Interview with Marla Singer, Shady Lady Studios
In a sector known for high volume – both in audio and attitude – a slot provider choosing restraint is almost radical. The industry norm is declaration: bold fonts, louder promises, and debut titles soaked in exclamation marks. It’s become a familiar formula, comforting in its repetition. But comfort rarely makes history.
Then came Shady Lady. No roadmap, no founder interviews, no studio tours. Just Devil’s Finger – a game that didn’t feel like a launch, but a message. Visual grit, unconventional mechanics, and a voice that didn’t ask for attention so much as command it.
What followed wasn’t a ripple. It was a calculated disturbance. Stylised, strange, and unusually self-assured for a debut. Less of a splash – more of a signal. An intentional fracture in the surface of a scene that too often repeats itself.
Since then, the studio has doubled down on intrigue with Brainwashed and Oops – games that resist easy classification and lean into oddity. Still, few know who they are, and fewer know what they’ll do next. We stepped briefly into the dark to speak with Marla Singer, the enigmatic voice behind Shady Lady Studios.
Thanks for speaking to us today. As streamers and affiliates, we see emerging new providers quite often, but none are as discreet as Shady Lady. Why did you decide to keep noise about your new venture to a minimum?
Because noise isn’t the same thing as presence, we knew from the start that we weren’t interested in playing by the marketing handbook. There’s a kind of desperation in over-announcing yourself – a need to be validated before anything has been built. We came in quietly because it matched our intention: to be judged on the work, not the campaign. The industry doesn’t need another studio shouting “we’re different” – it needs one that is.
How long was Shady Lady ‘lurking’ behind the scenes? Was it a project years in the making, and was it tempting to give the community a taste of what was to come?
There’s no neat origin story. Shady Lady wasn’t conceived in a single moment – she emerged slowly, over time, across notebooks, abandoned concepts, late-night calls, and creative friction. We had the opportunity to tease or drip-feed the idea, but chose not to. Premature reveals risk, diluting the impact. We believed in creating something complete first. You only get one first impression. Ours needed teeth.
Devil’s Finger was a strikingly unique release, and especially different for a debut. Why did you decide to open with a release that wasn’t ‘safe’?
Because safe is forgettable. Devil’s Finger was a risk – and we were fine with that. From the outset, we knew it wouldn’t be for everyone. But it wasn’t built for everyone. It was made for those looking for something else. The noir aesthetics, the pacing, the sharp turns – they weren’t compromises. They were invitations. If it caught your attention, great. If it confused you, even better. We wanted to begin by setting the tone: expect the unexpected.
What observations did you make about other providers when you were setting yourself up, and how did it influence you to be different? Did any in particular influence you?
There’s talent in the industry, no doubt. But there’s also mimicry. You start to see the same ideas wearing different costumes. Our observation wasn’t that others are doing it wrong, but that they’re all doing it similarly. What influenced us more were things outside the casino space: pulp fiction, vintage cinema, guerrilla art, analogue textures, and internet phenomena. We wanted to channel tone, not just gameplay. We find inspiration in the absurd and the unexplored, not in what others are doing.
Your website is strikingly minimal, offering nothing more than your product and the cryptic invitation to ‘step into the shadows’. Why is it important to you to avoid some of the generic buzzwords often associated with providers in our industry?
Because language sets the tone. And those buzzwords – “cutting-edge,” “world-class,” “next-gen” – have lost their meaning. We didn’t want to describe ourselves. We wanted to spark a reaction. Saying less invites curiosity. It leaves space for people to project, interpret, and imagine. That’s more valuable than five paragraphs of recycled pitch lines.
Despite your low profile, the curiosity and speculation around Shady Lady are growing fast. Do you plan to reveal more about the brand, or do you prefer staying in the shadows?
The shadows aren’t a gimmick. They’re part of how we operate. We’ll reveal things, but always through the work, through mechanics, characters, and worlds. We don’t hide for effect. We just don’t see the need to narrate everything. People can learn who we are by playing what we make. That feels more honest.
Very little is known about the team behind Shady Lady. Is there anything you can share about the creative minds behind the company?
We’re a strange mix. Some of us have been in the industry for years. Others arrived from traditional PC and console gaming, from writing, from code, from chaos. What unites us is a shared taste for slightly off-centre things. We’re not driven by genre or market demands. We’re driven by tension – by making something that shouldn’t work, but somehow does. And no, we won’t do team photos.
What does the future look like for Shady Lady? Will you venture into the realm of live games or other games, or is your niche firmly rooted in slots?
Right now, our focus is on slots. That’s where our voice feels sharpest, where we can craft something distinct. But we’re not limited by format — only by impact. If something outside of slots truly demands our approach, we’ll consider it. But it has to be unmistakably ours.
Loot Boxes are a particularly interesting feature. Was this inspired by video game loot boxes, and do you think you’ll incorporate more non-slot elements or gamified features in the future?
The short answer is yes. The longer answer is: we believe games should adapt to how players and audiences want to experience them. Whether that’s alone at midnight, in a packed stream chat, or somewhere in between. Our design philosophy is about creating tension, engagement, and unpredictability — key ingredients for real entertainment. We want to give streamers tools to create moments: to build suspense, to spark reactions, to craft their own narratives with the games.
Loot Boxes and Highlight Reels are just the beginning. We see our Feature Store as an evolving platform — a toolkit built to empower streamers and players to craft dynamic, on-demand entertainment. Our vision is to create experiences that feel alive, personal, and shaped by the player, not dictated by us.
We’re only getting started. Much more will be revealed later this year.
Can you give us an insight into the creation of your characters? Cosmo seems like an unlikely hero in Devil’s Finger.
Cosmo wasn’t designed to fit a mould. He’s the product of countless hours spent studying cosplay cultures, reality reels, and outsider archetypes. A hero born from creative chaos.
At first glance, you might laugh. But stay a little longer, and you find yourself rooting for him. That’s the space we like to explore – characters who surprise you, who feel flawed, human, and alive.
Will future games have more heroes and villains? Maybe. What we can promise is this: there will be no shortage of characters worth remembering.
Do you plan to expand into the UK? The regulations are admittedly tighter than other jurisdictions, but it’s an undeniably huge market.
We’re watching the UK. It’s a market with depth and history – and also its own challenges.
We won’t rush in. But if the timing feels right and the opportunity matches our philosophy, we’ll move. We’re not here to follow the market. We’re here to reshape the moments we step into. Wherever that might be, one story at a time.
