Good Shepherd Entertainment

Dutch video game publisher

Good Shepherd Entertainment

Logo in use since 2017

Formerly| Gambitious Digital Entertainment (2011–2017)
Industry| Video games
Founded| 2011; 14 years ago (2011)
Founders|

* Paul Hanraets
* Sjoerd Geurts
* Harry Miller
* Andy Payne
* Mike Wilson

Headquarters|

The Hague

Netherlands

Number of locations

| 2 offices (2012)

Area served

| Worldwide

Key people

* Brian Grigsby
* (CEO and CFO)
* Paul Hanraets
* (director, corporate development)

Number of employees

| 23[1] (2022)
Parent| Devolver Digital (2021–present)
Subsidiaries| Artificer
Website| goodshepherd.games

Good Shepherd Entertainment (formerly Gambitious Digital Entertainment) is a Dutch video game publisher based in Amsterdam. The company was founded in 2011 and opened its equity crowdfunding platform in September 2012. Gambitious' publishing label was opened in 2014, offering publishing services. In August 2017, Gambitious Digital Entertainment was rebranded Good Shepherd Entertainment whereas they ceased their crowdfunding activities and fully transitioned into being a publisher. Having been a consultant to the company prior, Brian Grigsby now became the CEO of the company.[2]

## History

[edit]

### Foundation (2011–2012)

[edit]

Former Gambitious Digital Entertainment logo, used 2015–2017

Gambitious Digital Entertainment was established in 2011 by chief executive officer Paul Hanraets.[3][4] Founding partners include Mike Wilson and Harry Miller of Devolver Digital, Sjoerd Geurts, and Andy Payne.[4][5] Additional funding was provided by business funding platform Symbid.[6] The company and its crowdfunding platform, also called Gambitious, were formally announced in February 2012.[7][8] By June 2012, the company was headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands, with another office in Austin, Texas, United States.[5][9] The shareholdings of Miller and Wilson, while independent from Devolver Digital, made for a controlling interest.[3]

### Crowdfunding (2012–2013)

[edit]

Gambitious' crowdfunding platform was opened on 25 September 2012.[10] The platform was described as a hybrid crowd-finance platform and indie publishing label.[11] The first product featured on Gambitious' platform was to be a sequel to Mushroom Men.[12] The first game featured became Train Fever instead.

According to Wilson, the idea behind the company was to create "a platform that brings investors and developers together to create great games to their mutual benefit".[13] In March 2013, Gambitious successfully closed their first equity-based crowdfunding campaign for Train Fever, which raised €250,000 from 640 international investors.

Gambitious also experimented by offering pledging as a funding option on their platform. This resulted in a successful funding for charity SpecialEffect, which raised 113% of it target aimed towards purchasing specialised computers for severely disabled gamers that can be controlled using eye movement.[14]

### Changes to crowdfunding (2015–2017)

[edit]

Due to international regulatory differences on the topic of equity-based crowdfunding, Gambitious was forced to restructure their model several times, leading to the eventual decision to officially separate from Symbid in February 2015 and transition into an independent game publisher. Between 2015 and 2017 Gambitious utilises an evolving set of crowd finance tools and techniques in order to fund their games. Whereby they rely on a private network of investors who invest alongside them under the same exact terms and conditions. In January 2016, Gambitious opened their network to new United States accredited and European investors. On 16 August 2017, Gambitious was rebranded as Good Shepherd Entertainment.[15] and transitioned from a crowdfunding platform to a publisher collaborating with a private network of accredited[16] investors upon request. The company also received a new investment by Advance/Newhouse, through which they opened new full-time positions.[15] At this time, the company had 12 employees.[15]

### Indie game publishing (2013–present)

[edit]

Every game that Gambitious has signed on has been funded and released, with four of the first six titles delivering profits to investors in the first month following release.[17] Gambitious had a core group of 30 investors.[18]

In 2019, Good Shepherd Entertainment partnered with Lionsgate Games and announced John Wick Hex.[19] Paul Hanraets stated that Good Shepherd intends to focus on triple-I games and similar licence-holder collaborations.[2] According to Hanraets, the company has access to popular pop-culture IPs like John Wick, which it will pair with experienced indie developers.

In April 2019, Good Shepherd Entertainment acquired a majority stake in Artificer, a Warsaw based game development studio founded by the core team responsible for Hard West and Phantom Doctrine.[20] Artificer consists of over 30 team-members who have previously worked on numerous titles including the Call of Juarez and the Dead Island series.

Devolver Digital bought Good Shepherd on 7 January 2021.[21] On January 31, 2024, 25 employees were laid off from Artificer with another 10-12 workers expected to be let go in the next few months.[22]

## Games

[edit]

### Games published

[edit]

Year of release  | Title  | Developer(s)  | Platform(s)

|
|
|

2014  | Train Fever | Urban Games | Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
2015  | Magnetic: Cage Closed | Guru Games | Microsoft Windows, Xbox One
Breach & Clear: Deadline |

* Mighty Rabbit Studios
* Gun Media

| Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
Xeodrifter | Renegade Kid | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita
Pathologic Classic HD | Ice-Pick Lodge | Microsoft Windows
Hard West | CreativeForge Games | Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
Oh...Sir! | Vile Monarch | iOS, Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
2016  | Hard Reset Redux | Flying Wild Hog | Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Crush Your Enemies | Vile Monarch  | Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
Zombie Night Terror | NoClip | Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
RunGunJumpGun | ThirtyThree | macOS, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch
Oh...Sir!! The Insult Simulator | Vile Monarch  | Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch
Transport Fever | Urban Games  | Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
2017  | Diluvion | Arachnid Games | macOS, Microsoft Windows
Oh...Sir! The Hollywood Roast | Vile Monarch  | Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch
Redeemer | Sobaka Studio | Microsoft Windows
2018  | Where the Water Tastes Like Wine | Dim Bulb Games | Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
MachiaVillain | WildFactor | Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
Milanoir | Italo Games | Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Semblance | Nyamakop | macOS, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch
Phantom Doctrine | CreativeForge Games  | Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
2019  | John Wick Hex | Bithell Games | macOS, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One
Black Future '88 | Super Scary Snakes | macOS, Microsoft Windows
Transport Fever 2 | Urban Games  | Linux, Microsoft Windows
2020  | Monster Train | Shiny Shoe  | Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, iOS, PlayStation 5
OlliOlli Switch Stance | Roll7 | Nintendo Switch
2021  | The Eternal Cylinder | ACE Team | Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S
2022  | Hard West 2 | Ice Code Games  | Microsoft Windows
2023  | Showgunners | Artificer  | Microsoft Windows
Hellboy Web of Wyrd | Upstream Arcade  | Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
2024  | Dicefolk | LEAP Game Studios, Tiny Ghoul  | Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch[23]
2024  | Demon's Mirror | Be-Rad Entertainment  | Microsoft Windows
2025  | Moroi | Violet Saint  | Microsoft Windows[24]

### Games re-released

[edit]

Year of re-release  | Year of original release  | Title  | Developer(s)  | Platform(s)

|
|
|
|

2015  | 2014  | Breach & Clear | Mighty Rabbit Studios  | Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
2013  | Mutant Mudds Deluxe | Renegade Kid | Microsoft Windows
2014  | Xeodrifter | Renegade Kid  | Microsoft Windows
2011  | Hard Reset | Flying Wild Hog | Microsoft Windows

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Annual Report and Consolidated Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2022" (PDF). Devolver Digital. 3 May 2023. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2023. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
2. ^ a b Handrahaan, Matthew (10 July 2018). "Good Shepherd eyes growth through "bigger investments with bigger titles"". GamesIndustry. Archived from the original on 16 March 2020. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
3. ^ a b Osborn, George (13 September 2016). "A Gambitious Proposal?". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 8 June 2019. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
4. ^ a b van Otterlo, Alessandra (17 August 2017). "Gambitious krijgt nieuwe naam en financiële injectie". Control (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 25 January 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
5. ^ a b Takahashi, Dean (27 January 2016). "Gambitious resurfaces with profitable titles and a new way to invest in games". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on 25 July 2017. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
6. ^ Curtis, Tom (5 June 2012). "New crowdfunding service offers a game-focused twist on the Kickstarter formula". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
7. ^ Rose, Mike (14 February 2012). "Equity-based crowdfunding platform Gambitious launching next month". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
8. ^ Weber, Rachel (14 February 2012). "New equity based crowdfunding platform to launch". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
9. ^ Takahashi, Dean (4 June 2012). "Gambitious creates crowdfunding just for games". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
10. ^ Weber, Rachel (25 September 2012). "New crowdfunding platform Gambitious launches". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
11. ^ Hall, Charlie (6 February 2017). "Crowdfunding for video games was way down in 2016". Polygon. Archived from the original on 25 June 2017. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
12. ^ Cook, Dave (25 September 2012). "Gambitious: Mushroom Men sequel is first featured crowd-fund project". VG247. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
13. ^ Couture, Joel (3 February 2016). "Mike Wilson explains Gambitious' plans for funding indie devs". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
14. ^ Pearson, Dan (13 September 2013). "Special Effect launches crowdfunding drive". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
15. ^ a b c Hall, Charlie (16 August 2017). "Investment platform Gambitious is now called Good Shepherd Entertainment". Polygon. Archived from the original on 20 August 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2017.
16. ^ Cronin, Audrey (5 September 2017). "Game Investment Platform & Publisher Good Shepherd Entertainment Reports Strong Investor Returns". Business Wire. Archived from the original on 5 September 2017. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
17. ^ Weber, Rachel (29 January 2016). "Gambitious: 3 years, 6 successful projects". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 27 November 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
18. ^ Batchelor, James (10 February 2016). "Gambitious on the secrets of crowdfunding success". MCV. Archived from the original on 7 November 2021. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
19. ^ Brief, Staff (30 May 2019). "Good Shepherd, Lionsgate Launch 'John Wick Hex' Video Game". The Daily Brief. Archived from the original on 7 November 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
20. ^ "GOOD SHEPHERD ENTERTAINMENT TAKES MAJORITY STAKE IN AMBITIOUS NEW DEVELOPMENT STUDIO, ARTIFICER". Gamasutra. 4 October 2019. Archived from the original on 11 April 2019. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
21. ^ "Devolver Digital, Inc. | AIM Admission Document | November 2021" (PDF). Devolver Digital. 4 November 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 November 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
22. ^ Zwiezen, Zack (10 January 2024). "59 Days Into 2024 And 8,100+ Video Game Layoffs Have Been Announced". Kotaku. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
23. ^ Romano, Sal (16 May 2024). "Dicefolk for Switch launches June 20". Gematsu. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
24. ^ Romano, Sal (14 January 2024). "Dark fantasy hack-and-slash action adventure game Moroi for PC launches in early 2025". Gematsu. Retrieved 24 January 2025.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website