When a small team of seven — five guys and two pretty amazing gals — set up to create Contrast in a small solarium a few years ago, we didn’t think we’d be launching on a brand new console, across several continents, or get as much attention as we did. 2013 was as exhausting as it was rewarding.

A true labor of love, our singular goal was to create a nice, compelling, and simple adventure while celebrating each other’s craft. Whether it was Whitney’s inspiring visual art (out of which we’ve built an entire art book), Josh and Trevor’s endless ideas about the ways in which we could use or reinvent our mechanics, or the unique way in which Sylvia’s animations are experienced in the game and our trailers, we found unique ways to respect each other’s work and encourage creativity.

Our partners told us that our passion was contagious and this quickly infected them, as they had found an outlet to express their own passions. Nicolas — who composed all the songs in Contrast — composed original songs with a contemporary jazz singer and local jazz instrumentalists. Alex wrote lyrics for the first time, and Laura Ellis donated her time and voice to the project. We even made an album out of it. Our friends at PixelNAUTS, who finished the world environments early, spent more than a month of their own time adding hidden memes and obscure (or not-so-obscure) references in the game.

Christmas came early for my own daughters as they unwrapped a very special gift. A game in which they’ve had a chance to contribute their own drawings, experiences, and personality, as well as their papa taking a longer moment than in the past three years to enjoy their smiles

The press considered us a curiosity project when we first showed the game at PAX East 2013, and we were humbled even more when they honored us with several high-profile nominations and wins. PlayStation, which embraces experimental projects — proposed that we become part of their launch story, so we doubled down on getting the game ready for all of you. Contrast launched with a few issues, but we want to assure you that we have read and heard all of your feedback and we’re continuing to work at resolving them. In the meantime, thank you.

For each of you that have and will experience our world, and for each spouse, child, or friend who sits down and watches along, we feel humbled and vindicated in doing what we love. As a developer it’s hard to ever be satisfied with the final product, but this project is what we set out to do. We wanted something different, something beautiful. We are grateful to all who helped us bring it to life, and to all of you for having us along for the ride.

From the entire Compulsion team, we hope your 2014 is filled with all that you hope for. Keep positive, because you never you know — your dreams, like ours, can come true.