Publisher Paradox Interactive announced a new publishing initiative dubbed “Paradox Arc,” and its first release is Across the Obelisk from developer Dreamsite Games.
Based in Sweden, Paradox self-publishes both its own titles, and games from third-party studios as such Obsidian Entertainment and Romero Games. The new publishing line is intended to highlight games from smaller development teams.
Paradox Arc head Sebastian Forsström said the overall goal with the initiative is to “surprise players with games they might not have known they needed to play. We’re publishing the kind of games that suddenly appear atop your ‘Most Played’ list […] I’m looking forward to sharing more Paradox Arc titles with everyone soon – and to inviting more developers to work with us.”
Across the Obelisk is an RPG that incorporates roguelike elements into its card building system that can be played alone or cooperatively. Originally released on Early Access in April 2021, Obelisk is the first of three games listed on the Paradox Arc website.
Earlier in the week, Paradox announced that its strategy sim, Crusader Kings III, would see a price increase for two of its DLC packs. Beginning in September, the previously released “Flavor Packs,” Northern Lords and Fires of Iberia, will see a jump from their current $7 price to $13.
Everything’s coming up indie
Throughout the summer, Indie games publishing business has seen an eventful couple of weeks. Earlier this week, it was announced that Private Division–a subsidiary of Take-Two–was partnering with Weta Workshop to develop a new Lord of the Rings game.
This past July, Digital Bros–parent company of Ghostrunner publisher 505 Games–formed its own indie publishing division known as “Hook.” Unlike Paradox Arc, Hook’s plan for indie developers are broader: the division will have “an all-around solution for developer needs,” including funding, publishing, and marketing.
And in June, Stray publisher Annapurna Interactive revealed its intentions to become a game developer, while continuing to publish games. Annapurna’s first studio is headed up by Chelsea Hash, who served as game director on Heart Machine’s 2021 title Solar Ash, which was published by Annapurna. She’ll direct the studio’s first, currently unannounced game.