‘Gori: Cuddly Carnage’ Team Talks Their Delightfully Disgusting New Game
Gori: Cuddly Carnage is a unique and thrilling genre mash-up that masterfully intertwines the adorable with the macabre. It’s where plush, seemingly innocent characters meet dark, unsettling twists, creating a world that’s both charming and chilling. In Gori: Cuddly Carnage, from Angry Demon Studio, lovable aesthetics mix with themes of horror and violence, offering a playful yet unsettling experience.
Leading up to its release, Dread Central sat down with CEO and 3D artist John Kalderon, animator and 2D artist Caroline Petri, and audio director/composer William Sahl to talk about what it was like bringing Gori: Cuddly Carnage into the world
Dread Central: Can you describe the core gameplay mechanics of “Gori Cuddly Carnage” and how the game blends its cute aesthetic with darker themes?
John Kalderon: Absolutely! Gori: Cuddly Carnage is all about combining the thrill of hoverboarding with intense hack-and-slash combat. Mechanically, you’ll be chaining together combos, using a mix of melee and ranged attacks to take down enemies in style, all while performing slick maneuvers on your sentient hoverboard named F.R.A.N.K. The seamless integration of movement and combat is what really makes the game stand out—whether you’re grinding along rails, launching into mid-air attacks, or dashing through enemies, everything flows together into one adrenaline-pumping experience.
Now, where things get really interesting is in how the game blends its cute aesthetic with darker themes. Imagine cruising around in a world where vibrant, colorful visuals are contrasted with gruesome, blood-soaked action. The game strikes a unique balance—think of it as if a cute plushie was thrown into a heavy metal concert. It’s chaotic, playful, and a little bit twisted, but in the best way possible. The combination of adorable characters and environments with the darker, more intense gameplay creates a dynamic experience that’s both visually captivating and endlessly fun to play
DC: There is a big focus on cute mixed with terror. Was this always the plan, or was there a significant moment during development that seemed like the perfect moment to switch gears to what Gori is today?
JK: The blend of cute and terror was part of the plan from the start. We’ve always loved the idea of taking something that looks innocent and turning it on its head. However, there was definitely a “eureka” moment when we realized just how far we could push this contrast. Once we saw Gori—a cute, cuddly cat—dishing out carnage on a hoverboard, we knew we had something special. The adorable yet deadly theme clicked with us, and we leaned into it even more, making sure every element of the game reflected this quirky yet intense vibe.
DC: How long has Gori: Cuddly Carnage been in development, and how did the idea of Gori: Cuddly Carnage come to be? What did the team take to for inspiration in terms of design, gameplay mechanics, and soundtrack as well?
JK: Gori: Cuddly Carnage has been in development for about five years, and the idea came to us from a mix of influences. We were inspired by the airboarding mechanics of Airblade, the over-the-top combat of Devil May Cry 5, and the vibrant world of Sunset Overdrive. We wanted to create a game that felt fresh yet nostalgic, with a nod to the early 2000s.
As for the soundtrack, we aimed for something that would elevate the chaotic, fast-paced nature of the game. It’s a dynamic mix of high-energy tracks that drive the action forward, with influences ranging from heavy metal to electronic beats, reflecting the intensity of combat and the thrill of hoverboarding. The music complements the game’s atmosphere perfectly, amplifying both the cute and the carnage in equal measure.”
DC: Now I need to know how the team landed on the look for Gori. Was it always a cat? Tacking on the thought that I am just saying, I know a lot of people who would jump at the chance for a plush of that adorably fierce menace.
JK: Gori was always destined to be a cat! From the very beginning, we knew we wanted our main character to have that perfect mix of cute and fierce, and what better animal to represent that than a cat? Cats are natural hunters, but they’re also cuddly and full of personality—just like Gori. As for the design, we quickly found the right look because we had a clear vision of this adorable yet deadly protagonist. And you’re not alone in wanting a plush—trust us, the idea of a Gori plushie has crossed our minds more than a few times!
DC: The idea of combat skateboarding is incredibly unique. How did the team manage to find the balance that it landed on between combat, difficulty, and movement for a genre for which they are carving the path? Was there a time when the game was purely a THPS-style skateboarder?
JK: Finding the perfect balance between combat, difficulty, and movement was definitely a journey, and we couldn’t have done it without the close collaboration we’ve had with our community since 2020. We started with the idea of combining hoverboarding with combat, knowing we wanted to create something that captured the exhilaration of skateboarding games while adding a new layer of action.
Instead of just focusing on the traditional elements of skateboarding, we wanted to push the boundaries and integrate intense combat mechanics that would feel both fresh and exciting. Through extensive playtesting and feedback from our community, we fine-tuned the controls, combat flow, and difficulty to ensure that every move felt smooth and satisfying. The result is a game that blends the fluidity of skateboarding with the thrill of hack-and-slash action, creating an experience that’s both unique and incredibly fun to play.
DC: We’ve seen these vicious unicorn enemies, and I was curious: out of all the mythical beings, why unicorns?
Caroline Petri: What would be the most amazing pet that you wouldn’t be able to get today? A unicorn, of course! Imagine owning your very own mythical, cuddly, artificial pet unicorn. But as you probably know, they mutated and rebelled against their owners. So unicorns became enemies, which matches the story best and makes sense as the most wanted pet to buy.
DC: In terms of unlockable outfits, how many can we expect? And does the team have a favorite?
CP: In the full game, you will be able to unlock eight unique outfits for Gori, making it nine in total with the original outfit you start the game with. If you got the game on day one, you unlocked our super exclusive day-one outfit! If you bought the deluxe edition, you unlocked the “Neon Neko” package with three Gori outfits (and more). So that’s thirteen outfits! We LOVE making outfits and skins and are already working on several others that we hope could become DLCs!
The favorite, besides the original red outfit for Gori, would be the Neon Neko Oni outfit! Think Japanese neon that glows in the dark with a demonic vibe. It matches all fur types, too!
DC: Has anyone on the team taught their cat to skateboard?
CP: One of our programmers is trying, but like all cats, it rather does what it wants. But we want to believe that when the day comes that the toys come for us, the cats will all rise and defend us. If they want to…
DC: In terms of players about to step into the world of Gori, is there something you want them to have in mind when stepping into Goris’ paws for the first time?
CP: To have FUN. We made this game to let people have fun, blow off some steam, and escape reality a bit. Enjoy the carnage!
DC: There seems to be this incredible synergy between gameplay and the soundtrack. Can you talk about how this process goes, blending gameplay and soundtrack?
William Sahl: The soundtrack evolves through four stages. It begins with atmospheric vibes when no combat is active, setting the mood. As combat starts, the tension rises in the second stage with a more intense soundtrack, holding back just enough to keep you on edge.
When the action escalates—like taking down multiple enemies in quick succession—the music explodes with shredding guitars and pounding drums, driving the little cat to even more chaotic carnage. And when a tank enters the fray, the music turns epic, slow, and heavy, amplifying the scale and danger of these massive enemies.
There are also dynamic features in the mix: as the player hits higher combo ranks, the music gets louder, changing key and tempo, giving you that “Super Mario star” rush.
Every boss also has its own unique soundtrack, composed for each stage of the battle to match the intensity of the battle.
DC: Speaking of the soundtrack, it’s incredible, and I would love to learn more about how it came to be. Were there lots of cues given in terms of direction, or were you given snippets of the game to process and create?
WS: The soundtrack is built on the wild idea of “a demonic metal band crashing their tour bus into a toy store.” This concept shaped the entire sound, starting with intense electronic metal and adding playful, quirky noises that match each level’s theme.
Creating this soundtrack has been quite a journey, but since I’m also involved in the development as a programmer, the music and the game have grown together naturally. Every time a level’s theme came together, the soundtrack fell into place right alongside it.
Gori: Cuddly Carnage is out now on PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, and Xbox Series X and Series S
Categorized:Interviews
