The devlog
Notes from
the workbench.
How the studio actually works: engineering, art direction, theology review, and the decisions behind the games. Long-form, no hype.
- July 1, 2026studio
One story, three surfaces
We thought the app was missing its story. It turned out the story was already here - written, painted, half-built in three different places - and what was missing was the connection. A note on the pipeline that now feeds the app, the channel, and this site from a single writing pass.
4 min read →
- June 1, 2026engineering
On the calligraphy reveal
How the studio's signature visual move works on the home page, what we got wrong on the first pass, what v2 fixes, and what v3 will need. A short engineering note with most of the math left out.
7 min read →
- May 18, 2026philosophy
On the off-screen rule
We do not depict Allah, the Prophet ﷺ, the other prophets, or angels. The constraint sounds like a limit. It has turned out to be the most generative thing in the project. A long-form note on what it asks of us, and what it gives us in return.
8 min read →
- May 6, 2026studio
On generation and curation
The studio is using AI for its paintings, permanently, on every title in the slate. Here's the decision, why we made it, what changes, what doesn't, and how we're going to talk about it from now on.
5 min read →
- May 4, 2026studio
Why DeenOD is becoming a studio
A founder's letter. The first one. On sunsetting the trivia app, the games I wished existed when I was a Muslim teenager, and the constraint that turned out to be the most generative thing in the project.
6 min read →