Structural Integrity
Architecture over incentives. We design systems first, then balance rewards around them.
Survival Games Have a Problem
Traditional survival games like Ark and Rust are fantastic for hardcore players who can grind 24/7. But casual players? They get griefed into oblivion. A new player spends 40 hours building a base, logs out for a night, and wakes up to find everything destroyed. Meanwhile, a player who can play 8 hours a day has already moved on to endgame.
The industry created a false binary: either you grind relentlessly or you get wiped. There's no middle ground. No way for casual and hardcore players to coexist in the same world without one cannibalizing the other.
That's the problem we solve.
Structural Separation. Economic Interdependence.
Three distinct world types, each designed for a different playstyle. Economic specialization forces cooperation. Neither audience cannibalizes the other. Both are necessary.
Home Worlds
Safe Sandboxes
Tribe-Owned
- Zero PvP
- Tribe-based progression
- No raid windows or raids
- For casual players
Neutral World
Social Hub
Trading Center
- Zero PvP
- Trading between tribes
- Reputation-building
- Shared neutral space
Chaotic Worlds
High-Stakes PvP
5-10x Rewards
- Full PvP enabled
- Raids & conquest
- Opt-in risk
- For hardcore players
Why This Works
Economic specialization forces cooperation. Industrial tribes produce weapons. Research tribes unlock blueprints. Agricultural tribes enable breeding. Tier 2+ crafting requires all three—no solo path to endgame. Casual players can build their economy safely. Hardcore players have real stakes and territory to fight over. And crucially, both audiences need each other. A hardcore tribe can't survive without industrial supplies. A casual tribe can't progress without buying completed research.
Both Audiences Win
Casual Players
- Safe progression in home worlds
- Cooperative building with tribe
- No 24/7 play requirement
- New players welcome
- Meaningful participation in economy
Hardcore Players
- Real stakes in chaotic worlds
- Territorial conflict & conquest
- Emergent economy & trade wars
- Dynamic, evolving content
- 5-10x rewards for higher risk
Neither playstyle cannibalizes the other. Both are necessary. Both are profitable.
Built. Verified. Ready.
We have complete, verified backend infrastructure. Everything below is operational.
- ✓ Multiplayer networking (TCP/MessagePack, 20 Hz tick rate)
- ✓ Persistent world (event sourcing, complete audit trail)
- ✓ Per-homeworld servers (natural scaling)
- ✓ Inventory system (items, containers, transfers)
- ✓ Client-side prediction (responsive, no lag)
- ✓ Player movement (smooth, deterministic)
- ✓ November 2025 Verification: Database independence confirmed, event sourcing working end-to-end
We're Recruiting
We've built complete backend infrastructure. What's missing is game design and art direction.
Lead Game Designer
Define how players progress and why they keep coming back. You'll design progression systems, economy models, and gameplay loops. We need someone who thinks in systems (feedback loops, second-order effects), works with data, and can balance casual + hardcore coexistence. Economic design experience required (Rust, Ark, Valheim era). Ship, measure results, iterate and improve.
The Deal: 30% revenue, 5% equity (4-year vest), no salary until revenue, full creative input on design direction.
Creative Art Director
Define what this world looks like and establish the visual language others extend. You'll set aesthetic direction, design modular creature and building systems, and build a pipeline for solo-to-team scaling. We need someone who's shipped a game solo or led art on shipped titles, thinks modular from day one, and is comfortable with Godot or can learn it quickly. Console port architecture is real—your assets need to survive Unity ports later.
The Deal: 30% revenue, 5% equity (4-year vest), no salary until revenue, full creative authority on aesthetics.
How We Work
Intellectual Honesty
Real about what works and what doesn't. We admit when something was wrong and adjust.
Player Autonomy
Respect casual and hardcore players equally. No favoritism, no exploitation.
Collaborative Autonomy
Trust within shared vision. Team members have agency within clear boundaries.
Sustainable Excellence
30-year thinking, not sprints. Quality compounds when you're not burning out. We use all available tools—AI, automation, whatever works.
Systems Over Bespoke Solutions
Everything is modular and meant to scale. Code, art, and systems designed for extension, not replacement.
Expert Deference
Domain experts own their decisions. Founder arbitrates conflicts but defaults to expertise. Real authority, not theater.
Authentic Vision
We stay true to what we're building. We don't follow trends that conflict with our philosophy. We hire for alignment, not just skill.