Dennis Gustafsson, the developer of Teardown, wrote about the making of one of the year's surprise hits.If I had to sum up Teardown in one word, it would be a long period of meticulous planning, followed by intense and fast destruction. The game is extremely flexible, but at the same time it is a game that focuses the player's attention.

"'Teardown' began as a technological experiment and is one of those games where the gameplay is designed to fit the technology. It's not the first time I've worked on a project like this ("Sprinkle," "Smash Hit"), and it probably won't be the last, but 'Teardown' was the most frustrating experience I've ever had."

Gustafsson goes on to outline the specific challenge of placing destruction at the core of the game, leaving the player with a vast array of choices, but setting limits on them. Ultimately, this led to the game's current 'heist' structure." After almost a full year of experimentation and multiple failed prototypes, the idea of a two-stage heist setting was born. This would be compatible with all the restrictions (or lack thereof) that a fully destructible environment imposes, yet still provide an interesting challenge. Players are free to move around the fully accessible environment, carefully plan their heist, and creatively use destruction, vehicles, and objects in the environment to create shortcuts.

It was also interesting to learn what Gustafson thinks the game accomplishes and where it may be a bit too cul-de-sac. Villa Gordon is currently the biggest level in the game, and walking around in the preparation phase can be a bit tedious. Personally, I think the game would shine in a more compact and cluttered environment like Hollowrock Island, with verticality that would allow for more interesting shortcuts." [Ideas like timers, trial-and-error gameplay, replayability, story ("Let's be honest - no one plays Teardown for the story, but I do think it structures the missions and plays an important role as an incentive"), and progression in sandbox games discusses the general idea of.