilds and Manifold Garden, and this has been a true labor of love over the past decade. An original soundtrack reminiscent of classical music is composed by acclaimed pianist Kyle Landry. Kyle is renowned for his virtuosity as a pianist, and hosts popular YouTube and Twitch channels. Game audio for Desolus is made by James Primate, co-creator of the award-winning game Rain World. Desolus is being published by The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild with executive producer Ty Taylor, the creator of another mind-bending Escher-inspired award-winning puzzler The Bridge.
Desolus on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1003460/DESOLUS
Mark Mayers on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/desolus.bsky.social
Mark Mayers on Twitter: https://twitter.com/desolusdev
Desolus Website: https://qag.io/desolus
Quantum Website: https://qag.io
Awards and Recognition:
- "Official Selection" - Cerebral Puzzle Showcase, 2025
- "Official Selection, Indie Playground" - DreamHack Dallas, 2025
- "Nominated, Innovation in Art and Narrative" - Boston Festival of Indie Games, 2018
- "Nominated, Best Art & Best Soundtrack" - MAGFest, 2018
- "Official Selection, SAAM Arcade" - Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2018
- "Official Selection, The MIX" - PAX West, GDC, 2018, 2017
- "Official Selection, Digital Game Showcase" - Boston Festival of Indie Games, 2018, 2016, 2015
- "Official Selection, Indie Video Game Showcase" - MAGFest, 2018, 2016
- "Official Selection, Indie MEGABOOTH" - PAX East, 2016
PREVIEW SCHEDULING OPPORTUNITIES ARE NOW OPEN
Press Contact: Ty Taylor
Email: press@qag.io
About Mark Mayers:
Mark Mayers is the primary developer of Desolus, responsible for art, programming, and design of the game. Mark has a wealth of experience in the games industry, having shipped several award winning titles such as Outer Wilds and Manifold Garden. Desolus began as a series of prototypes from 2015 to 2018, while Mark also worked at MIT researching artificial intelligence. In early 2019, Mark left Boston to pursue development of Desolus full time while living in Seattle.
About The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild:
Founded in 2011 by Forbes 30 Under 30 inductee Ty Taylor, The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild has received global critical acclaim for their early titles, The Bridge and Tumblestone. In addition to developing Freshly Frosted, QAG has helped other indie game studios finish their games and publish them to all platforms. Partner games include Cozy Grove, Sail Forth, Marble It Up! Ultra, Roundguard, and several others.
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