Hopetown Inspirations: The History of Disco Elysium | Veljo Hagu
- Mar 26
- 7 min read
“ I'm okay being the old wizard with a grey beard and aura of mystique, offering sage advice from the side where it matters (and casting an occasional spell)."
On The Record | Veljo Hagu
The History of Disco Elysium is a special series in which we explore the history of one of the world’s most beloved cRPGs through the eyes of those who were integral to its creation.
In this edition, we ask Veljo Hagu — the first software developer on Disco Elysium — about the early days of the game, what drew him to the project, and what kind of challenges and innovations went into the creation of a classic.
Veljo’s ability to meld the technical and the creative deeply influences the responsive, integrated systems we’re creating in Hopetown. This edition delves into his approaches to some of Disco’s most complex challenges, his advice for anyone creating a worthy cRPG today, and which lesson from Disco’s creation he’s applying to his work on Hopetown.
Before you dive into this developer interview, don’t forget to wishlist Hopetown on Steam to follow development and help us reach more players.
An Estonian Team Crazy Enough
Q: Disco Elysium was a pioneering game in so many ways. Can you tell us more about how you met the team, and what attracted you to the project? Was there anything that immediately stood out and made you think “this is the game I want to work on”?
A: I think it was a referral — a former coworker of mine was asked, didn’t have time himself, but offered my name as a possible lead. I was curious about an Estonian team crazy enough to dream of game development, so I agreed to meet them.
The visionary duo of Robert and Sander was clear from the start. Maybe not in their deep knowledge of game engines (especially Unity3D), but they knew that; that was what they were looking for.
Q: What was your role when you joined the project?
A: I joined as the first (and thus Lead) Unity developer. Figuring out the project structure and authoring tools, helping with job interviews when it came to additional hires, and working on the first public demo were all tasks right out of the gate.
Q: What were your favourite games at the time, and what are your favourite games now?
A: My all-time favorite still has to be Planescape: Torment. I also have had a soft spot for MMORPGs (starting with WoW), strategy games, and action games. First Halo, Mass Effect, and The Witcher have to be right up there as well in my top 10.
The last few years, I’ve had less interest in “real” computer games, being satisfied with more casual mobile/browser games. Oh, and chess puzzles on chess.com.
The Vision and Ambition to Be Amazing
Q: What was it like working with everyone, Robert Kurvitz, Martin Luiga, Helen Hindpere, and others, especially as the first developer to work on the game? Did you have an inkling of what Disco would later become?
A: I think the vision and ambition to be amazing were apparent from the beginning. Starting game development studios need a bit of irrational confidence in their ability to go big, as no-one completely sane would make a bet on being able to afford a living making video games. The question came down on the side of execution, how to make progress consistently and fast enough to avoid funding running out.
Q: What was it like to collaborate in such a concentrated space with everyone? What was the atmosphere like?
A: I didn’t even perceive it as all that concentrated. Surprisingly similar to normal offices with an open floorplan. Probably the biggest contrast may have been the apparent lack of hierarchy — Robert and Sander were in the trenches every day, working side by side with everybody else. Naturally, we had department lead meetings to coordinate the work, but at times it seemed like managerial oversight took a backseat.
Q: On a more technical side, the skill system in Disco is often described as the core of both narrative and gameplay. How did you approach making 24 distinct skills feel narratively impactful without turning them into a complex optimisation puzzle?
A: I believe the answer is to refuse to let it become an optimization puzzle. When you give every skill their moments to shine and make their impact unique to the player's experience, they become incomparable when it comes to min-maxing. And it certainly helped that Disco Elysium eschewed combat almost entirely (“combat effectiveness” being the prime metric and motivation for min-maxing in RPGs).
Q: Can you talk through the development of the thought cabinet and internalisation system? Can you walk us through the evolution of this idea?
A: Though cabinet naturally evolved as a mechanic to fill the void left by leaving combat encounters out of the game. Rather than external conflict, there had to be something internal to establish conflict and demonstrate character growth. I cannot really claim much influence on the creative process though, beyond suggesting the unimportance of combat to Robert in our discussions.
Q: Disco masters a unique tone: deeply personal, politically charged, philosophical, and absurdly funny. How did the writing and development teams collaborate to ensure this tone was embodied through gameplay mechanics and not just dialogue?
A: At least during my time there (the first 2 years), development was always driven by narrative and art. Every week, they came back with some new idea or redesign and we got to redo our priorities and rewrite some code to accommodate the changes. While some of this is quite normal with Agile Development, I believe it became an excessive search for perfection, contributing to the development hell the project got stuck in.
Q: What was the single biggest technical or design challenge in marrying such a dense, novel-like narrative with a reactive, stat-driven game system?
A: I think finding the optimal workflow between writers (who use articy:draft to author content) and developers (who import that content to the game engine like Unity3D) is the fundamental challenge. Every set of tools brings their own set of limitations and constraints, and properly understanding their impact is essential.
Q: So many game designers look to Disco Elysium for inspiration, us among them. What’s one practical piece of advice you’d give to a team trying to build a game where “system supports the narrative”? What’s a potential pitfall they should avoid?
A: I believe that execution creates value while the quality of the idea is the multiplier on top. Thus, while the vision driving the whole creative effort is very important, it cannot be allowed to totally dominate the process. By the end of the day, the studio proves itself only by actually shipping the game. The ability to adapt creative vision to technical or financial constraints is what separates the developers who release games from the dreamers who don’t.
Q: If the ultimate goal was to make roleplaying the core fun loop, what metric or player moment made you sit back and say, “Yes, we’ve succeeded”? Was it a specific piece of feedback, a playtest observation, or the way players embraced a particular mechanic?
A: I mentioned it above — I strongly believe that removing combat mechanics as core activity from the game created the opportunity for a different focus. Many cRPGs dilute their narrative potential by holding on to the combat-exploration-combat cadence, making all other aspects of the game subservient to that. My one real critique of Expedition 33 is just that - it feels like the combat distracts from fully enjoying the excellence of character design and unfolding story. In a combat-focused game, the player would be thrust into combat early on, as part of the intro. One needs to learn to play the game after all. There would be no place for the slow “waking up as barely functional amnesiac” beginning that Disco went with. And to answer the question, the first time I heard Mikee Goodman’s narration in the beginning dialogue, I got goosebumps. It was just that powerful.
Q: What lesson are you bringing to Hopetown from your time working on Disco Elysium?
A: For me, it's the understanding of the value of team momentum — the feeling of useful work getting done every week. The development process can be understood as a slalom — the path to finish zigzags a lot, but as long as you can see the obstacles and the progress the team is making, you know that you can make it.
In contrast, when the finish line is being moved around all the time, you can never be sure if you're on the right path or not. That slows everyone down and pretty soon kills the momentum — it becomes Development Hell with no way out.
Q: In the wake of Disco's release, were there any fan reactions that surprised you?
A: I can't say that I was surprised by the positive reception, more like I was satisfied and validated in my judgement of the game's potential. I was pleasantly surprised that it did come out at all, though.
Closing Note
Q: Given the time that has passed since Disco, is there any element of Disco's magic you're trying to recapture in Hopetown, or are you working as an older, wiser game developer looking forward?
A: I've come to understand that everybody has ideas every single day. It is the reason for the saying "Too many cooks spoil the broth". So I'm okay being the old wizard with a grey beard and aura of mystique, offering sage advice from the side where it matters (and casting an occasional spell). I don't feel the need to prove anything to myself or to the world.
What have you always wanted to know about the making of Disco Elysium? Any burning questions for Veljo that you’d like to see answered in the next post? Let us know!
The Next Lead
Our next On the Record will spotlight another corner of development — exploring how story, art, and systems continue to weave together as Hopetown grows. Keep an eye on our dev blog and socials for the next instalment.
Join the Conversation
We’re building more than just a game — we’re building a community. Share your thoughts, theories, and favourite details from Veljo’s interview in our Discord.
Until next time,
— The Hopetown Team
