Dressmaker is a cozy game about making dresses. Inspired by real-world dressmaking (but not requiring any prior knowledge) Dressmaker gives you creative control over every part of making dresses, from simple summer dresses to extravagant royal gowns. A variety of townsfolk commission you to make unique dresses according to their own tastes and to match events on their social calendar.

• Buy from a wide range of fabrics, including cotton, linen, wool, silk and velvet.
• Design and colour your dress in your sketchbook, adding fabric samples and appliqué.
• Arrange and cut out your dress pattern, preview them on a mannequin and sew them together.
• Turn in your dresses to your customers to gain both reputation and coin.
• Pet the kitty! 

Dressmaker began as a passion project between partners Jonathan Hau-Yoon and Sabrina Becker.

Sabrina is an artist and dressmaking enthusiast with a deep passion for costume and fashion history. She had hoped to pursue costume design professionally, until Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a connective tissue disorder, put a stop to that dream. Dressmaker grew from Jonathan’s desire to enable Sabrina to pursue her craft via their shared love of games, and they collaborated on an early proof of concept. Sabrina brought a uniquely personal perspective to the project’s focus on creativity, craftsmanship, and self-expression, while Jonathan, whose credits include acclaimed titles including Broforce, Fortnite, and Terra Nil, brought a wealth of game development experience.

Originally envisioned as a small side project, Dressmaker unexpectedly exploded online before a playable prototype even existed. Early social media posts sparked a wave of excitement, with thousands of players immediately asking to play “the dressmaking game.”

Recognizing the potential, Jonathan pitched the project to his employer Free Lives, an independent games studio in South Africa. Given that this concept is a massive departure from the studio’s previous titles such as Broforce, GORN, and Anger Foot, it was initially a tough sell, as the studio owner, Evan Greenwood, who had built the studio around violent and comedic games, was experiencing doubts about the viability of such a title.

Undeterred, Jonathan teamed up with developers Ruan Rothmann (Broforce, GORN) and Sara Laubscher (Terra Nil) to build a prototype in just three weeks (with music by Terra Nil collaborator Meydän). After launching on itch.io, the prototype quickly gained traction, surpassing 100,000 downloads and inspiring countless players to share their creations online.

This overwhelming positive response left the studio with no other option than to greenlight the project under a new label: Cozy Lives.

Today, Dressmaker is being developed for Steam by a dedicated team at Free Lives, with music by Meydän and writing by Kerstin Hall.