Reigns studio Nerial enters 'hibernation mode' after 13 years and 11 games
Nerial, the British studio behind Reigns, Card Shark and The Crush House, has announced that it is entering what it calls hibernation mode. Development ends and the remaining staff are being laid off. The news came in a social post from co-founders François and Tamara Alliot, and it closes a 13-year run of unusual, system-driven games.
The post opens by joking about the many studio announcements written on a somber background colour, then admits that this is another one. After 13 years and 11 published games, the founders say they decided together with their partners at Devolver to end development at the studio. Devolver acquired Nerial in 2021 and laid off 40 percent of its employees in 2024.
The founders said they launched the studio with no expectations or ambitions, and they urged other studios to hire their team, praising each person individually in follow-up posts. They also thanked collaborators on licensed titles such as Reigns: Game of Thrones and Reigns: The Witcher. Importantly, they say it is not the end of game development for them: they need a break and some reflection before going back to their roots.
For small teams, I find this a sobering one, since Nerial was a celebrated studio. The coverage also points readers to developer-written deep dives on how the systems behind Reigns and The Crush House were built, which seem like a good way to remember the studio's craft.
Source: Game Developer
The post opens by joking about the many studio announcements written on a somber background colour, then admits that this is another one. After 13 years and 11 published games, the founders say they decided together with their partners at Devolver to end development at the studio. Devolver acquired Nerial in 2021 and laid off 40 percent of its employees in 2024.
The founders said they launched the studio with no expectations or ambitions, and they urged other studios to hire their team, praising each person individually in follow-up posts. They also thanked collaborators on licensed titles such as Reigns: Game of Thrones and Reigns: The Witcher. Importantly, they say it is not the end of game development for them: they need a break and some reflection before going back to their roots.
For small teams, I find this a sobering one, since Nerial was a celebrated studio. The coverage also points readers to developer-written deep dives on how the systems behind Reigns and The Crush House were built, which seem like a good way to remember the studio's craft.
Source: Game Developer
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