News

Former Telltale devs open new interactive narrative games studio AdHoc

First project likely to blend gaming with live action content; partner on project to be announced in near future

Former Telltale devs open new interactive narrative games studio AdHoc

A quartet of former Telltale Games and Ubisoft developers have set up a new company in Los Angeles called AdHoc Studio.

As reported by Variety, the team will focus on developing interactive narrative games, much like those their previous employer was famous for.

The studio is headed up by CEO Michael Choung, who previously held roles as senior write for Night School Studio and before that was a lead writer at Telltale.

Interactive live action gaming

The team also includes ex-Ubisoft narrative director and Telltale director of writing Pierre Shorette, former Ubisoft realisation director and Telltale creative director Dennis Lenart, and ex-Ubisoft mission director and Telltale creative director Nick Herman as COO.

The developers all left Telltale back in 2017 and 2016, before the studio’s closure last year.

While Adhoc is coy on what it's working on, the report suggests the company’s first project could blend interactive gaming with live action content, much like Netflix's Bandersnatch and games like Her Story. The studio plans to announce a partner for its debut project in the near future.

“Making interactive experiences with real actors on the screen is something we’ve always talked about,” said Pierre Shorette.

“We all have backgrounds and interest in film and television, so combining that with our experience in games is something we’re exploring right now.”


Head of Content

Craig Chapple is a freelance analyst, consultant and writer with specialist knowledge of the games industry. He has previously served as Senior Editor at PocketGamer.biz, as well as holding roles at Sensor Tower, Nintendo and Develop.