Midsummer Studios Established
– 2 min read
After two decades at Firaxis, Jake Solomon and Will Miller have founded Midsummer Studios. They are joined by co-founder Nelsie Birch and former Maxis director Grant Rodiek. The team plans to revitalise the life sim genre. The company has already raised six million dollars from investors.
A team of veteran developers behind games such as Sid Meier's Civilization, XCOM and The Sims has announced the launch of Midsummer Studios. The company was founded by Creative Director Jake Solomon and Game Director Will Miller (both formerly of Firaxis Games) and COO/CFO Nelsie Birch (with 25 years of experience in finance and operations management). Midsummer Studios launches with six million dollars raised from major investors. Transcend Fund led the round, joined by Tirta Ventures, Betaworks Ventures, 1Up Ventures, F4 Fund, Krafton and Day Zero Productions. Alongside the studio reveal, the co-founders shared the concept for their debut project: a next-generation life sim that emphasises player-driven narratives.
"The best stories in games are written by the players," said Jake Solomon, CEO and Creative Director of Midsummer Studios. "At Midsummer we’re making a life sim focused on the drama of modern life, where our players will write meaningful stories just by playing, and then share those stories with the world."
"Leading the Seed for Midsummer was a natural fit for Transcend. As a Producer on The Sims myself nearly twenty years ago, I am well acquainted with the power that meaningful player-driven stories can unlock. I also have an abiding respect for how hard it is to deliver the alchemy of community, systems design, gameplay, and user generated content necessary to do so. The Midsummer founders are industry veterans with the rare experience and design artistry required to deliver against this massive opportunity. I am delighted to join the board and support their journey to redefine the Life Sim category," said Shanti Bergel, Founding Partner at Transcend.
The new studio has already brought in acclaimed talent, including Grant Rodiek, who joins after an 18-year career at Maxis Studios as a producer and director on various instalments and expansions of The Sims. Jake Solomon joins Midsummer after 23 years at Firaxis Games, where he designed and directed the XCOM franchise and Marvel's Midnight Suns. Co-founder Will Miller joins Midsummer after 16 years at Firaxis as Lead Designer on Civilization: Beyond Earth and Lead Engineer on Marvel's Midnight Suns.
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