A small studio, on purpose

Big enough to design, draw, build, test and run a game without handing it between agencies; small enough that the people you meet at the start are the people doing the work.

Who's around the table

Six kinds of work go into every game we make. Turn the cards over to see what each one does on a project.

  • 01A meadow buddy called Dragon, a cheeky face with its tongue out, a captain's cap with a gold badge, for sailing days, with a dragon tail with a spade tip

    Game design

  • 02An ember buddy called Owl, happy closed eyes, round glasses, holding a field notebook with a band

    Learning design

  • 03A sky buddy called Robot, a smile, a kite flying on a string, with a robot cable tail with a plug on the end

    Engineering

  • 04An ember buddy called Fox, a big open grin, a cosy scarf, holding a fistful of crayons, with a big bushy fox tail

    Illustration and animation

  • 05A sky buddy called Bunny, a beaming face with happy closed eyes, holding a balloon on a string, with a fluffy bunny tail

    Sound and voice

  • 06A berry buddy called Kit, a surprised wow face, holding a magnifying glass, with a curling cat's tail

    Research with children

Why a studio like this

Most learning games are either fun or useful. The fun ones borrow from mobile games: coins, streaks, chests, timers. They keep children playing, not always learning. The useful ones are often a quiz in a costume.

We think the good version sits between the two: short rounds that feel good to finish, on top of a proper model of what the child is learning, with rewards earned by learning rather than by time spent.

And we think most organisations don't need a gamification platform. They need one or two parts done well. So we build those parts as products, run them ourselves, and sell them one at a time.

How we're set up

We split our time between our own products, Sabrina and Buddies, and commissioned work. Our own products keep us honest: we live with our decisions, answer our own support email and pay our own hosting bills. Commissions bring new subjects and new children, and usually improve the parts everyone uses.

The people who sketch a game are the people who launch it; nothing gets handed over halfway. For bigger projects we bring in teachers and subject experts we trust, and we're glad to work alongside your team or another studio.

Come and say hello

Even if it's early and vague. The first conversation costs nothing and is usually useful.

Get in touch