New company, no history, wheres the money from?

[Tename]

Game looked really cool but I noticed it was the devs first product with no publisher. I looked up the companies linked in and business license and they have not existed for long, 2022 is the earliest on the filings I could find, they also seem to have not kept their home state(Delaware) business license in good standing.

I ask because I really want this not to be some sort of scam or half baked product but the source of funding seems to be hidden which makes me uneasy since a lot of previous let downs had history like this.

[Nomad]

If they have investors? Tencent or Microsoft are most likely, but the studio head could just be minted and/or have connections after working at another studio and believe in their project, it happens sometimes.

However, I 100% agree there is very little to go on, it say they are AAA studio vets but there is no info on what they did or at what studio. Both the website and discord feel half-baked granted they could just be to busy but yea, It's not really worth getting hyped about. Wait for the launch or a beta test to come out and see then if it's worth buying

Edit: found CFOs LinkedIn but it's kinda vague - "Helped artist who had a game idea start a new game studio, joining full-time in February 2023. We bootstrapped company to eight-figure peak annual revenue and grew the team to over 30 in over a dozen countries." Companies been around for alittle over 4 years it seems and posting about hiring off and on for 2 years

[Didifinito]

I doubt its a scam no fund raise no patreon no nothing. I also wouldnt be very worried about being a half baked product it can happan with or without funding

[Tename]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Nomad:

If they have investors? Tencent or Microsoft are most likely, but the studio head could just be minted and/or have connections after working at another studio and believe in their project, it happens sometimes.

However, I 100% agree there is very little to go on, it say they are AAA studio vets but there is no info on what they did or at what studio. Both the website and discord feel half-baked granted they could just be to busy but yea, It's not really worth getting hyped about. Wait for the launch or a beta test to come out and see then if it's worth buying

Edit: found CFOs LinkedIn but it's kinda vague - "Helped artist who had a game idea start a new game studio, joining full-time in February 2023. We bootstrapped company to eight-figure peak annual revenue and grew the team to over 30 in over a dozen countries." Companies been around for alittle over 4 years it seems and posting about hiring off and on for 2 years

Well it's just weird that they are keeping the source of their money so hushed, most companies are fine to say they got an injection from Tencent, or some investment firm. I noticed that their linked in claims to be black owned but their website doesnt show any executives who are black.

A lot of things with their company is just very weird. They seem to be primarily in Washington state, but list a mailing address in a Los Angeles Fedex office but are originally registered in Delaware which as state is not in good standing with the state of Delaware. It's just hard not to be very suspicious when they wont say who's been letting them use all this money for the past 3 years sine it seems like a very ambitious.

I want it to succeed but it is very odd.

[Soundbubble]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Tename:

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Nomad:

If they have investors? Tencent or Microsoft are most likely, but the studio head could just be minted and/or have connections after working at another studio and believe in their project, it happens sometimes.

However, I 100% agree there is very little to go on, it say they are AAA studio vets but there is no info on what they did or at what studio. Both the website and discord feel half-baked granted they could just be to busy but yea, It's not really worth getting hyped about. Wait for the launch or a beta test to come out and see then if it's worth buying

Edit: found CFOs LinkedIn but it's kinda vague - "Helped artist who had a game idea start a new game studio, joining full-time in February 2023. We bootstrapped company to eight-figure peak annual revenue and grew the team to over 30 in over a dozen countries." Companies been around for alittle over 4 years it seems and posting about hiring off and on for 2 years

Well it's just weird that they are keeping the source of their money so hushed, most companies are fine to say they got an injection from Tencent, or some investment firm. I noticed that their linked in claims to be black owned but their website doesnt show any executives who are black.

A lot of things with their company is just very weird. They seem to be primarily in Washington state, but list a mailing address in a Los Angeles Fedex office but are originally registered in Delaware which as state is not in good standing with the state of Delaware. It's just hard not to be very suspicious when they wont say who's been letting them use all this money for the past 3 years sine it seems like a very ambitious.

I want it to succeed but it is very odd.

Their CEO (and I think founder) is Miles Williams, who's black. If he owns the company, I guess that counts as "black owned"? Not really a term I'm familiar with or encountered, so I assume it's a US thing.

I recommend watching this video by Riloe, it explains some more behind the scenes: https://youtu.be/P9u7s_cwVYw?si=MFi7qCy9V8PM6q61

Not exactly a financial report but at least personally, it's enough for me to trust that this is a legit project.

[Salty Slothy]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Soundbubble:

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Tename:

Well it's just weird that they are keeping the source of their money so hushed, most companies are fine to say they got an injection from Tencent, or some investment firm. I noticed that their linked in claims to be black owned but their website doesnt show any executives who are black.

A lot of things with their company is just very weird. They seem to be primarily in Washington state, but list a mailing address in a Los Angeles Fedex office but are originally registered in Delaware which as state is not in good standing with the state of Delaware. It's just hard not to be very suspicious when they wont say who's been letting them use all this money for the past 3 years sine it seems like a very ambitious.

I want it to succeed but it is very odd.

Their CEO (and I think founder) is Miles Williams, who's black. If he owns the company, I guess that counts as "black owned"? Not really a term I'm familiar with or encountered, so I assume it's a US thing.

I recommend watching this video by Riloe, it explains some more behind the scenes: https://youtu.be/P9u7s_cwVYw?si=MFi7qCy9V8PM6q61

Not exactly a financial report but at least personally, it's enough for me to trust that this is a legit project.

Why does it matter he’s black?

[Soundbubble]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Salty Slothy:

Why does it matter he’s black?

Actually read the thread and you might find out yourself.

[4Horsemen]

They don't necessarily need money, or at least not a lot of it. A lot of smaller dev groups work on projects in their spare time, sometimes to get it to a point to pitch, sometimes for the full dev cycle

[Salty Slothy]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Soundbubble:

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Salty Slothy:

Why does it matter he’s black?

Actually read the thread and you might find out yourself.

I did. Now feel free to explain.

[PovKetz]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Salty Slothy:

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Soundbubble:

Actually read the thread and you might find out yourself.

I did. Now feel free to explain.

C'mon now man..

In this comment by Tename, among other questions about the validity of the company, he brings up the fact they claim to be a "Black Owned" company while he can't find any executives who seem to be black. Simple enough.

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Tename:

Well it's just weird that they are keeping the source of their money so hushed, most companies are fine to say they got an injection from Tencent, or some investment firm. I noticed that their linked in claims to be black owned but their website doesnt show any executives who are black.

A lot of things with their company is just very weird. They seem to be primarily in Washington state, but list a mailing address in a Los Angeles Fedex office but are originally registered in Delaware which as state is not in good standing with the state of Delaware. It's just hard not to be very suspicious when they wont say who's been letting them use all this money for the past 3 years sine it seems like a very ambitious.

I want it to succeed but it is very odd.

Then in response to this and only this, Soundbubble expresses the fact that The CEO (and possibly founder) of Fun Dog Studios is Miles Williams, who is black, therefor sating Tename's curiosity about where the Black Owned business title is coming from. That's it.

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Soundbubble:

Their CEO (and I think founder) is Miles Williams, who's black. If he owns the company, I guess that counts as "black owned"? Not really a term I'm familiar with or encountered, so I assume it's a US thing.

[Salty Slothy]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von PovKetz:

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Salty Slothy:

I did. Now feel free to explain.

C'mon now man..

In this comment by Tename, among other questions about the validity of the company, he brings up the fact they claim to be a "Black Owned" company while he can't find any executives who seem to be black. Simple enough.

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Tename:

Well it's just weird that they are keeping the source of their money so hushed, most companies are fine to say they got an injection from Tencent, or some investment firm. I noticed that their linked in claims to be black owned but their website doesnt show any executives who are black.

A lot of things with their company is just very weird. They seem to be primarily in Washington state, but list a mailing address in a Los Angeles Fedex office but are originally registered in Delaware which as state is not in good standing with the state of Delaware. It's just hard not to be very suspicious when they wont say who's been letting them use all this money for the past 3 years sine it seems like a very ambitious.

I want it to succeed but it is very odd.

Then in response to this and only this, Soundbubble expresses the fact that The CEO (and possibly founder) of Fun Dog Studios is Miles Williams, who is black, therefor sating Tename's curiosity about where the Black Owned business title is coming from. That's it.

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Soundbubble:

Their CEO (and I think founder) is Miles Williams, who's black. If he owns the company, I guess that counts as "black owned"? Not really a term I'm familiar with or encountered, so I assume it's a US thing.

Missed that line. Thank you.

[Paul Indrome]

https://www.linkedin.com/company/fun-dog-studios/people/

Stalked them a bit and according to LinkedIn, they do aggregate a lot of industry experience.

That doesn't guarantee anything but with the non-compete ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ in America being abolished, it's something we will see more often in the future as overworked, underpaid and underappreciated veterans and seniors leave the big established corporations and found their own studios. So the verdict is very much still out on what this type of setup can accomplish.

[Salty Slothy]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Paul Indrome:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/fun-dog-studios/people/

Stalked them a bit and according to LinkedIn, they do aggregate a lot of industry experience.

That doesn't guarantee anything but with the non-compete ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ in America being abolished, it's something we will see more often in the future as overworked, underpaid and underappreciated veterans and seniors leave the big established corporations and found their own studios. So the verdict is very much still out on what this type of setup can accomplish.

Dear god may we see Raven freed from the call of duty mines. So much talent was wasted.

[The Seraph of Tomorrow]

Hyper focus on advertising non-game play elements, hidden money, using "experience in the industry" as a selling point as if games by "experienced devs" don't use this tactic to create a false reputation to sell bad games. Big Red Flags.

I've noticed a pattern in the advertising that makes me think this is certainly a major "investor backed" project. Design choices that seem really out of place for a Europe vs Asia conflict. Not Startfield / Microsoft "executive self insert" level of bad, but noticeable none the less.

Call me a skeptic, but these days I don't trust any developer regardless of their development history because we living in an era of scumbag corps, sycophantic consumers, and investors with ulterior motives. Even the Indie scene is infested with the same problems, which doesn't give me much hope for gaming as an industry. It is certainly not the same game industry I grew up with as a kid.

[Soundbubble]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von The Seraph of Tomorrow:

Hyper focus on advertising non-game play elements

We already saw 2 gameplay trailers and maybe more importantly, massive improvements to performance between them. And even their cinematics use in-game assets.

Ursprünglich geschrieben von The Seraph of Tomorrow:

hidden money

Can't argue with you there, I have no idea where their funding is coming from. But I also don't know that about the majority of non-publicly traded companies.

Ursprünglich geschrieben von The Seraph of Tomorrow:

using "experience in the industry" as a selling point as if games by "experienced devs" don't use this tactic to create a false reputation to sell bad games. Big Red Flags.

What else are they supposed to advertise with if this is the studio's first title? A game is made by humans and their experience is what matters. And that's why you don't take "worked at XYZ" as the selling point, but look at their portfolios. It's out there and I can tell you their claims are valid.

Ursprünglich geschrieben von The Seraph of Tomorrow:

I've noticed a pattern in the advertising that makes me think this is certainly a major "investor backed" project.

Typical investors go for projects that have a high chance of big returns if it gets completed. They will go for risky projects, but only if the promises are also grand (NFTs, meta verse, "the next AAAAA game that kills all games"). A game with a reverse power-fantasy where you're quite literally advertised to be the small guy isn't that if you ask me and none of their marketing hyped it up to be some kind of ground breaking title.

The only group they did try to cater to is gamers and artists if anything. https://x.com/FDForeverWinter/status/1760122733336096849

Ursprünglich geschrieben von The Seraph of Tomorrow:

Design choices that seem really out of place for a Europe vs Asia conflict. Not Startfield / Microsoft "executive self insert" level of bad, but noticeable none the less.

It's not Europe vs Asia, it's Europa vs Euruska and Eurasia. They were inspired by the super states of 1984, so I wouldn't equate them to today's borders. But I don't really know what "design choices" you talk about that are out of place.


I get being skeptical of games these days and I'm not trying to convince you that the game will turn out fantastic. But going by the angle that this is some kind of investor scam ala The Day Before is ridiculous when they have actually shown gameplay with unique assets and not prettied up gameplay slices. The Day Before showed actual red flags from the very beginning, not like these. Not to mention that I know at least 2 independant content creators who already played the game (in particular Riloe who made the video I posted above).

[TheBarbaryGhost]

From what I understand this game is being developed by a team of ex-concept artists from a range of AAA studios.