Ant-workshop

Ant Workshop, an independent game development studio based in Edinburgh, Scotland, was established in January 2015 by Tony Gowland. Gowland founded the company after a distinguished 20-year career in the games industry, where he held senior design roles at major studios like Rockstar Games and Activision Blizzard, contributing to acclaimed titles such as the "Grand Theft Auto: Stories" series and "Red Dead Redemption". This extensive background in AAA game development provided him with the experience and network to launch his own venture, focusing on creating original intellectual property characterized by a quirky sense of humor.

The studio operates with a dual business model. Its primary focus is the development of its own games, which it sells on various platforms including PC, Nintendo Switch, and Apple Arcade. The company's revenue is generated from the sales of these titles. Secondly, Ant Workshop provides co-development and porting services, assisting other independent developers in bringing their games to console platforms. This strategy of mixing original IP development with work-for-hire projects helps maintain financial stability. In January 2022, the studio secured a seven-figure equity investment from Chroma Ventures, which has enabled team expansion and greater focus on developing new titles. Following the release of "Dungeon Golf," Ant Workshop shifted its strategy to produce a series of smaller games with lower development costs, described as "singles, not albums," to allow for more creative risks and faster release cycles.

Ant Workshop's portfolio showcases a variety of genres. Their first release, "Binaries" (2016), is a challenging puzzle-platformer where the player controls two objects simultaneously. Their subsequent major title, "Dead End Job" (2019), is a procedurally generated, twin-stick shooter with a distinctive 1990s cartoon aesthetic, where players take on the role of a paranormal pest control worker. Another notable release is "Dungeon Golf," a physics-based party game combining mini-golf with dungeon-crawling elements. The studio has also developed smaller, experimental titles and has been involved in porting over a dozen games for other developers, including "John Wick Hex" and "Yes, Your Grace".

Keywords: independent game developer, game development studio, console porting services, co-development, original IP, Tony Gowland, Rockstar Games veteran, Dead End Job, Binaries, Dungeon Golf, twin-stick shooter, puzzle platformer, physics-based party game, Apple Arcade, Nintendo Switch, Steam games, Chroma Ventures, Edinburgh game studio, Scottish game industry