Unholy Matrimony: How Cult of the Lamb led to two unforgettable weddings
Devolver Digital / Hey Babe PhotographyTwo couples tied the knot at PAX Australia 2024, though not in any ordinary way. Stealing the show at the larger-than-life Cult of the Lamb booth, the celebration of love was wrapped in a delightfully demonic bow. Here’s the story of how an Aussie indie game helped love flourish.
When Cult of the Lamb released in August 2022, it blew everyone’s expectations out of the water. Massive Monster merely “hoped” for the project to break even, they couldn’t imagine the success that was to come, Creative Director Julian Wilton told us.
Millions of copies sold and a number of jam-packed content updates later, the game is somehow hotter today than it’s ever been. With such widespread success, fans have very much made it their game, helping the community thrive with all sorts of artistic creations outside of what’s playable. “It’s their thing now,” Wilton said. “It’s taken on its own life form.”
Never has this been more evident than at PAX Australia 2024, where two couples held their weddings at a Cult of the Lamb-themed booth. You’d be forgiven for thinking, at a glance, it wasn’t anything serious. A marketing stunt to get people talking and bring more eyes to the game. But in reality, that couldn’t be further from the truth.
Two very real couples legitimately got married thanks to Cult of the Lamb. No ifs, ands, or buts, about it. From the concept to the celebration, here’s how a love of a charmingly twisted video game captured everyone’s heart.
It started out with a tweet, how did it end up like this?
Back in April, the often-mischievous Cult of the Lamb X (formerly Twitter) account shared a “dead serious” post. “Anyone wanting to get married this year in a Cult of the Lamb married ritual?”
Naturally, most of the replies at the time were sarcastic, folks tagging their friends just for a laugh. But a few genuinely interested parties followed the instructions and reached out. According to those involved, over 200 very real couples put their names down for consideration. Of course, there was only room for two.
Enter Tanner & Jasper alongside Shania & Blake. Neither couple could believe their luck.
For the former, it was a mix of nervousness and excitement when they heard the news they were locked in. Together for just over three years and engaged for one of those, the pair thought they’d fire off a response to the tweet given their shared love of the game.
For the latter, high school sweethearts together for over 13 years, it was an emotional moment as they finally capitalized on a uniquely memorable wedding experience they’d been seeking.
“We’ve been wanting to get married for a long time,” Blake said, “but every time we go to, something comes up, cost of living gets in the way. To have this…I just spent the whole day crying.”
Hilariously missing the first email that came through from those on the Cult team, a follow-up, and then a quick phone call soon locked it all in. “I called [Shania] while she’s at work and I told her, ‘So, do you feel like getting married in October?’”
From the publisher’s side, Devolver Digital has quite obviously “never seen anything like this,” as co-founder and COO Graeme Struthers told us. While they’ve never shied away from crazy pitches, much to their benefit, hosting legitimate weddings is not something they ever thought they’d see, but when the idea came up, they couldn’t have embraced it quickly enough.
It takes a culty village
Getting not one but two weddings off the ground is no small feat. Now try planning them around the busiest gaming convention in Australia and you’ve got a real ordeal on your hands. The lucky couples were to be wed at PAX Aus 2024, taking the stage at the Cult of the Lamb booth.
While the planning itself was largely conducted by the team at Massive Monster, the couples still had every chance to steer it all in the direction they preferred.
“They gave us a lot of control over the ceremony,” Shania assured. “They really wanted to make sure each couple had a personalized wedding so it wasn’t just us being thrown on a stage.”
From the specific rituals and traditions each couple asked for, to the presentation of it all, they were giving input from the very beginning and kept in the loop all the way through. As a neat touch, the game’s writer even got involved with them to “write new material for the ceremony,” Jasper revealed.
“Everyone on this team has been amazing, just beautiful people. ‘This is your event, you tell us what you want to do,’” the crew told them.
Devolver Digital / Hey Babe PhotographyFor Tanner and Jasper, the duo wanted to celebrate their special day in their Furry outfits. This added an extra layer of stress, though all parties involved assured the couple had their full support.
“They reassured us, because this is not always seen as a positive thing. They told us they’ve got our backs no matter what,” Tanner said.
Tanner rocked his Gryphon attire, while Jasper was in their Jackalope costume they’d built themselves. Given the limited timeframe of it all, once dates were locked in, there was little time left to get in touch with professionals to create a Furry suit from scratch.
With just a month and a half left, Jasper made it all themselves and it just so happened to be their first time creating anything of that scale.
A heartwarming day for all involved
With palpable excitement in the air the morning of, dozens of Devolver and Massive staff laid the last of their preparations down before show doors opened. Everyone wanted every little thing to be perfect for the couples on their big day. There was a genuine care behind it all.
Meanwhile, at a nearby hotel, the couples were holding back nerves and tears in equal measure as they got ready for not just their personally important weddings, but two of the more uniquely themed weddings you’ll ever see.
“We knew PAX was pretty big, but we didn’t expect it to be this big,” Shania told us 24 hours earlier as thousands of attendees flooded the convention center, hundreds lining up for Cult of the Lamb merch every hour of the day.
“We saw the temple and it’s even bigger than we expected,” Blake chimed in.
“My dad rang me the other day like, ‘You know there will be a couple of thousand people there?’” Shania said with a laugh.
“The most awkward part is going to be the hotel, it’s a very fancy place. I’m gonna come through the main lobby in this,” Tanner said while pointing to his Furry suit. “I just love the idea of these fancy businessmen in a fancy hotel, then there’s this anthropomorphic Furry.”
11AM was when the bells first rang as Jasper walked down the aisle to meet Tanner. A mix of friends and family were in attendance as hundreds of charmed spectators watched on from the ground floor and on balconies above.
From “meeting on VRChat” over three years ago to now working on a dairy farm together, the couple expressed their love and appreciation for each other as a celebrant tied the knot and made it all official.
Next up was Blake and Shania, the Sydney-based sweethearts with hundreds of hours in Cult of the Lamb together, drawing many a tear from those watching along with their adorable wedding vows. No one was cutting onions on the balcony I was watching from but they may as well have been preparing a feast for Shrek.
Both couples were showered with cheers, many even to the tune of Followers from the game, and the outpouring of love online has been nothing short of extraordinary as well.
For those who couldn’t make it in person, they’ve certainly made their voices heard online, praising the couples for taking the courageous leap in front of the gaming world.