<!-- mobian-agent-page publisher="dailydev" canonical="https://daily.dev/posts/how-a-non-programmer-used-aura-to-build-dark-and-darker-s-new-tutorial-b9czqrs7p" -->

---
title: How a Non-Programmer Used Aura to Build Dark and...
description: IRONMACE, the studio behind Dark and Darker, describes using an AI coding assistant called Aura to let a non-technical designer contribute directly to building...
canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/how-a-non-programmer-used-aura-to-build-dark-and-darker-s-new-tutorial-b9czqrs7p
twitter:card: summary_large_image
twitter:site: @dailydotdev
og:type: website
og:site_name: daily.dev
og:title: How a Non-Programmer Used Aura to Build Dark and Darker's New Tutorial | daily.dev
og:description: IRONMACE, the studio behind Dark and Darker, describes using an AI coding assistant called Aura to let a non-technical designer contribute directly to building...
og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/how-a-non-programmer-used-aura-to-build-dark-and-darker-s-new-tutorial-b9czqrs7p
og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/B9czQrS7P.png
og:image:alt: How a Non-Programmer Used Aura to Build Dark and Darker's New Tutorial
og:image:width: 1200
og:image:height: 630
og:locale: en
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# How a Non-Programmer Used Aura to Build Dark and Darker's New Tutorial

**[80 LEVEL](https://daily.dev/sources/80lv)** · 9 min read · 1 upvotes · 1 comments

## Summary

IRONMACE, the studio behind Dark and Darker, describes using an AI coding assistant called Aura to let a non-technical designer contribute directly to building the game's first tutorial system. Working alongside an engineer new to the codebase, the designer used Aura to prototype checkpoints, generate UI widgets, hook up logic, and even write some functions himself. The studio estimates the tutorial, which normally would have taken five to six weeks, was completed in about two to three weeks. Experienced developers still handled verification, testing in the game editor, and final integration.

## Full article

daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: <https://80.lv/articles/how-dark-and-darker-s-devs-used-aura-to-build-a-major-feature-in-half-the-time>

## Questions this post answers

### Can a non-programmer use an AI coding assistant to help build a real feature in a shipped video game?

Yes, IRONMACE had a designer with limited programming experience use the AI coding assistant Aura to help build Dark and Darker's tutorial system, including prototyping checkpoints, generating UI widgets, and writing some functions directly. Experienced developers still handled verification, testing in the editor, and final integration before release.

_Explore how AI coding assistants like Aura are reshaping who can contribute to production codebases on daily.dev._

## Community discussion

Top comments from developers on daily.dev.

**@agustinbarrientos** · 0 upvotes

> I'd count the engineer review time in that two-week number

## Similar posts on daily.dev

- [A different kind of tired](https://daily.dev/posts/a-different-kind-of-tired-cxnlxorqm) · Ruby Flow · 0 upvotes · 0 comments
- [What an AI-Assisted Spike Taught Us About Selling Software](https://daily.dev/posts/what-an-ai-assisted-spike-taught-us-about-selling-software-dnqwadvhr) · RUBYLAND · 0 upvotes · 0 comments
- [The Hidden Trap of AI-Assisted Development](https://daily.dev/posts/the-hidden-trap-of-ai-assisted-development-ksbsixenm) · Medium · 0 upvotes · 0 comments

---

Tags: [#game-development](https://daily.dev/tags/game-development), [#nocode](https://daily.dev/tags/nocode), [#vibe-coding](https://daily.dev/tags/vibe-coding)

[View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/how-a-non-programmer-used-aura-to-build-dark-and-darker-s-new-tutorial-b9czqrs7p)

```json
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]}
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"How a Non-Programmer Used Aura to Build Dark and Darker's New Tutorial","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/how-a-non-programmer-used-aura-to-build-dark-and-darker-s-new-tutorial-b9czqrs7p","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/how-a-non-programmer-used-aura-to-build-dark-and-darker-s-new-tutorial-b9czqrs7p"},"datePublished":"2026-08-20T16:27:53.540Z","dateModified":"2026-09-14T06:54:55.826Z","description":"IRONMACE, the studio behind Dark and Darker, describes using an AI coding assistant called Aura to let a non-technical designer contribute directly to building...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/c9559b817bff6ddbbc55f40a41fc1dfd?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/c9559b817bff6ddbbc55f40a41fc1dfd?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"80 LEVEL","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"80 LEVEL","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/78eebcd76c154e6bbfd565fed7dc4093","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/80lv"},"commentCount":1,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/how-a-non-programmer-used-aura-to-build-dark-and-darker-s-new-tutorial-b9czqrs7p","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":1},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":1}],"keywords":"game-development,nocode,vibe-coding","timeRequired":"PT9M"}
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"80 LEVEL","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/80lv"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"How a Non-Programmer Used Aura to Build Dark and Darker's New Tutorial"}]}
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/how-a-non-programmer-used-aura-to-build-dark-and-darker-s-new-tutorial-b9czqrs7p","comment":[{"@type":"Comment","text":"I’d count the engineer review time in that two-week number","datePublished":"2026-08-21T09:42:54.675Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/B9czQrS7P#c-AypGzGVM5","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Agustin Barrientos","url":"https://daily.dev/agustinbarrientos","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--5ayxQnqn--/f_auto/v1788281802/avatars/avatar_wQYYVe5Tbj0NJ7C7qPoa8?_a=BAMAMicg0"}}]}
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/how-a-non-programmer-used-aura-to-build-dark-and-darker-s-new-tutorial-b9czqrs7p#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Can a non-programmer use an AI coding assistant to help build a real feature in a shipped video game?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Yes, IRONMACE had a designer with limited programming experience use the AI coding assistant Aura to help build Dark and Darker's tutorial system, including prototyping checkpoints, generating UI widgets, and writing some functions directly. Experienced developers still handled verification, testing in the editor, and final integration before release. Explore how AI coding assistants like Aura are reshaping who can contribute to production codebases on daily.dev."}}]}
```

