Blaž Urban Gracar is a multidisciplinary artist from Slovenia, best known for making music for theater and acclaimed puzzle games like LOK and Abdec. With LOK's digital version coming to PC sometime this year, we sat down with Gracar to chat about the charming puzzle game's journey, from its pen-and-paper beginnings to exciting new digital realms.
What are some notable pieces of media that have influenced you creatively?
Ever since I was a child, I had been a big fan of Walter Moers — especially his first few Zamonia books. The wonder I experienced in his novels back then is something I've been trying to translate to my works as well. David Lynch and his intuitive, but strange approach to films also influences me, as does Miyazaki's works.
In terms of game media, I was probably most influenced by Stephen Lavelle and Jonathan Blow — especially in regards to the puzzle aspects but, I'm also a big fan of Cuphead, Celeste, Hyper Light Drifter with regards to both their art styles and overall game design.
Not to leave music out, my creative process is usually fueled by music that is on repeat. Lately, these were albums by Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Brad Mehldau, Disasterpeace, and Mac DeMarco.
Wow! That’s an extensive and varied list. How did those influences play into the design of LOK?
Well, LOK wouldn't exist without Stephen Lavelle. The first inspiration was a set of word-search puzzles using the Toki Pona language he sent me. I don't speak Toni Pona, so searching for these words felt very alien to me. At the same time, I was constantly expecting a standard Stephen Lavelle brain-melt trick — which didn't happen — they were just normal word-search puzzles.
But it got me thinking about what a word-search puzzle using a made-up language with brain-melting tricks would look like. I married this idea with The Witness' instruction-free approach, and this became LOK. But apart from these two big sources of influence, I guess I picked up on the little things along the way throughout development.
How many iterations were created before the final product for LOK was produced?
Hmm, that's hard to say. The main flow and mechanics of the book were set pretty early in the first weeks, and then I was constantly improving various aspects, adding new puzzles, and rethinking how to make it more intuitive for players to learn the rules by themselves.
It was all done in one Word document, so I can't really say how many definite versions were there. It was really just one constantly changing mass before I decided it was done.
What was the initial reception like when you released LOK?
Oh, it was fantastic! At that point, I had no audience and wasn't sure how I'd reach people. I worried I had printed too many books, as my initial print run was 100 books. But then all 100 books sold out in 10 days. I'm still not quite sure how it got picked up so quickly. So yeah, I felt really ecstatic. I still do.
Shut Up & Sit Down mentioned you in their video Three Great Word Games You Should Play! What did that recognition feel like?
I sent the book to Tom last year in the first week of the LOK's release, not really expecting anything more than a mention in a podcast. Shut Up & Sit Down probably influenced most of my board game purchases — I really love their videos.
So yes, when I found out LOK would be reviewed in a video, my world kind of stopped for a minute. The feeling is indescribable — you are suddenly met by a humongous crowd of people in the comments, on your page, in your messages — all focused on your little game. It's basically a dream come true.
Could you walk us through what a normal day looked like when you were working on LOK?
When working on LOK, I was still employed at a local record label. My office desk was full of Post-it notes with sketches of puzzles. I got busted by my bosses a number of times. It was a really enjoyable process as I was constantly discovering new things.
For example, and this is a minor spoiler — but the question marks started out simply as unknowns — as in many other paper puzzles. I wasn't even sure they could withstand carrying a whole chapter by themselves. But when I started putting them in puzzles, it dawned on me just how much potential they held.
The unexpected interactions between different mechanics really allowed me to feel like an explorer in a big, detailed world. Later in development, my workflow was largely about diving deeper into specific aspects of the mechanics that weren't fleshed out and making puzzles around them.
How did you get the ball rolling for LOK's digital iteration?
LOK was already available as a work-in-progress PDF as I was making it and at some point, it got noticed by Raindrinker. We were already in contact before as I was testing the puzzle game he made with his partner called Constellations.
He approached me with a fully working prototype and I was just blown away by how pretty and responsive it was at that time. We agreed that I finish the book first and then start on the development of the digital iteration — so we've been working on LOK Digital ever since the book was released.
Is there anything you can tease about the full LOK Digital game?
Well, it will certainly have more stuff than the book. Some of the book's secrets and mechanics aren't easily translated to the digital environment. In particular, the mechanic in which players learn the rules by themselves, as digital games are simply too responsive. We are making up for that with completely new mechanics.
All of these new mechanics would be impossible to implement on paper, or at the very least it would make solving them a chore — but on screen they work like a charm. We hope players will be surprised by just how much stuff there will be to unlock and discover.
To close, what are some words of wisdom you can share with beginner puzzle game developers?
I think most puzzle game developers nowadays focus on making video games, so my paper puzzle background probably isn’t applicable to many newcomers.
However, I think it's truly important to prototype fast and to lay the groundwork of the project as soon as possible. Personally, I usually find the most interesting aspects of a project only when I'm already in the trenches — when I’ve already sketched out its premise without knowing what exactly this new creation even is.
It's better to be wrong nine times out of ten and to learn along the way than to endlessly contemplate how to make your first game perfect. Oh, and share your progress with the community early and often.
LOK Digital is coming to Steam sometime in 2024. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
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