Playdead

This article is about the video game developer. For the act of playing dead, see apparent death.
Playdead
Private
Industry Interactive Entertainment
Founded 2006
Founder Arnt Jensen, Dino Patti
Headquarters Copenhagen, Denmark
Products Limbo, Inside
Services Video game development
Number of employees
 20
Website Official site

Playdead is an independent video game developer based in Copenhagen, Denmark. The company was founded in 2006 by Arnt Jensen and Dino Patti. The two created the company to bring to fruition their premiere title, Limbo, a game for the Xbox Live Arcade that was released in 2010 to high critical praise.[1][2] After a year of Xbox Live exclusivity, Playdead released their ports of the game for the PlayStation 3 via the PlayStation Network, for Microsoft Windows via Steam, Android via Google Play and Mac OS X via the Mac App Store.

Jensen, originally a developer at IO Interactive, drew sketches in 2004 that led him to the idea for Limbo. Having tried programming the game himself, he eventually sought for additional help through an art-based teaser for the game in 2006. This led to a meeting between Jensen and Patti. Patti soon realized the project was larger than the two of them, and together they founded the company, initially using their private funds and government grants before obtaining larger investments.[3] Playdead eventually came to have eight employees during Limbo‍ '​s development, with temporary increases of up to 16 through freelancers. Limbo‍ '​s success led them to be able to reacquire the company back from investors, and making Playdead fully owned by itself.[4]

According to Patti, as of October 2010, Playdead is currently working on its second game; the game, partially funded by the Danish Film Institute. Initially developed under the working title Project 2, the final title Inside was revealed at the 2014 E3 convention.[5][6][7] Inside is described by the Danish newspaper Politiken as a spiritual sequel to Limbo.[8][9] It is a 2.5D platform game, using three-dimensional graphics while the playfield remains in two dimensions, and utilizes the Unity engine; Playdead opted for the existing solution instead of their custom-built engine they had created for Limbo, to reduce their efforts.[10] While the game is in color, the title remains dark and nearly monochrome in color. It is planned for release on Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One systems in 2015, with the Xbox One version having a time-limited exclusive release. According to an August 2011 interview with Patti, the title's development cycle will take about three and a half years.[10]

List of video games

Year Title Platform(s) Notes
Android iOS Mac PS3 PS4 Vita Win X360 XBO Linux
2010 Limbo Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
2015 Inside No No No No No No No No Yes No
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Playdead.

References

  1. ↑ Alexander, Leigh (2010-02-18). "Road To The IGF: Limbo's Dino Patti". Gamasutra. Retrieved 2010-07-22.
  2. ↑ Gillon, Kieron (2010-02-22). "IGF Factor 2010: Limbo". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved 2010-07-22.
  3. ↑ Thompsen, Michael (2010-09-14). "How Limbo Came To Life". IGN. Retrieved 2010-09-19.
  4. ↑ Wiltshire, Alex (2011-08-31). "Playdead has bought itself back from its investors". Edge. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
  5. ↑ Cullen, Johnny (2010-10-11). "Limbo devs working on new IP". VG247. Retrieved 2010-10-11.
  6. ↑ Schramm, Mike (2010-10-11). "Limbo creators working on new IP". Joystiq. Retrieved 2010-10-11.
  7. ↑ Kohlar, Phillip (2014-06-09). "Inside is the next game from Limbo creators Playdead Studios". Polygon. Retrieved 2014-06-09.
  8. ↑ Vigild, THOMAS (2011-12-21). "Her er fremtidens danske spil (Here is the future Danish games)". Politiken (in Danish). Retrieved 2012-06-13. "Den største samlede støtte kommer dog fra Det Danske Filminstitut, der i år har støttet syv større spil heriblandt den dystre sjælelige efterfølger med arbejdstitlen 'Project 2' til det prisbelønnede 'LIMBO' instrueret af Arnt Jensen fra udvikleren PLAYDEAD." ("The largest total support comes from the Danish Film Institute, which this year has supported seven major games including the bleak spiritual sequel with the working title 'Project 2' to the award winning 'LIMBO' directed by Arnt Jensen Developer PLAY DEAD.")
  9. ↑ Superannunation (2012-06-13). "It’s Time to Start Worrying About Thief 4". Kotaku. Retrieved 2012-06-13.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Brown, Nathan (2011-08-25). "Playdead using Unity for next project". Edge. Retrieved 2011-08-26.