Interview with “Seeing Double’s” Creator and Developer

Last updated on July 11, 2026

I had the opportunity to chat a little with “Tarik Ozgur” who is the main developer and creator of one indie game phenomon called “Seeing Double”. We asked him 10 questions in which he responded with pure joy and admiration towards all the indie developers out there, have fun reading!

Question 1 –

      What inspired you to create a game centered around “doubles” and overlapping identities?

      Answer –

      Interviewee –> The split screen mechanic was the result of trying to design a simple 2D platformer with a unique gimmick. I saw a GIF on Reddit of a puzzle platformer with a similar type of mechanic used for only one puzzle, so I thought it might be really cool to design an entire game around this mirror screen gimmick and put a modern twist on some old school platforming.

Question 2 –

    Which gameplay mechanic was the hardest to design or implement, and why?

      Answer –

      Interviewee –> I would say getting the cameras to work properly with the split screen mechanic was particularly challenging. Seeing Double works by having two copies of the level in the same room, with Pitter in one copy and Patter in the other. I needed to have two cameras – one camera for each character – that are perfectly synched at all times, down to the pixel, so figuring that out took some work. I also had some difficulties with collisions in general.

Platformers can be notoriously tricky when it comes to how to handle all the little edge cases when it comes to how the player should interact with solid and semi solid surfaces. For example, if the player is on a moving platform and that platform dips below solid ground, the game needs to be able to transfer the player onto that ground without any hiccups. And that’s not even factoring in mechanics such as conveyor belts or moving boxes or – ugh – slopes. I’d like to give a shoutout to Peyton Burnham, his YouTube series on how to make a platformer were vital in getting me started with the fundamental building blocks of the game, so to speak.

Question 3 –

    The visual style is very distinctive. How did you arrive at the final aesthetic?

      Answer –

      Interviewee –> Seeing Double’s visual style is largely a result of trying to work with limited resources. I am not a talented artist, nor do I have the funds to hire any artists, so I figured it would be best to go with a minimalistic yet distinctive art style. This has allowed me to grab a variety of art asset packs from sites like itch.io and edit them in order to create a cohesive art direction without much effort. Shoutout to Kenny assets, his free stuff alone makes up a good chunk of the art for the game.

Question 4 –

  What core message or emotional experience do you want players to walk away with?

      Answer –

      Interviewee –>I don’t want to spoil too much, so let’s just say that Seeing Double has its share of highs and lows, some scary moments, some funny moments, and perhaps (if I can pull it off) a touching moment here or there. The split screen mechanic itself also hints at a major theme of the game, that being how two different people can be in the same room and look at the same objects and yet not quite see eye to eye. But that’s all I can share for now without giving too much away.

Question 5 –

  How long did development take, and what was the biggest challenge along the way?

      Answer –

      Interviewee –> I started development back in October of 2025. I finished the demo around the end of December 2025, and completed the Early Access release (the current version so far) around June 2026, which has two main areas, the forest and the caves. I am aiming to have the next major update of the game, the research lab, release within the next few months or so, hopefully. Honestly, the biggest hurdle I’ve faced thus far has been marketing and getting eyes on the game.

There’s just so many amazing games out there nowadays that it can be really, really difficult to stand out. Plus, Seeing Double is a platformer, and those can be notoriously hard to gain traction with compared to other genres like roguelikes. So thanks for helping out with that!

Question 6 –

What piece of player feedback surprised you the most so far?

      Answer –

      Interviewee –> When I give my friends a test build of Seeing Double I almost always watch them play it through from beginning to end in order to gain insights into how they think when playing through the game. It helps me answer questions like, “Is this tutorial clear enough?” or “Is this segment of the level too challenging?” or “Is this secret too well hidden?” I’m almost always blindsided in one way or another by some aspect that I thought was obvious, only for some players to completely miss it or misinterpret it.

Always watch people playtest your games! When it comes to overall difficulty, oftentimes areas that I’ve completed multiple times in a row during my own testing will seem trivially easy, only for me to see players struggling on those very same areas!

Developer bias is a very real phenomenon that needs to be accounted for, and for that reason I tend to lean towards being more forgiving towards the player. Seeing Double’s large number of checkpoints is a good example of this design philosophy. It’s ok if players get a little frustrated at points, but I always try to minimize that frustration whenever possible, because who wants to get angry at a dinky little pixel game?

I guess some people do, so maybe I’ll add some extra hard bonus areas for those types, haha. If I’m being honest, perhaps the most surprising feedback I’ve gotten was how much people seemed to enjoy the game. Don’t get me wrong, I’m thrilled that so many people seem to think it’s amazing, but I feel like it pales in comparison to so many other games. I should probably try not to think about that too much I suppose.

Question 7 –

What engine and tools did you use, and how did technical limitations shape the game?

      Answer –

      Interviewee –> I’m using Gamemaker to build Seeing Double. Gamemaker is one of the best game engines for developing 2D games, so naturally it seemed like a perfect choice for Seeing Double. Plus, I had prior experience with Gamemaker when I was developing some other projects that are currently on hold. I really enjoy Gamemaker’s easy-to-learn programming language, it’s always seemed much easier and more intuitive to me then something like C# with Unity, for example. I know Godot is getting pretty popular lately for 2D games, but for me it’s Gamemaker all the way, baby!

Question 8 –

Do you see Seeing Double as a standalone project or the beginning of a larger universe?

      Answer –

      Interviewee –> I don’t have any plans for Seeing Double to have any sequels or be the intro to some sort of cinematic universe. Having it be its own, self contained experience is what I’m aiming for, since after Seeing Double I plan to resume work on my other, larger scale projects.

Question 9 –

Are you planning updates, new modes, or additional content after release?

      Answer –

      Interviewee –> Seeing Double is currently in Early Access with two out of five major areas completed. The three areas that remain to be added are the research lab, the sewer, and the volcano. I am hoping to completely finish the game by early next year, after which Seeing Double will be pretty much complete (barring bugfixes and the like.) I might add some bonus modes or challenges if there is enough demand for them, though. I added a speedrun mode to Seeing Double for the people who like to blaze through games, for example.

Question 10 –

If you were to restart the project today, what would you do differently?

      Answer –

      Interviewee –> Since Seeing Double is such a small scale project and I haven’t been working on it for that long, I can’t really say I’d do a whole lot different if I were to start from scratch. One thing I will say, though, is I would prepare a lot more for Steam Nextfest. Steam Nextfest is an event on Steam that happens about three times a year where various demos from upcoming games are featured, and it’s an excellent opportunity to get a lot of fresh eyes on your project.

I went into February’s Nextfest with about a hundred wishlists, thinking that I was going to get thousands of new wishlists, when in reality I ended up with about another hundred extra, which is not bad by any means but a lot less than what I was hoping for.

If I were to do Nextfest over I’d definitely improve the capsule art and cover art for the game, which currently is very barebones and not very exciting.

I think a lot of people saw that art and couldn’t be bothered to click it, sadly. I’d also try to build up a bigger audience ahead of time as well. I think Nextfest is more of a multiplier to your wishlists than anything, unless your demo is like super omega impressive or something. Thank you very much for having me and taking an interest in Seeing Double! Whoever decides to try my game, I humbly thank you and hope you enjoy it!

I had a great time speaking with Tarik about his creation, i suggest everyone to start playing this game, it’s such a blast! Our review is in the making, stay tuned!