Stranger Things: The Game (Free) came out pretty much out of nowhere (a bit like the show) and garnered plenty of acclaim by offering really cool throwback gameplay that fit with the theme and tone of the show. If you’re curious how the game came about and how it managed to catch everyone by surprise, you should read this interview with the game’s developers. Apparently, one of the ways they kept the development quiet was to have family members test the game instead of hiring outside testers, like companies usually do. The developers talk about the Zelda influences in the game and the way they initially started making the game with 8-bit graphics but decided they needed more colors and more detail, so they ended up switching to 16-bit graphics.

One of the biggest challenges was making sure players could tell Mike and Will apart (oh the restrictions of 16-bit era visuals) and making sure the game was accessible to a mobile gaming audience, which is why it’s not as challenging as video games of the 80s. All the work and attention to detail (as well as the popularity of the TV show) helped the game get 3 million donwnloads in one week. Let’s hope we get even more content for what is a really fun game and one of the best TV show tie-ins out there.

[via The Dallas Observer]