Somerville Developer Acquired by Thunderful Games

Along with releasing its cinematic adventure Somerville today for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC, and Game Pass, developer Jumpship has been acquired by Thunderful Games. The deal is expected to close today and will be the publisher’s tenth studio acquisition thus far.

Jumpship will continue to create “top-class story-driven narrative games” and retain creative autonomy. Studio co-founder Dino Patti (previously at Playdead) remains and will also become a strategic advisor for Thunderful. In a press release, Patti said, “I feel really good about the partnership with Thunderful and what it will do for Jumpship. I have known Agostino for a very long time and we have built a strong relationship of trust.

“We’ve been talking about this possibility for around a year, and over that time, I have only become more convinced that this is a great opportunity for Jumpship and Thunderful alike.”

Thunderful Games chief gaming officer Agostino Simonetta added, “The level of intrigue that Jumpship has managed to generate for its debut title shows you that this is a team with a deep artistic vision. Adding to our already diverse and accomplished roster of talent under the Thunderful Studios’ umbrella is an important part of our strategy to build strong internal IPs.

“We look forward to supporting the team at Jumpship to harness their skill for building impactful narrative-driven experiences as they continue to create fantastic titles within the Thunderful family.”

Jumpship studio director Claire Boissiere also said, “Thunderful is pushing the boundaries by forming a family of game studios who will work under an umbrella of services that supports autonomy and creative vision. Our team sets its own course, and it’s great to find a partner that not only understands that but can truly support us. Thunderful’s established relationships with key platform holders and expertise in putting games into the hands of players give us an infrastructure where we can focus on what we do best: crafting games that challenge our audience, both emotionally and intellectually.”

Based on an original IP by game director Chris Olsen, Somerville begins after a massive catastrophe affects humanity. The player must make their family whole while seemingly dealing with an extraterrestrial presence. Despite being a 2.5D side-scrolling title, Somerville isn’t a puzzle platformer, though it contains “some of that DNA,” according to Olsen. Stay tuned for more details and updates on the title in the coming days.