Video games have been woven into the fabric of pop culture and entertainment since 1958. From a simple, single-pixel tennis game to the hyper-realistic, in-depth storytelling we’re familiar with today.
And when it comes to choosing your next game to take on, we’re definitely spoiled for choice! With a wide range of mobile, pc and console games from around the world, why not try out games made by creatives right here in Cape Town?
We’ve partnered with Energade to bring you local titles with fresh mechanics and engaging stories. The new Energade BOOST energy drink, now available in a 440ml can, gives you the push you need for those long gaming sessions.
If you’ve enjoyed local indie games like Undertale and Celeste, luckily Cape Town is teeming with game development talent, churning out some impressive titles right in our backyard. We’ve rounded up local game development studios in Cape Town, big and small, to see what they’ve been cooking up lately.
Studio Bolland
Known for its animation work, Studio Bolland is also passionate about creating fun original games. The games aren’t meant to be quick and mediocre, but nor are they long-winded endeavours that take the studio years to produce. Instead they’ve hit the sweet spot with short enjoyable experiences: games that explore themes or test mechanics so that they can see what connects with players.
In 2023 the studio decided to go from just an animation studio to an Indie Game Development Studio. They did this by producing 12 prototypes in just 12 months, all as a part of various game jams throughout the year.
You can find most of their games over on their itch.io page where you can test them out for yourself. If you’re looking for an enjoyable side scroller Sauros is an adorable game about a little dinosaur learning to fly, or if you like puzzle games like Wordle why not try WRD Dice a game about rolling dice to work out what the letters spell. Finally, the latest from the studio is ‘Yeah, I’ve Seen That’ – a mobile party game that will make the whole group laugh as you try to convince your friends you’ve seen a film, even if you haven’t.
Sea Monster
As a studio, Sea Monster aims to make impactful games with a purpose. Their games have a focus on not only being entertaining but also helping communicate a message in an engaging and fun way.
The studio has released over 150 games in the form of Apps, Mods, Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR). One such game, FishForce, was created during the pandemic to help remotely train fisheries control officers. Games that can have a powerful message like conservation and sustainability of our oceans can have a positive impact on how we see our world.
The studio works on games related to training, education, health and helping the environment and recently partnered up with the organisation Games For Change Africa to talk about how games can be a useful tool to drive social impact and economic growth in Africa.
Free Lives
A perfect example of a studio led by gamers for gamers, Free Lives is a quirky team known for some of the wacky and out-there games you’ve probably seen your favourite YouTuber play.
The studio has produced countless Indie hits including Broforce and the NSFW classic Genital Jousting. Their games have been internationally recognised and have received accolades from E3, the Steam Awards, the BAFTA Game Awards and more.
One of their latest games, Tera Nil (available on Steam), is an intricate environmental strategy game about restoring life to a barren wasteland. The strong theme of helping nature is a play on city-building games where, instead of building and consuming resources, you want to restore natural flora and fauna. Due to the success of the game, the studio has been able to donate over $100k towards the conservation efforts of the Endangered Wildlife Trust.
Team Lazerbeam
The trio known as Team Lazerbeam – founded in 2014 – describe themselves as a supergroup Game band and one look at their bright surreal style will explain why. A personal favourite of mine is their Half-game Half Album ‘Teenage Blob’ where you can enjoy an awesome mix of music by the band Superweaks with a variety of mini-games.
Their latest game ‘Wrestling with Emotions’ plays on the genre of dating sim but all the characters are pop-punk pro wrestlers. It’s got a brilliant art style and an excellent sense of humour. If you can’t wait there is a demo out on Steam right now.
If you want to stay up to date with the Game Dev and Game Jam scene in Cape Town, I suggest following one of the founders Ben Raush on Instagram. In true Lazerbeam form, he presents high-energy updates on all the goings-on.
Clockwork Acorn
Not specifically based in Cape Town but rather one of the fully remote game dev studios, Clockwork Acorn started out as 3 students at Stellenbosch who wanted to take their knowledge of game-making to the next level.
After finding their footing in the Game dev scene they released their first game Monsters and Medicine, a puzzle-solving game with a great soundtrack and charming art style. An awesome addition is that once you’ve played through the main levels you can unlock an endless mode where the levels are auto-generated.
The studio is focused mainly on client work these days but still makes time to release its own projects such as Jetstream, another puzzle game that’s available on both PC and mobile.
Quarter Circle Forward
With the simple goal of making everything fun and exciting, QFC is a studio that is best known for its rogue-like/ Puzzle game Desktop Dungeons and its recent sequel.
The studio has made apps for mobile, educational games and a lot more. Another one of their PC games Drawkanoid is a love letter to the old brick-breaking games you probably played on your old Nokia but with the action turned up to 11 by adding a drawing mechanic and power-ups.
The studio has currently released 2 DLCs for its latest release Desktop Dungeons Rewind and we can probably expect some more cool stuff on the way.
Wrapping up
These highlighted game studios offer just a glimpse into the thriving game development scene here in Cape Town. There’s always something new and exciting brewing in the industry. Keep an eye out for local Game Jams and events like Playtopia, which provide opportunities to connect with fellow enthusiasts and industry professionals alike. Stay engaged, stay curious, and let’s continue to support the vibrant community of game developers shaping the future of gaming right here in our city.
