SAW: Genesis Developer on Villain Gameplay and What Sets It Apart from Dead by Daylight — A VGTimes Interview

At the turn of the 2000s and 2010s, games based on the Saw film series were already coming out. These were single-player horror titles with decent puzzles and dull combat. The new SAW: Genesis is betting on multiplayer, featuring villains and those trying to survive. It sounds like we're dealing with an analog of Dead by Daylight, but this project has its own distinctive features. To get to the bottom of all the details, we conducted an interview with a developer.

One thing worth highlighting separately is the game's booth, which is styled to look like yet another Saw trap. It feels like the teeth could snap shut at any moment. Sitting in the victim's seat was SAW: Genesis creative director Damian Kocurek. He's the one who answered our questions.

VGTimes: Tell us what the game is about. We're interested in its setting, lore, and connection to the films.

Damian Kocurek: SAW: Genesis is an asymmetric multiplayer horror game. In it, three people find themselves in an enclosed space. They need to pass all the trials, find the necessary items, and escape to freedom. The fourth player takes on the role of the Judge. He tries to trap the others, isolate them from one another, and ultimately reform them. The action takes place in the Saw universe, but a hundred years before the events of the films, right after World War I. On our booth, you can see a location called the Asylum.

There is a connection to the films, but it's not too overt. The villain is the Judge, who in the future will become a source of ideas and inspiration for Jigsaw. But it's a different character. The antagonist of SAW: Genesis doesn't act flawlessly — he's still experimenting and trying out different approaches.

VGTimes: The Saw universe is interesting, but don't you think there are too many games right now inspired by Dead by Daylight?

Damian Kocurek: Good question. I believe Dead by Daylight is the king of this genre. In the early stages of development, we considered various ideas that seemed interesting to us, and eventually we ended up with a first prototype based on our own imagination. But we understood that audiences go to the movies because they're interested in how the new traps work and how they kill people, as well as the story of Jigsaw himself. We tried to combine that with our own solutions, and fortunately it turned out well.

SAW: Genesis will appeal to those looking for something original and unique. Playing as the Judge is different from what we've seen in other multiplayer horror games. You need to think, prepare for various situations in advance, and act according to circumstances so as not to give the survivors a chance to band together. At the same time, the villain himself is physically weak.

VGTimes: What will motivate players to come back to SAW: Genesis? Will it have a progression system?

Damian Kocurek: At the moment, I can't share many details. But I'll note that every character will have leveling. With experience points, you'll be able to unlock new perks and create your own build. It's also worth noting that the locations and the trials within them are generated randomly, so every session plays out differently.

The Judges also differ from one another. If all goes well, there will be four of them in early access. The current version has the Doctor, who operates at close range. He makes use of surgical operation logs, which sets him noticeably apart from the second Judge. And the game's development isn't finished — you could say it's only just begun. Gradually, we'll be adding trials, locations, characters, perks, and micro-mechanics that change the gameplay as much as possible. As a result, the game will transform over time.

VGTimes: Will the game have microtransactions or other forms of additional monetization?

Damian Kocurek: We've thought about microtransactions and what could be achieved with them. These include special skins — for example, based on the ninth film — or quickly unlocking characters. But you won't need to pay to develop your heroes. Those who use microtransactions won't have an advantage over everyone else.

VGTimes: The Judge can be killed during the game. Why did you make that decision?

Damian Kocurek: This is one of our original ideas. Usually, in asymmetric horror games, when you play as the killer you feel safe — he's too powerful. But that kind of approach doesn't work in the Saw universe. There, the main villain isn't a demon but an ordinary old man who defeated his enemies through his wits. That's why we give players the chance to use imagination rather than brute force. It completely changes the dynamic.

The Judges have a whole host of abilities — for instance, their own knowledge, awareness of where the survivors are, where they're heading, and so on. But if the survivors manage to reach the Judge, they'll almost certainly kill him. I think that possibility is an important part of SAW: Genesis.

VGTimes: Can the Judges use completely different strategies under different conditions?

Damian Kocurek: Yes, of course. At the moment we can't show gameplay as the Judge, but that feature will appear in the future. During testing, we watch closely how players use traps and other tools — for example, NPCs who can start a fight and cause chaos. They also try to isolate the survivors in order to then attack them one by one. SAW: Genesis offers a wide variety of tactics that are worth keeping in mind as you level up. That's how your own unique play style takes shape.

VGTimes: How do you plan to keep surprising players after they've already seen the traps in action many times?

Damian Kocurek: Great question. We understand that if you've played hundreds of games, the Saw trials won't scare you anymore. But there are two important points. First of all, we're constantly adding something new. And the traps don't just cause discomfort — they're directly tied to the gameplay. For example, if you lose an arm, you won't be able to use two-handed weapons and you'll fight worse, and you also won't be able to open heavy doors. The emotional response comes not only from the trap itself, but also from the reluctance to lose a limb, because it will affect your abilities.

VGTimes: Will the game have moral choices? For example, will one player be able to sacrifice another in order to survive?

Damian Kocurek: We want players to trust one another and to see the Judge as their common enemy. But together you can decide who to sacrifice in order to buy more time — for example, choosing who goes down to the basement. So that option exists, but we're not creating grounds for quarrels among the survivors. We don't want to emphasize that.

VGTimes: How do you plan to retain players over the long term?

Damian Kocurek: We have a good foundation for the game, and we'll be expanding its possibilities with new content. We test and implement ideas that add variety and slightly change the gameplay. An example is what we just discussed. Once the game reaches a stable version and players are confident that they already know its rules, we can add the possibility of conflict within the team. That way, a familiar game gains new features that change it and refresh its mechanics. So what awaits you isn't just new content, but targeted gameplay changes that will keep the game interesting.

VGTimes: What's the most important lesson you've taken away during the development of SAW: Genesis?

Damian Kocurek: Maybe it's not exactly a lesson, but I'd like to point out an interesting thing. Saw really does have a lot of devoted fans, and they took an interest in our game. It turned out that striking a balance between the two components of the gameplay is genuinely difficult. It's also worth noting that small, targeted changes to the mechanics sometimes lead to unpredictable consequences. But we're learning — and constantly at that.

VGTimes: Thank you for the interview!

It's already clear that the atmosphere of the original films has been recreated wonderfully in SAW: Genesis. The project has unusual ideas that could be implemented in interesting ways. If the developers can strike the right balance, the game will appeal to both Saw fans and lovers of horror games with asymmetric multiplayer. A release date for SAW: Genesis hasn't been announced yet. We'll note that it will first appear in early access.

VGTimes has been operating since 2011 and over that time has attended dozens of exhibitions and festivals, where our journalists have gathered a wealth of exclusive material. For example, in 2019 we attended a closed showing of Cyberpunk 2077 at gamescom, in 2017 we prepared a photo report from WG Fest, in 2020 we were at the largest gaming event in Central Asia — CAGS, and we have visited IgroMir several times, where we met Hideo Kojima and other famous developers. In 2024 we traveled to the Land of the Rising Sun for TGS 2024, where we were amazed by the scale of the Tokyo event. In 2025 we witnessed one of Asia's premier gaming exhibitions — ChinaJoy in Shanghai. We also made it to the Thai edition of gamescom 2025 in Bangkok, and at the start of this year attended CES 2026 in Las Vegas and later Computex 2026 in Taipei.