Terry Cavanagh

Irish solo developer of VVVVVV, Super Hexagon and Dicey Dungeons

@terrycavanagh London, United Kingdom52K followersIndie Game Makers

Terry Cavanagh at a glance

Known for: VVVVVV, Super Hexagon and Dicey Dungeons
Based in: London, United Kingdom
Indie since: 2007
Active products: VVVVVV, Super Hexagon and Dicey Dungeons

Facts checked 2026-10-22

About Terry Cavanagh

Terry Cavanagh is an Irish independent game designer from Tydavnet, County Monaghan, now based in London. He studied mathematics at Trinity College Dublin and worked briefly as a market risk analyst before going full-time on games in 2007, releasing dozens of small, often experimental Flash games such as Don't Look Back.

His gravity-flipping platformer VVVVVV (2010) became an indie classic, with music by Magnus Pålsson, and he open-sourced its code for its 10th anniversary. The minimalist reflex game Super Hexagon (2012) sold about 10,000 copies in its first three days on iOS and became one of the defining hard games of the era. He was named to Forbes 30 Under 30 for games in 2014.

Dicey Dungeons (2019), a dice-based deckbuilding roguelike made with artist Marlowe Dobbe and composer Chipzel, was his most successful launch, outselling his previous two Steam games combined in its first month and winning IndieCade's Grand Jury award. He also made the free music tool Bosca Ceoil, and in 2025 released Terry's Other Games, a collection of his experiments over the years.

Products by Terry Cavanagh

VVVVVV

store.steampowered.com

Retro platformer where you flip gravity instead of jumping.

Super Hexagon

store.steampowered.com

Minimalist, extremely fast reflex game about dodging closing walls.

Dicey Dungeons

diceydungeons.com

Dice-rolling deckbuilding roguelike starring giant walking dice.

Terry's Other Games

distractionware.com

Collection of his smaller experimental games from over the years.

Bosca Ceoil

distractionware.com

Free, open source beginner-friendly music-making tool.

Timeline

2007 — Went full-time as an independent game developer.
2010 — Released VVVVVV, which won IndieCade's Fun/Compelling award.
2012 — Released Super Hexagon, selling about 10,000 copies in three days on iOS.
2014 — Named to Forbes 30 Under 30 for games.
2019 — Released Dicey Dungeons, his biggest launch, which won IndieCade's Grand Jury award.
2020 — Open-sourced VVVVVV's code for its 10th anniversary.
2025 — Released Terry's Other Games.

How Terry builds

Make lots of small experiments; a few become hits.
Let the creator's personality show through the game.
Simple, strict rules can produce intense play.

Terry Cavanagh FAQ

Who is Terry Cavanagh?

Terry Cavanagh is an Irish independent game designer from Tydavnet, County Monaghan, now based in London.

Who made VVVVVV?

VVVVVV was made by Irish developer Terry Cavanagh, with music by Magnus Pålsson, and released in January 2010.

Who made Super Hexagon?

Super Hexagon was made by Terry Cavanagh, with music by Chipzel, and released on iOS in 2012, where it sold about 10,000 copies in three days.

How many copies has Dicey Dungeons sold?

Cavanagh has not published an exact figure, but said Dicey Dungeons outsold the lifetime sales of his previous two Steam games combined in its first month (2019).