It is becoming a more common trend now to see high-level gaming industry veterans leave big name developers to start their own venture. What exactly is causing this is hard to discern. It could be a dislike of the corporate culture that comes with working for a big company, or for someone like Hideo Kojima at Konami, wanting full creative control, which led to his departure from the developer. Whatever the case may be, it is quite something to see a number of games industry veterans joining forces to form a new game development studio.
From Kojima to Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami, to Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, there are a number of folks who have charted their own paths after having their vision stifled by larger corporate entities. Losing creative control, or that closeness to a project, or the engagement with the fan base can be disheartening for creative types. As the CEO of the new studio Theorycraft Games, Joe Tung formerly of Riot Games, tells it "having that direct, intimate relationship with players is, we think, pretty rare in the industry."
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This is part of the vision behind Theorycraft Games for Tung and the other industry veterans who are joining him in this venture that has already raised $37.5 million USD in funding. While the company hasn't announced any titles formally, it is already at work on something in the online multiplayer PvP sphere. A game that can be multiplatform, and last for a while with games-as-a-service-style support, is the direction the company is likely heading. Pulling in talent from Blizzard, Bungie, Riot Games, and Valve, Tung will be able to hit the ground running with a stacked roster of talent, meaning that expectations should be high.
Tung will be joined by former Creative Director at Bungie, Mike Tipul, former Art Director on Valorant, Moby Francke, Tech Lead on Valorant, Michael Evans, and Finance Lead for League of Legends, Areeb Pirani. This core, who have already put out feelers to recruit talent, will be taking on some of the biggest games in the industry—some that they had a hand in creating—making for quite a challenge.
When discussing how to monetize this as-of-yet unnamed project, Tung is careful to avoid some of the more negative connotations surrounding free-to-play games and their microtransaction models. It appears that the company is looking to avoid some of the more predatory microtransactions that games like FIFA 21 have been criticized for.
Theorycraft Games will have its work cut out for it, entering into the crowded online multiplayer PvP market. Not every game can be Fortnite, or League of Legends, but given the talent on the roster at Theorycraft, it will be worth keeping an eye on to see what the new company comes up with.
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Source: Forbes