Former Ubisoft Barcelona developers have launched Dark Ritual Studios, an independent team built around a "craftsmanship over scale" philosophy and already funded to complete its debut game, Puzzle Mage.
A group of former Ubisoft Barcelona developers have come together to launch Dark Ritual Studios, a new indie developer looking to take a very different approach to AAA game production.
The studio is led by game director Myles Kerwin, formerly an expert level designer at Ubisoft Barcelona, and has been established around a philosophy of "craftsmanship over scale".
Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, Kerwin explained that the team's experience working within larger studios reinforced its belief that great games don't necessarily require enormous development teams.
Instead, Dark Ritual intends to remain small, allowing developers to retain greater creative ownership and move ideas from discussion into development more quickly.
The studio's formation comes shortly after a turbulent period at Ubisoft Barcelona.
Ubisoft proposed 51 layoffs at the studio earlier this year, leading to strike action from employees. Kerwin subsequently confirmed that July was his final month at Ubisoft following the restructuring.
He was among the developers who worked on Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced, which Kerwin says has already reached more than three million players.
Dark Ritual Studios has already secured the funding needed to complete its first project, Puzzle Mage.
Dark Ritual isn't starting from scratch, either.
The studio has already secured the funding needed to complete its debut game, Puzzle Mage, which is currently targeting a 2027 release.
Dark Ritual joins a growing number of studios formed by experienced developers leaving larger companies and using that AAA experience to build smaller, more focused teams with greater creative control.
It's another example of experienced AAA developers taking their knowledge into smaller independent teams - and Dark Ritual's emphasis on staying small could make it a particularly interesting studio to watch.
Now we'll have to see what Puzzle Mage can do.
Keep Calm and waka waka...
