VVVVVV composer Magnus Pålsson
Development
The gravity-flipping mechanic of VVVVVV is based on an earlier game designed by Cavanagh titled Sine Wave Ninja.  In an interview with IndieGames.com, Cavanagh said that he was interested in using this idea as a core concept of a game, something he felt other games which include a gravity-flipping mechanism had never done before.Cavanagh first unveiled VVVVVV on his blog in June 2009.  The game had been in development for two weeks, and Cavanagh estimated that the game would be finished in another two, "but hopefully not much longer."  A follow-up post published in July 2009 included screenshots of the game and an explanation of the game's gravity-flipping mechanic.  Cavanagh wrote that VVVVVV, unlike some of his previous work such as Judith and Pathways, would not be a "storytelling experiment", but rather "focused on the level design".  The game was first shown publicly at the 2009 Eurogamer Expo, which gave Cavanagh the opportunity to collect feedback from players.  In December 2009, a beta version of VVVVVV which had been given to donors was leaked on 4chan.The visual style of VVVVVV is heavily inspired by 8-bit computer games from the 1980s, especially Jet Set Willy and Monty on the Run, which is referenced by the element of collecting difficult-to-reach shiny objects and most notably the naming of each room; Cavanagh aimed to create a game "that looked and felt like the C64 games I grew up with." He eventually entrusted naming the rooms to QWOP developer Bennett Foddy, who created every room name in the final version. The graphical style of VVVVVV is heavily influenced by games such as Monty on the Run; similarly, the game's music is heavily dependent on chiptune elements. Swedish composer Magnus Pålsson scored the game, and released the original soundtrack in 2010, titled PPPPPP.
Cavanagh also considered this game an opportunity to indulge in his "retro fetish".  He has said because he lacks the technical prowess to make more modern-looking games, he instead focuses on making them visually interesting; additionally, he finds this to be made easier by "work[ing] within narrow limits". VVVVVV was the first game which Cavanagh sold commercially.  While his previous games were all released as freeware, due to the size of VVVVVV compared to his previous work, Cavanagh felt that he "couldn't see [himself] going down that route."
VVVVVV contains many strange visual elements, most notable of which being the sad elephant, sometimes also called the elephant in the room, which is a large elephant with a tear dropping from its eye. It spans four rooms near the Space Station area of Dimension VVVVVV, flickering constantly from color to color. If the player stands near the elephant for a short period of time, it will cause Captain Viridian to become sad. The elephant serves no function to the game, but has served to provoke much discussion about its meaning or symbolism amongst fans of the game. Similarly to many of the enemies in the game, the sad elephant originated in dream journals kept by creator Terry Cavanagh and not from Jet Set Willy as once believed.
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