Ape Out is an intense and colorfully stylized smash ‘em up about primal escape, rhythmic violence, and frenetic jazz. Build up nearly unstoppable momentum and use your captors as both weapons and shields to crush everyone on your procedurally generated path to freedom. Find your rhythm in the chaos as a dynamic soundtrack of drums, cymbals, and decapitations drive the action to the edge of mayhem.

Development on Ape Out begann when Cuzzillo entered into game development courses at New York University (NYU), where he also worked on an independent study with Bennett Foddy. Foddy contributed to Ape Out’s art, while Matt Boch, an associate professor for NYU’s Game Center, worked on the game’s music system and sound design. Ape Out was part of the NYU Game Center Incubator and partially financed by Indie Fund. Publisher Devolver Digital announced their involvement in Ape Out in March 2017, when they released a playable trailer.

Exhibition Tour: Intro

Inspiration

24.02.2014

First Commit

25.03.2014

FuckingTheCraziestBug

  • gameplay
    • implemented movement (controller)
    • vision is limited to a cone
    • walls cut through cone and further limit vision
  • graphics
    • mockup graphics
    • character has heads instead of hands
  • other
    • bug: walls don’t work as intended

01.04.2014

Two Player Mode

07.05.2014

Playable Stealth Game

  • gameplay
    • added enemies
    • player can grab enemies
    • enemies shoot player when in sight
    • player dies from one shot (stealth gameplay)
    • vision is properly limited by walls
  • graphics
    • mockup graphics

15.07.2014

APEOUT!

  • gameplay
    • added mines (explode on walk-over)
  • graphics
    • player is now a gorilla
    • walls have an outline on the ground
    • first colour-scheme

02.09.2016

Beta

  • gameplay
    • removed mines
    • destroyable windows
    • added enemy with shotgun
    • removed cone view
    • player has three lives (action gameplay)
  • graphics
    • more stylized graphics
  • other
    • music and sounds changed towards bass and drums
    • adden menu
    • added highscore table

06.02.2017

Matt joins

03.2017

Playable Trailer

28.04.2018

Bennett joins

08.2018

Music & Art Polish

  • gameplay
    • added unarmed enemy
    • added exploding enemy
    • added steel door
    • player is subject4 (minor storytelling)
  • graphics
    • improved effects
  • other
    • menu screen with vinyl covers
    • level selection
    • dynamic drums as music (changes pace as the gameplay does)

28.02.2019

Release

  • gameplay
    • enemies fire their weapons once after being grabbed
    • removed unarmed enemy
    • added levels
  • graphics
    • improved effects
  • other
    • some more audio polishing
    • vinyl level selection gone
    • removed subject4 story (less storytelling)