It’s always interesting to hear of debut games from brand new development studios, especially when those who have created the studio are known as specialists in their field. Darwin’s Paradox is the latest game to emerge from one such team, as animation, visual effects and cinema gurus come together with their video game compatriots to create ZeDrimeTim Studio.
The first project to come out of ZeDrimeTim Studios and due to be released on Xbox Series X|S, PS5 and PC in early 2024 (yep, 2024!), is Darwin’s Paradox.
Coming from a team of recognized video game professionals such as Romuald Capron, former studio director of Arkane Lyon (Deathloop, Dishonored), Cédric Lagarrigue, founder and former CEO of Focus Home Interactive publishing, together with two talents, Mika Tanguy and Gilles Aujard, from the world of visual effects in cinema and animation, ZeDrimeTim aims to bridge animated feature films and video games proficiencies.
Due to arrive in 2024, Darwin’s Paradox is a platformer and adventure game, due to release on Xbox Series X|S, PS5 and PC, drawing influence from those games and studios which have set genre heights, Playdead studios (Inside, Limbo) or Tarsier Studios (Little Nightmares). At the same time though, this one will bring a new proposal, one filled with humour and influenced by the Golden Age of the 1950s science fiction and today’s 3D animation feature films. It’s helped that it’s being developed in the new Unreal Engine 5.
Mika Tanguy, general manager of ZeDrimeTim, who has supervised visual effects of many films and collaborated with the greatest directors, comments: “Feature films and animation are increasingly using video game tools such as Unreal Engine. ZeDrimeTim studio’s goal is unique and original: it brings movie and animation artists, together with video game talents around authentic productions“
Romuald Capron, ex-studio director of Arkane Lyon is part of this adventure as associate and executive producer: “After an already quite full career in video games, I wanted to get involved in a project on a human scale. I was immediately attracted by the art direction and gameplay mechanics of Darwin’s Paradox and I’m really excited to help the team at ZeDrimeTim, to turn that vision into a game with a strong identity.”
Cédric Lagarrigue, founder of the publisher Focus Home Interactive, which he managed for twenty years: “I have had the good fortune in my career to discover and support studios and their games which, despite their limited budgets, became great hits. Darwin’s Paradox has the ingredients that falls into this category. The excellent playable prototype and the positioning of the studio convinced me to invest in the project and accompany the team in this exciting adventure”
Fundraising was carried out to allow the young studio to benefit from the financial base needed for the pre-production and production phases, for the launch of Darwin’s Paradox. This fundraising brought together the four partners, business angels from the Entertainment, Videogame and Finance industries as well as Bpifrance, the French Sovereign Fund.
Darwin’s Paradox, developed by the ZeDrimeTim Studio on Unreal Engine 5 will be released on PC and consoles in 2024. More coming your way as and when we have it.
