Idol Minds has been operating on the edges of the game industry for over 20 years, and it’s possible that you’ve played one of their games without even realizing it.
In the late 90s, the team produced the final three entries in the Cool Boarders franchise. They also made a splash in 2007 with the release of Pain, a Jackass-like game for the PS3 that was very popular during the early days of the PlayStation Store. But Idol Minds is probably best known as the developer behind the Ratchet & Clank Collection (and Ratchet: Deadlocked HD) on the PS3.
Today, Idol Minds announced that they’re shifting their focus to “narrative-driven” adventure games, and that they’ll be known as Deck Nine Games going forward. This rebrand also coincides with the launch of StoryForge, their new development engine that helps writers, directors, and cinematic artists “focus on telling great stories.”
“With the creation of our new, proprietary toolset StoryForge and the shift in studio focus, we are removing the shackles from our creative team and bringing together our two passions; meaningful storytelling and rich gameplay,” said Jeff Litchford, Deck Nine’s Vice President.
Deck Nine plans to introduce their new identity to public at this year’s E3 Expo, and they’ve partnered with a “AAA” game publisher to unveil a “brand new addition to a critically acclaimed franchise” at the big show.
