‘No-one desires to play a Match-3 game’: Prolific indie dev made his Match-3 Metroidvania to “definitively repeat” his publishers nasty

Xalavier Nelson Jr., the founder of indie developer Outlandish Scaffold, has supervised a plethora of unconventional and captivating video games. From Warlord Organ Trading Simulator to Clickolding and El Paso, Elsewhere to I Am Your Beast, there’s always an element of surprise in what he and his team will create next. Enter Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3, the “match-3 survival horror comedy RPG metroidvania you never knew you wished for.”

We connected with Nelson Jr. at GDC to inquire about the trending topic on everyone’s mind: why create a match-3 game in the year 2025?

“I played Puzzle Quest many years ago and thought, ‘wow, it’s fascinating how they’ve managed to convert nearly every player action into a match-3 format, but it’s mostly used for combat,'” he explains. “Then I presented it to publishers, and they said, ‘nobody wants to play a match-3 game.’ At Steam Next Fest, we clearly demonstrated them wrong, and we’ve concocted this really outrageous genre fusion that also serves as a commentary on the current state of gaming, originating from a canceled sequel to a franchise that no longer exists.”

I’m thrilled to hear the game performed well at Steam Next Fest, because despite Outlandish Scaffold’s games being quite the mixed bag, they are always genuinely engaging. El Paso, Elsewhere is even being adapted into a film featuring LaKeith Stanfield. But what exactly is Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3?

“On a gameplay level, I am often either frustrated or scared, depending on the day, by RPG character creators,” Nelson Jr. elaborates. “They require you to allocate numerous points without knowing how they’ll be utilized or how it will affect your journey in the game until I’ve invested time into it. As a weary adult, once I’ve committed time to the game, it’s too late to change my decisions. So, drawing inspiration from tabletop RPGs, I recognized a chance to create an RPG framework where if you do something unconventional, like swallowing a book, we can label you as feral, because your action defined you. We can classify you based on your choices and provide options that correspond to the actions you’ve taken in the game, as opposed to arbitrary skill checks where you’ve allocated enough points into a stat.”

That’s a gameplay mechanic I can definitely get behind. Perhaps the reason I keep replaying Skyrim is that I know exactly where my skill points are going, and you solely level up the abilities you’re focusing on. I don’t desire to have to re-learn entirely new systems and want to specialize in them or read extensive build guides before every new RPG I dive into. Besides the RPG elements, there’s also a metroidvania aspect to the game, however.

“The metroidvania element emerges as you navigate the game, complete scenarios, and discover alternate routes. You will uncover paths and options in these routes that are gated by traits and items that you can only acquire through performing bizarre actions throughout the mansion,” Nelson Jr. conveys. “As you engage in quirky activities, it opens up more opportunities to perform eccentric actions for the rest of the game. It’s not just, ‘now I can double-jump.’ It’s more like, ‘I noticed that upon entering a certain dialogue, there’s a large door that can only be unlocked with a giant diamond. I now have a giant diamond in my inventory, perhaps I should explore that.’ Then you might find yourself entering a strange wooden society, dedicated to discovering the one true version of a video game.”

If you’ve ever engaged with a unique Scaffold game or checked out Nelson Jr.’s social media updates, this is precisely what you would anticipate from him. If not, just trust me, it seems like an intriguing game. However, it’s somewhat of a bewildering blend of genres, and that indeed presented a challenge.

“That was actually the subject of a discussion we had at the conclusion of last year,” Nelson Jr. states. “We received playtest feedback that anyone would envy – participants adored the narrative, they appreciated the artwork, and they found the gameplay captivating. Nevertheless, they had no clue what they were experiencing.”

The team convened to understand exactly what they were creating and agreed to reshape it into a metroidvania where “your actions and your discovery of the mansion established a non-linear framework that still narrated the game’s story but rearranged the content we had already crafted in a more engaging and explorative manner,” Nelson Jr. details. “And for various reasons, including the fact that it allowed me to name the game a ‘match-roidvania,’ I decided, ‘yes, let’s proceed with that.'” Now, we were on the path of crafting that, and the reality that players are connecting with it and expressing ‘I’ve never played a game quite like that before’ is remarkable. It exceeds our wildest aspirations and we are genuinely appreciative of the steps and the team effort that has brought us to this point.”

Even though the team managed to piece together a cohesive game out of all this, it wasn’t smooth sailing throughout. “I’ve always wanted to create a game called [this] without having made 1 and 2,” Nelson Jr. elaborates. “We invested years in its development, with several different iterations none of which secured funding. While watching The Outer Wilds concert last year, feeling intense emotions since that soundtrack can transport you to that moment, I realized that this game that seemed to have been sidelined by the industry perhaps had an extraordinarily unique opportunity.

“Because games typically require lengthy development times, they lack the capability to reflect on themselves in real-time. That’s why sometimes our parodies can feel outdated – it’s due to the 3-5 year development period, causing them to mock tropes that may not even be relevant anymore. However, this game which possessed a highly adaptable, match-3 and RPG framework, could potentially be developed within a year with the right backing. It struck me that it wasn’t just viable, but deserved to exist, having the capacity to comment on the industry as it spiraled out of control, impacting both players and developers. FrostyPop, who has backed us on several projects, recognized its potential and supported it, leading us to where we are now.”

I’m thrilled that Nelson Jr. and Unique Scaffold are bringing another intriguing game to the public, and I eagerly look forward to trying it myself.

There’s actually another match-3 genre fusion game I’m considering. Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats to Match-3 To is a match-3 and relationship simulator that appears to be absolutely delightful and offers a wonderfully relaxing demo. Check it out right here. You can also wishlist and explore Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3 right here.

Meanwhile, check out all of the upcoming video game release dates to see what else is coming this year.

I’m Issy, a freelancer you might occasionally find here covering news on GamesRadar. I’ve always held a passion for gaming, but I honed my writing skills while pursuing my Film and TV credentials at the University of Warwick and contributing to the student publication, The Boar. After university, I worked at TheGamer before leading the news section at Dot Esports. Now, you can find me freelancing for Rolling Stone, NME, Inverse, and numerous other outlets. I’m fond of everything horror-related, narrative-driven, and indie, and I primarily play on my PS5. Currently, I’m making my way through my backlog and enjoying Dishonored 2.