Ground Control

Factsheet

Developer:
Ground Control
Based in Porto, Portugal

Founding date:
September 18, 2014

Website:
gcontrolgames.com

Press / Business contact:
info@gcontrolgames.com

Social:
Twitter
Facebook
LinkedIn

Releases:
Hypergods
Zhed

Address:
Rua de Fonseca Cardoso n39
4 esq frente
4100-233, Porto

Phone:
+351 910311752

Description

Ground Control Studios is an indie game developer that is focused in creating highly immersive and unique strategy/management games with RPG elements. We try to do things that were never done before, we take risks and we venture happly into uncharted territory, for us that is what being indie is all about! Our end-goal is not only to design unique games, but also to keep increasing our technical acumen to execute them.

History

Ground Control was created by accomplished developers and innovators, as a vehicle for exploring new ways to tell stories, interact with digital environments and craft unique experiences. The studio started by working on PC/Console development. During that early period came new wave of VR (with the Oculus DK1 Kickstarter) and the founders fell in love with the possibilites of VR applied to gaming. So, they focused on crafting highly immersive games for VR, from racers, to narrative/sensory experiences. This period was very prolific in terms of technology development, since numerous tools, plug-ins and guidelines were created internally to facilitate VR development. The main test-bed for this was the still under-development COSMONAUT game, that originated about 90% of all technology the studio would come to successfully monetize the following years. Return Zero VR was also developed and released during that period.

After noticing that the growth of the VR gaming market would be slower than initially expected, the studio decided to make two major shifts: first they placed COSMONAUT on-hold and focused on a new PC/Console IP called Hypergods, a shoot'em up with an unique dog-fightning/arcade feel. In parallel, several opportunities to monetize COSMONAUT's VR technology on the B2B market came along, so the studio began to actively and successfully develop or consult on corporate VR/AR projects. This approach revealed itself lucrative enough to support a focused business unit, that while using an usual game development pipeline+tools, was able to deliver solutions/software that were business-oriented.

With the financial security provided by it's lucrative B2B arm, the studio was able to focus again on game development. This return started with developing and releasing ZHED for mobile, which was a move successfull enough to motivate PC and Console ports, both are to be released on April 2020 and PC port won it's first award while being showcased in beta on 2019. The next move was to release Hypergods on PC in early 2024. During that year, the studio also fully developed the micro-strategy rogelike Desert Race Adventures, did a Japanese port of ZHED and begun work on a RTS called Eternity.

2025 will see the studio fully releasing Desert Race Adventures and the Japanese switch version of ZHED with 100 new levels. Eternity will also enter production and more exposition during that year.

Projects

• Hypergods
• Zhed

Team & Repeating Collaborator

Rui Guedes
Founder, Tech Director, Gamedesigner

Raquel Canelas
Project Manager, Producer

João Correia
Project Manager

David Rodrigues
Art Director

Rui Oliveira
Junior Developer

André Marques
Gameplay Developer/ Game Designer

Lucas Silva
Tech Artist

Rafael Almeida
Lead Developer

Henrique Cruz
3D Artist

Leandro Ribeiro
2D Artist

Contact

Inquiries
info@gcontrolgames.com

Twitter
https://twitter.com/GControlGames

Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/GroundControlGames

Web
http://www.gcontrolgames.com