Mighty Doomdeveloper Alpha Dog Games has reemerged as an independent studio two years after beingshuttered by former owner Microsoft.
In a statement shared with Game Developer, studio founder Shawn Woods confirmed the mobile specialist is once again independently owned by its founding team.
“We’re incredibly excited to have the name we put so much effort and pride into building back in our hands. First and foremost, we’re grateful to Microsoft for working with us through the transition and enabling Alpha Dog Games to return to independent ownership. It means a great deal to have the opportunity to continue the studio’s legacy, which began in 2012,” he said.
“Over the past several months, we’ve continued investing in the studio’s technology and development foundation, including updating key parts of the Unity-based game engine framework thatMighty Doomwas built on. That gives us a strong starting point as we consider what comes next.”
Woods said Alpha Dog isn’t ready to discuss specific projects or long-term plans, but explained the studio is currently in conversations with partners, publishers, licensors, and more.
“The excitement surrounding Alpha Dog Games over the past few days has honestly exceeded our expectations. It has been humbling to see how much our games still mean to players around the world. The passion from the community has reminded us just how special those experiences were, and we couldn’t be more excited about what the future may hold,” he added.
Alpha Dog Games was shut down by Microsoft alongside Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks—the latter of which was eventually salvaged by Krafton—in May 2024. The decision came shortly after the U.S. company completed its merger with Activision Blizzard and was made to prioritize “high-impact titles,” according to a leaked email.
Two years later, Microsoft is fresh off completing its fifth round of mass layoffs since merging with Activision Blizzard, with the company recentlyconfirming plans to cut 3,200 rolesacross its video game division before the end of the current fiscal year.
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