The studio is now working on its debut project, a "next-generation open-world game" built on an original IP.
Former Riot Games executives have announced the formation of a new studio, Believer, as well as revealed that it has raised $55 million in a Series A funding round.
The round was led by Lightspeed, with additional participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Riot Games, Bitkraft Ventures, 1up Ventures, Cleveland Avenue (led by Dan Thompson), Tornante Company (led by Michael D. Eisner), and other undisclosed venture partners.
The studio was founded in April 2022 and it is led by CEO Michael Chow. Prior to this role, Chow held the position of Vice President at Riot Games, the creator of League of Legends, and co-founded Newtoy, the developer of Words With Friends.
Chow co-founded Believer together with Steven Snow, co-founder of Riot Games and former executive producer of League of Legends, who serves as the studio's Chief Product Officer. In addition to Chow and Snow, several other former employees of Riot Games, Microsoft, Bungie, and EA joined Believer.
The Believer team is currently working on its debut project, a "next-generation open-world game" built on original intellectual property. According to the studio, it will focus on creating "stories where player choices matter" and gameplay systems that "bring players together rather than pushing them apart."
In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, the studio co-founders also noted that Believer is determined to expand its new intellectual property beyond just video games and plans to achieve this with the support and investment of Michael D. Eisner, a former CEO of The Walt Disney Company and ex-president of Paramount Pictures, and his Tornante company.
It's currently unclear when and on what platforms Believer's debut project will be released but, according to Snow, the team is committed to taking the necessary time to develop the game properly. Based on his estimation, it typically takes around three to five years to create most open-world games, which he believes would be a "reasonable timeline for us."
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