Phoenix Labs is going independent once again, after a buyout arranged by the Dauntless developer’s founders was confirmed.
The studio was founded in 2014 and acquired back in 2020 by Garena, which is a division of Sea. Under the terms of the new deal, as confirmed by GamesBeat, Phoenix Labs will be run as independent of Garen and Sea. Sea released a comment on the deal, saying that “We are confident that this is the right path forward to enable the team to maximize their long-term potential, and we wish the team every success for this next chapter”.
When Dauntless launched back in 2019, it grew massively in a short period of time. That game sees you as Slayers, taking on hordes of monsters, Behemoths, that have been unleashed on the world after a cataclysmic event. And with slain monsters, there is, of course, loot. Later, Dauntless, which supports both solo and co-op play, was released (with cross platform support) on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
Phoenix Labs has been working on Fae Farm, its farming simulator that is set for a release on Nintendo Switch. We previewed the game back in November, and it is something that you might compare to games like Stardew Valley or Animal Crossing: New Horizons, but has its own flavor and features. Fae Farm is set to support solo play but also options for up to four-person co-op play.
When it comes to the new direction, the GamesBeat report says that Sea is focused on profitability right now. With Phoenix Labs working on a farm simulation game that sounds like it would fit within the cozy game genre, miles away from something like Dauntless, or even Garena’s hit Free Fire, maybe there was a bit of a mismatch.
Under the new deal, the company will be taken private.
