Studios With Great First Game Entries

Sometimes, studios get it right the first time around. While many game development studios don’t quite hit their stride until they have already completed multiple projects, other teams hit the jackpot with their very first game.

It’s rare for the stars to align for a studio’s first title, but when they do, they produce some of the most remarkable debuts in gaming history. When a studio does this well so early in its history, it usually signals that even greater things are to come. So, which studios really came out of the gate swinging with some awesome games? Let’s find out.

8

Dark Cloud – Level-5

A Shining Start For This Japanese Developer

Before Level-5 made its name as the developer of beloved series such as Professor Layton and Ni no Kuni, it developed an early PlayStation 2 RPG called Dark Cloud. And for a first-time offering, this game showed some serious promise of what this team could (and would) accomplish.

Dark Cloud stood out at the time for combining its dungeon crawling combat with a city-building system that allowed for a lot of customisation. It remains one of the most unique RPGs of its era and showcased the creativity and polish that Level-5 would bring to their other titles.

7

Limbo – Playdead

A Striking Debut

While it’s true that Playdead has only released a few games, the fact that their very first title is one of the greatest indie games of all time is simply incredible. Limbo was an industry-shifting game when it launched in 2010 and continues to inspire developers years later.

Limbo’s stark black-and-white art style, deliberate gameplay, and nightmarish scenarios immediately helped it stand out from just about every other game. It was a big influence on Playdead’s other game, Inside, and remains a shining example of a game that fully embraces its vision.

6

Bastion – Supergiant Games

The Start Of Something Super

Supergiant Games has established itself as one of the most important indie developers going around today, with smash hit games like Hades and Transistor. But it all started with a little isometric action role-playing game called Bastion.

Bastion turned heads back in the day for its adaptive narrator, which would adjust its narration depending on your actions in-game. Add in Supergiant’s signature painterly art style and terrific music, and Bastion proved that this studio had everything going for it from the word go.

5

Gunstar Heroes – Treasure

Blast Processing Onto The Scene

It’s important to note, for historical value, that Gunstar Heroes (launched September 10, 1993) just barely predates Treasure’s other game from that year, McDonald’s Treasure Land Adventure (rlaunched September 23, 1993). A mere 13 days is all that ensures Gunstar Heroes was, indeed, the first game that Treasure launched.

And that’s a good thing because Gunstar Heroes remains one of the all-time great run-and-gun games. That’s not to say that McDonald’s Treasure Land Adventure is a bad game, but for such a legendary (and underrated) studio, it feels appropriate for their first game to be equally as legendary.

4

MadWorld – PlatinumGames

Fifty Shades Of Red

For a studio that would build a reputation for developing intense, visceral action games, it may come as a surprise that PlatinumGames’ first title came out for the relatively family-friendly Wii. Indeed, part of what made MadWorld stand out so much was its title as being one of the few mature games for the system.

The striking black and white visuals are frequently splattered with red blood during the chainsaw-heavy combat encounters – an obviously stark contrast to Wii Play. And while PlatinumGames would never return to the Wii, MadWorld carved a path forward for the developer that continues to this day.

3

Metroid Prime – Retro Studios

This Is How You Do A Reboot

Nobody could have seen this coming. Retro Studios – a relatively unknown developer in Texas – was handed the keys to one of Nintendo’s most critically acclaimed series. The fact that Metroid Prime ended up being one of the most beloved games attached to the “Big N” has to be one of gaming’s most remarkable stories.

Retro Studios took several risks with this project – chief among them switching the perspective from a 2D sidescroller to 3D first-person. The decision proved to be genius, resulting in a hauntingly immersive experience that didn’t sacrifice one iota of Metroid’s gravitas.

2

Minecraft – Mojang Studios

From Humble Beginnings, Giants Grow

Hands up if you’ve played Minecraft. Given that the game has sold over 200 million copies across platforms, there’s a decent to strong chance that you have at least dabbled in this juggernaut title about survival, building, and above all, letting your imagination run wild.

Minecraft’s developer, Mojang Studios, began life as a small Swedish studio that acted as the creative outlet of the game’s creator, Markus Perrson. Now, fifteen years later and after countless hours of gameplay, YouTube videos, and parodies, Minecraft and Mojang Studios are firmly established as some of the biggest names in gaming.

1

Half-Life – Valve

Rise And Shine, Mr. Freeman

The story goes like this. Valve was created by some former Microsoft employees who were interested in making a first-person shooter similar to Doom and Quake. Valve, as the studio was named, wanted this game to make players feel a sense of unease with horror and supernatural elements mixing together to create a truly immersive experience.

The game was called Half-Life and the rest, they say, is history. Valve has since become one of the most celebrated developers in the history of the medium, but it’s hard to see how it would have achieved this level of success were it not for this outstanding debut title.