Gambling with the Villainess! is a story-rich, choice-driven survival game where players follow the journey of Kim, a modern-day teacher who turns to gambling to cope with overwhelming medical bills and her parents’ reckless spending. Her only escape from reality is a beloved novel, where her favorite character, Lyvanna, a cunning noblewoman and the main villainess in the book, battles court politics in a ruthless race for the imperial throne.
But when Kim suddenly dies and reincarnates into the world of the book as Lyvanna herself, fantasy becomes a deadly game.
Now inhabiting the body of the infamous villainess fated to die, Kim must outwit her enemies, rewrite the story, and manipulate the power structures of the empire, using only her wits, memory of the book, and skill in high-stakes psychological games. Framed and hated, Lyvanna must gamble everything, status, trust, even her humanity, to seize control of her fate and survive.
My motivation for creating this game comes from a deep love of narrative-focused games and manhwas that explore unconventional, morally grey protagonists, especially the “villainess” trope seen in Korean webtoons. These stories inspired me to reframe the traditional heroine arc by centering a sharp, intelligent woman fighting back against societal prejudice through psychological complexity. I wanted to create an experience where players feel the tension between appearance and truth, and where every choice carries weight in Lyvanna’s rise…or fall.
BA (Hons) Games Design 
Ethan Hay | Games
