Terry Cavanagh (, ; born 1984) is an Irish video game designer based in London, England. He has created over two dozen games, most notably VVVVVV, Super Hexagon, and Dicey Dungeons.
Biography After studying mathematics at Trinity College in Dublin, Cavanagh worked briefly as a market risk analyst before moving to focus on game development full-time in 2007. While he received some attention in the press for his "serious and arty" indie games, Cavanagh faced significant financial difficulties in his early career. He was reportedly close to abandoning game development when VVVVVV (released in 2010) became an unexpected success, providing him with the financial means to continue developing games.
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2020, he gave away 1000 copies of three of his games for free in the hope it would "offer a distraction" to those in need of it.
Many of his titles share a primitive, minimalist retro aesthetic. He is credited as a programmer for Alphaland, a platform game by Jonas Kyratzes.
Cavanagh has stated that he prefers the personal nature of independent game development, its smaller scale enabling the personality of the creator to shine through in the final product.
Influences Cavanagh cites the 1997 Japanese RPG Final Fantasy VII as his favorite game, crediting it as his inspiration for becoming a video game developer. In 2009 Cavanagh named interactive fiction writer Adam Cadre as his favorite developer.
Awards Cavanagh's game VVVVVV won the 2010 IndieCade Festival in the category of "Fun/Compelling". In 2014, Cavanagh was named to Forbes' annual "30 Under 30" list in the Games category. In 2019, Cavanagh's game Dicey Dungeons won the 2019 IndieCade Grand Jury award.
Ludography Game Platform Release date XOLDIERS Microsoft Windows 2008 Squish Microsoft Windows 2008 Self Destruct Microsoft Windows 2008 Transport Stories Microsoft Windows 2008 Never Opened Microsoft Windows 2008 We Love Mind Control Rocket Microsoft Windows 2008 Judith Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux 2009 Pathways Microsoft Windows 2009 Airplane Adventures Adobe Flash 2009 The Baron's Volcano Party Adobe Flash 2009 DAS PÜZZELSPIELEN Adobe Flash 2009 Nun Squad Microsoft Windows 2009 Bullfist Adobe Flash 2009 Nanny ZERO Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X 2009 Deterministica Adobe Flash 2009 Airplane Adventures 2: The Return Adobe Flash 2009 The Best Years of my Life Adobe Flash 2009 Bullet Time Adobe Flash 2009 Don't Look Back Microsoft Windows, iOS, Android, OUYA 2009 Radio Silence Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Unity 2010 N.O.T.T.U.B. Adobe Flash 2010 Sumouse Microsoft Windows 2010 Kozachok Adobe Flash 2010 Vegetable Game Adobe Flash 2010 Going Forward Adobe Flash 2010 Bababadalgharaghtakamminarronnkonnbronntonnerronntuonnthunntrovarrhounawnskawntoohoohoordenenthurnuk Adobe Flash, OUYA 2010 memrrtiks, suashem Adobe Flash 2010 Phobiaphobiaphobia Adobe Flash 2010 Red Sky Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Unity, 2010 Bridge Adobe Flash 2010 VVVVVV Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation Vita, iOS, Android, OUYA 2010 American Dream Microsoft Windows, OUYA 2011 Hero's Adventure Adobe Flash 2011 Oiche Mhaith Adobe Flash, OUYA 2011 At a Distance Microsoft Windows 2011 Super Hexagon iOS, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Android, Blackberry 10, Linux, OUYA 2012 ChatChat Adobe Flash 2012 Hexagon Adobe Flash, OUYA 2012 Harmonilr Adobe Flash 2012 Griefer Adobe Flash 2012 Notsnake Adobe Flash 2012 Collapse HTML5 2013 Fountain Adobe Flash 2013 Naya's Quest Adobe Flash 2013 Experiment 12 Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X 2013 Maverick Bird Adobe Flash 2014 Moving Stories Adobe Flash 2014 GRAB THEM BY THE EYES Adobe Flash 2015 Copycat Adobe Flash, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux 2015 Constellation Machine Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, Adobe Flash 2016 Tiny Heist Microsoft Windows, Mac OS, online 2016 Dicey Dungeons Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 2019Climb the Giant Man ObbyRoblox2021 Anyone Could Be Struck By Lightning At Any Time Roblox 2021 Triangle Run Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux 2021 Mr. Platformer Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux 2023 Terry's Other Games Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux 2025 Egg HTML5, Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux 2025 State Machine Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux TBA
Additional works Cavanagh also created Bosca Ceoil in 2013, followed by a version 2.0 in 2015. Bosca Ceoil is a free and open source music making tool, designed for ease-of-use, particularly for beginners. A modern port, Bosca Ceoil: The Blue Album, was created in 2024 by Yuri Sizov.
References
External links
The Escapist interview with Terry Cavanagh The Spelunky Showlike — Making Generous Games with Terry Cavanagh Bosca Ceoil Bosca Ceoil: The Blue Album