Draft:Blind Squirrel Games

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Blind Squirrel Games
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryVideo games
Founded2010; 15 years ago (2010)
FounderBrad Hendricks
Headquarters
Irvine, California
,
US
Number of locations
4
Key people
Brad Hendricks (CEO)
ProductsBioShock: The Collection
Number of employees
120 (2020)
ParentBlind Squirrel Entertainment (2016–present)
SubsidiariesBlind Squirrel Games Colombia
Websiteblindsquirrelentertainment.com

Blind Squirrel Games is an American video game developer based in Irvine, California. Secondary studios are located in Austin, Texas, Auckland, New Zealand, and Manizales, Colombia. It was founded in 2010 by Brad Hendricks. Currently a subsidiary of Blind Squirrel Entertainment, it mainly assists on development of other video games while also developing their own properties or licensed games.

History

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Brad Hendricks founded Blind Squirrel Games in 2010. While working on the back end for the website GameSpy, he felt there had been too few work-for-hire studios working with larger companies on AAA video games and established the studio in this capacity. The company originally consisted of four people, including Hendricks as chief executive officer.[1] In March 2016, Blind Squirrel Games was reorganized as a subsidiary of Blind Squirrel Entertainment, which was incorporated in Delaware.[2]

By the time Blind Squirrel Games worked with 2K Games on BioShock: The Collection, the studio had grown to 87 people, covering development, design, production, and quality assurance. Hendricks considered this a turning point that would allow the studio to grow past contributing to other developers' projects and begin fully developing games.[1] Due to the cancellation of an unannounced project, Blind Squirrel Games laid off thirteen people (nine artists and four support staff) in May 2018.[3][4] Three further projects, each with twenty to thirty engaged employees, were canceled in October 2018. The studio failed to find new projects for most of these and downsized from 110 to 48 people within six months. Blind Squirrel Games received new jobs in early 2019 and began hiring again.[1]

In March 2019, the company raised US$5 million from undisclosed investors for the development and self-publishing of Drifters. According to Hendricks, the company had been in discussion with "literally every publisher" but failed to find a partner willing to publish an original game from a company that usually worked on external properties.[5][6] It received between US$1 million and US$2 million from the Paycheck Protection Program July 2020.[7] During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Blind Squirrel Games operated "almost as normal" with its 110 employees. To improve morale, it used a proprietary platform for employees to join virtual clubs about their interests, a project headed by the senior community manager Kitty Mach.[8] The studio aimed to establish a secondary office in Austin, Texas, with thirty to forty people in late 2020, next to its Santa Ana, California, headquarters.[1]

In January 2025, Blind Squirrel Games acquired Colombian studio Distributed Development and renamed it to Blind Squirrel Games Colombia to facilitate external development.[9]

Games

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Year Title Notes Ref(s)
2012 Beards & Glory Original title [10]
BioShock 2 PlayStation Network port [11]
Borderlands 2 [12]
The Darkness II [citation needed]
Duke Nukem Forever [citation needed]
Mafia II [11]
PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale Co-development [11]
Spec Ops: The Line [11]
XCOM: Enemy Unknown [11]
2013 BioShock Infinite [13]
Defiance [citation needed]
Disney Infinity [11]
The Bureau: XCOM Declassified [14]
2014 Civilization V [11]
Disney Infinity 2.0 Windows port [11]
Sunset Overdrive Co-development, Windows port [11]
2015 Disney Infinity 3.0 Windows port [11]
Evolve Co-development [11]
Trove PlayStation 4 and Xbox One port [15]
2016 BioShock: The Collection Remaster
Civilization VI Co-development [16]
Mafia III [11]
XCOM 2 PlayStation 4 and Xbox One port [17]
Civilization Revolution 2 PlayStation Vita port [citation needed]
2017 Prey Co-development [11]
The Sims 4 PlayStation 4 and Xbox One port [18]
Star Wars: Jedi Challenges Original title [19]
WWE 2K18 Nintendo Switch port [20]
XCOM 2: War of the Chosen PlayStation 4 and Xbox One port [17]
2018 God of War Co-development [11]
2019 Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition Remaster [21]
Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast PlayStation 4 and Xbox One port [citation needed]
2021 Mass Effect Legendary Edition Co-development [22]
Sonic Colors: Ultimate Remaster [23]
New World Co-development [11]
2024 Warframe Mobile port [24]
The Dragon Prince: Xadia Co-development [25]
2025 Age of Darkness: Final Stand Developed multiplayer [26]
Avowed Co-development [27]
TBA State of Decay 3 [28]
Delta Force: Black Hawk Down [29]
Drifters Loot the Galaxy Original title, in early access [30]
Cosmorons Original title [31]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Valentine, Rebekah (February 13, 2020). "Blind Squirrel Games' decade-long drift from work-for-hire to original IP". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on June 6, 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  2. ^ "Blind Squirrel Games Becomes Subsidiary of Newly Formed Blind Squirrel Entertainment, Inc" (Press release). Blind Squirrel Entertainment. March 10, 2016. Archived from the original on September 25, 2017. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  3. ^ Kidwell, Emma (May 9, 2018). "Blind Squirrel Games lays off staff due to financial woes". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on November 28, 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  4. ^ Batchelor, James (May 9, 2018). "BioShock Remastered studio lays off 10% of workforce after project cancellation". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on September 25, 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  5. ^ Kidwell, Emma (March 14, 2019). "Blind Squirrel lands $5M in funding to self-publish its first game, Drifters". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  6. ^ Valentine, Rebekah (March 14, 2019). "Blind Squirrel secures $5m in funding for first self-published game". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  7. ^ Sinclair, Brendan (July 10, 2020). "Game companies line up for pandemic relief loans". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on August 14, 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  8. ^ Takahashi, Dean (May 23, 2020). "How Blind Squirrel Games is entertaining its game developers during quarantine". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on May 2, 2021. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  9. ^ Takahashi, Dean (February 5, 2025). "Blind Squirrel acquires game studio in Colombia for external development". VentureBeat. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  10. ^ Blind Squirrel Games (May 10, 2013). Beards & Glory - Available Now on iOS. Retrieved August 18, 2025 – via YouTube.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "Blind Squirrel Entertainment Inc. games". MobyGames. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  12. ^ "Borderlands 2 (video game, PS3, 2013) reviews & ratings". Glitchwave. Retrieved August 19, 2025.
  13. ^ "BioShock Infinite credits (Windows, 2013)". MobyGames. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  14. ^ "The Bureau: XCOM Declassified credits (Xbox 360, 2013)". MobyGames. Retrieved August 19, 2025.
  15. ^ "Trove credits (Windows, 2015)". MobyGames. Retrieved August 19, 2025.
  16. ^ "Sid Meier's Civilization VI credits (Windows, 2016)". MobyGames. Retrieved August 19, 2025.
  17. ^ a b "XCOM 2: War of the Chosen credits (Windows, 2017)". MobyGames. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  18. ^ "EA Announces The Sims 4 is Coming to Consoles on November 17th". www.businesswire.com. July 26, 2017. Archived from the original on November 1, 2022. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  19. ^ Brooks, Dan. "5 Behind-The-Scenes Details of Jedi Challenges' The Last Jedi Update". StarWars.com. Archived from the original on January 23, 2025. Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  20. ^ D'Anastasio, Cecilia (December 6, 2017). "WWE 2K18 Looks Gnarly On The Switch". Kotaku. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
  21. ^ "Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced". www.gamebillet.com. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  22. ^ "Mass Effect: Legendary Edition (2021)". MobyGames. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  23. ^ Shea, Brian (May 27, 2021). "Sonic Colors: Ultimate Sprints To Modern Platforms This September". Game Informer. Archived from the original on May 27, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  24. ^ "Blind Squirrel Games acquires Colombia-based Distributed Development". www.gamedeveloper.com. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  25. ^ Cook, Paige (October 29, 2024). "Behind the scenes: Bringing The Dragon Prince: Xadia to mobile". www.pocketgamer.biz. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  26. ^ Reports, Staff (February 5, 2025). "BLIND SQUIRREL GAMES OPENS COLOMBIA STUDIO". Baker City Herald. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  27. ^ "Avowed credits (Xbox Series, 2025)". MobyGames. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  28. ^ Nelson, Mike (June 9, 2024). "How State of Decay 3's Newest Trailer Feeds into Undead Labs' Game Development Evolution". Xbox Wire. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  29. ^ "Delta Force: Black Hawk Down". Drew Riley. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  30. ^ Bowers, Quintlyn (April 19, 2021). "Drifters Loot the Galaxy Combines Jet Packs With Shooter Combat For Added Excitement".
  31. ^ Kaser, Rachel (November 21, 2024). "Co-dev studio Blind Squirrel reveals in-house original IP Cosmorons". VentureBeat. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
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Category:2010 establishments in California Category:American companies established in 2010 Category:Companies based in Santa Ana, California Category:Video game companies based in California Category:Video game companies established in 2010 Category:Video game development companies