Firaxis Games veterans Jake Solomon and Will Miller have established Midsummer Studios to revitalize the Life Sim genre and empower players to create and share meaningful stories through play.
Firaxis Games' Jake Solomon and Will Miller Announce New Studio 'Midsummer Studios'
Plans to Reveal a Demo for Untitled Life Sim Game Within 2024
Game devs from renowned titles such as XCOM, Civilization, and The Sims have launched a new game studio, Midsummer Studios, and teased their upcoming next-generation entry into the Life Sim genre. Midsummer Studios, founded by Firaxis Games veterans Jake Solomon, Creative Director of the XCOM 2 games, and Will Miller, Lead Designer of Civilization: Beyond Earth and Lead Engineer on Marvel’s Midnight Suns, will be based in Maryland.
The studio's first game will emphasize player-driven narratives centered around the "dramas of modern life" and allow "communities to share memorable moments that grow out of the creativity of players themselves."
"The best stories in games are written by the players," said Solomon. "At Midsummer, we’re making a life sim focused on the drama of modern life, where our players will write meaningful stories just by playing, and then share those stories with the world."
In a statement to Variety, Solomon noted the current surge of interest in the life sim genre, mentioning there are "four or five (seemingly great) competitors being developed," and expressed confidence in Midsummer Studios' unique approach. "We’re at an interesting time as players of life sims," he said. "We’re focused on story, specifically the story that the players write themselves just by playing the game."
Midsummer Studios' upcoming game will let players control the story they want to tell, choosing from multiple themes at the start of the game. "For example they can tell the game that they want to tell a story about finding their soulmate while also succeeding at their small town business."
The game will use this info from the start to "generate an interesting cast of supporting characters and seed them with relationships that will instantly create a ‘narrative-rich’ environment." And to double-down on juicy 'modern life drama,' Solomon teased, "If the player wants to tell a romantic story, then we might generate a cast where one person is an ex-lover AND a coworker, one is your high school sweetheart AND your neighbor, and one is your secret crush but also runs a rival business in town."
Players can also share their custom characters, storylines, and towns through a vibrant community hub. The founder said the studio intends for this feature to allow players to upload and download every players' creations right into their game easily.
Midsummer Studios' team includes Grant Rodiek, who worked with Maxis Studios for nearly two decades as a Producer and Director on various installments and expansions of The Sims, along with several devs of Firaxis titles for a team that includes 11 developers total.
Midsummer Studios said it plans to grow slowly, limiting the studio size to remain flexible and efficient while providing a sustainable and steady work environment for its team. The studio is set to reveal a demo of their upcoming Life Sim title within the year as development progresses, followed by the announcement of the target launch date.
Source:
Midsummer Studios official website
Press Release
‘Civilization,’ ‘XCOM’ and ‘The Sims’ Vets Launch Game Developer Midsummer Studios With Funding From Trevor Noah’s Day Zero Productions
