Publisher tinyBuild has revealed that the successful cyberpunk trading game Probably Stolen – Cyberpunk Shopkeeper Sim was once a completely different, non-cyberpunk title called Deepspace Emporium. The original game was "doomed to fizzle out in obscurity," according to the publisher, with its demo only managing to peak at 28 concurrent players on Steam.tinyBuild CEO Alex Nichiporchik shared on X that the company "loved the concept and gameplay" of the original title and decided to work with developers Questing Goose to "reinvent the visuals and focus on what works design wise." This pivot has clearly paid off, as Probably Stolen has since achieved significant success, attracting over 162,000 concurrent players on Steam.
The core gameplay loop of Probably Stolen involves haggling with various characters, buying and selling goods ranging from mundane to illegal, and navigating fluctuating market prices to maintain profitability. This is set against a backdrop of competing factions within a space station, including security forces and underworld elements. The game has been compared to Papers, Please in its mechanics, but with a greater emphasis on managing inventory and dealing with illicit items like contraband weaponry.
While the pixel art has been described as somewhat flavorless for the cyberpunk genre, the game offers a wide array of items to sell, including unusual items like "rat corpses, tins of caviar, robotic hands, scavenged shotguns, and purple tubers of uncertain origin." Players can also pursue different vocational pathways, such as becoming a gunsmith or a chemist.
This turnaround mirrors other notable game development transformations, such as Team Fortress 2 and Borderlands, which underwent significant visual and design changes during their development cycles, ultimately contributing to their widespread success.