Bandit Trap leans into chaotic multiplayer with a clear Home Alone-style setup, blending slapstick humor with asymmetrical gameplay. We spoke with Picomy about its inspirations, development challenges, and how community feedback shaped the experience ahead of launch.
What inspired the team to develop Bandit Trap? My first impression was that it had Home Alone vibes.
Bobby Bouman (Co-Founder & 3D Art / Animation Director): We aimed to create something unique while building on a familiar concept. When we explored the relatively new asymmetrical multiplayer genre, most examples leaned heavily into horror. In its core, “1 vs others” reminded us of the movie Home Alone, which is much more family-friendly and geared towards a younger audience. So, yes! We took a lot of inspiration from the Home Alone movie, having a defender set traps to stop burglars who are trying to break into your house to get the loot. In addition, what was also very important was to get the slapstick humor right, which is a big part of the family friendly experience. For gameplay, we referenced asymmetrical titles such as Dead by Daylight, Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed, and Midnight Ghost Hunt. We also drew on Rubber Bandits for its chaotic fun, Ninjala for its visual style, and Party Animals for its lighthearted tone.
What moments during development were challenging for the team?
Bobby: The biggest challenge was definitely trying to balance the gameplay between the Trapper and the Bandits, which has been an ongoing process from start to finish. As we were building the game, new mechanics and ideas were introduced and with every change we had to balance the other side to keep it fair. For a while, the Trapper had a stronger advantage in battle with all the traps and other mechanics like hiding in furniture vs the weaker bandits only in possession of tools and gadgets. To make it challenging for both sides there was a lot of thought that went into defining what makes it fun for each party while maintaining challenging play, which resulted in a lot of tweaking and added mechanics. The biggest addition, which helped a lot for the Bandit players, was the ability to bodycheck the Trapper and gain a treasure as a reward. In addition, this also motivated Bandit players to chase the Trapper a lot more, making it more difficult and challenging for the Trapper player. This solution fixed the problem of Bandits having it easier to win and added more of a challenge for the Trapper.
What moments brought you joy?
Jimmy de Meza (Co-Founder / Art Director): It was our first time developing such a complex project, featuring online multiplayer, asymmetrical gameplay, and a wide variety of mechanics. Bringing all of this together in a balanced and functional way was very satisfying, as it confirmed that our design choices made sense—of course, with some trial and error along the way.
Without being too biased, we genuinely enjoy our internal play sessions as well. The game is fun and chaotic, often leading to lots of laughter during development. Everyone has their own playstyle, with unique strengths and weaknesses, which makes each match feel different and unpredictable.
On top of that, it brought us even more joy to see external players—during organized playtests, gaming conventions, and both open and closed betas—really enjoying the game. It reassured us that we’re on the right track and moving toward delivering the best possible experience for our community.
How’s the response to the community playtesting so far leading up to launch? Anything that surprised you?
Jimmy: When developing a product, you try to keep your audience’s desires in mind and make the right decisions by taking their feedback seriously. Over the years, we’ve listened closely to player requests and implemented many of them into the game. As a result, negative feedback has gradually decreased.
That said, there are always unforeseen elements that we don’t fully realize during development. Playtesters often approach the game very differently compared to our internal team, perceiving and interacting with the gameplay in unique ways. That has definitely been both insightful and surprising.
How are you assessing community feedback, and how does it influence the launch or future updates?
Jimmy: As mentioned before, we take community feedback very seriously. When players report bugs or discomfort during their play sessions, we focus on smoothing out anything that negatively impacts the experience.
This, of course, affects our priorities. It often means that certain features or “nice-to-haves” need to be postponed and addressed in future updates instead.
Any final words you’d like to share?
Jimmy: This game puts a lot of emphasis on detailed destructible environments, unique damage states, and slapstick humor, while also maintaining a tense and strategic atmosphere during matches. Even when players lose, it doesn’t feel like a major setback—based on feedback—mainly because of the hilarious moments that occur throughout gameplay.
We also encourage players to use external voice chat when playing with or against friends, as it really enhances the laugh-out-loud experience.
