Creating a City Builder & Crafting Game with a Cut-Out Paper-Style

February 20, 2026 - 02:35

The charming world of Cutout Village began not with complex polygons, but with a simple, tangible material: paper. David Ferriz of DevilishGames recently detailed the journey of creating this city-builder and crafting game, revealing how a distinct artistic vision shaped its entire development.

The core inspiration sprang from a desire to evoke nostalgia and warmth. The team aimed to capture the tangible feel of childhood crafts, where paper villages sprung to life on tabletops. This led to the commitment to a full cut-out paper-style aesthetic, where every tree, building, and character appears hand-crafted from textured cardstock, complete with subtle shadows that mimic real paper layers.

Ferriz explained that this artistic choice fundamentally guided the technical process. Instead of simply applying a filter, modelers and artists had to think like papercraft designers, considering how each virtual asset would be folded and assembled. This unified vision required close collaboration across disciplines from the very start, ensuring the gameplay of building and crafting felt physically connected to the whimsical, tactile art style. The result is a cohesive digital diorama that invites players to construct their own unique paper paradise.