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Skydance Interactive

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Skydance Interactive
Information
Type Subsidiary
Industry Video games, Virtual reality
Founded May 2016
Founder Skydance Media
Headquarters Santa Monica, California, United States
Notable Personnel Peter Akemann (CEO, 2016), Chris Busse, Dan Prigg (head of studio from 2022), Shawn Kittelsen
Products Archangel, The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners, The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners - Chapter 2: Retribution, Skydance's Behemoth
Parent Paramount Games Studio (Skydance, formerly Paramount Skydance)


Skydance Interactive is an American video game developer and publisher that was formed by Skydance Media in May 2016, when the media company acquired the console developer The Workshop Entertainment and made it the core of a new subsidiary focused on virtual reality games.[1][2] The studio made the mech shooter Archangel (2017), the survival horror game The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners (2020) and its sequel Chapter 2: Retribution (2022), and the fantasy action game Skydance's Behemoth (2024). Skydance's own studio description called Saints & Sinners "top-selling"; including the sequel, the series had earned nearly 100 million US dollars by January 2024, according to the studio.[3][4]

By 2024 Skydance was presenting its game operations under the umbrella label Skydance Games, which covered Skydance Interactive and the separate console studio Skydance New Media, and some press coverage of Behemoth credited the developer under that name.[5][6][7] After Skydance Media merged with Paramount Global in 2025, the two studios were combined into Paramount Games Studio in June 2026. Paramount's head of creative and production said in June 2026 that the former Skydance Interactive team was making a non-VR game for PC and consoles.[8][9]

Reviewed 6 October 2026. Checked founding, The Workshop history, leadership changes, game release dates, prices, revenue figures, the Skydance Games label, the Paramount Games Studio merger and the non-VR pivot against Variety, Deadline, Road to VR, UploadVR, Game File, TechCrunch, Steam and archived Skydance pages. About review dates.

History

The Workshop (2008-2016)

The studio's core came from The Workshop Entertainment, a developer founded in 2008 by a co-founder and original members of Treyarch, which Activision acquired in 2001 and which went on to lead the Call of Duty series.[1] The Workshop worked with Sony's Santa Monica Studio on Sorcery, a spell-casting game designed around the PlayStation Move motion controller.[10] Game Developer reported that the company had also collaborated on the development of The Evil Within, Armored Warfare and Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons.[2]

Launch as Skydance Interactive (2016)

Skydance Media announced on 3 May 2016 that it had acquired The Workshop for an undisclosed sum and launched Skydance Interactive as a dedicated subsidiary to "create and own original video games and virtual reality experiences".[1][2] Variety reported that the deal would let Skydance self-publish and digitally distribute its titles for the leading VR hardware of the time, naming Oculus, HTC Vive and PlayStation VR, while The Workshop continued to offer console development services. Skydance Media CEO David Ellison said the company was "making a significant investment in virtual reality" with the launch. Peter Akemann became chief executive of Skydance Interactive and Chris Busse its general manager.[1] Skydance later listed the headquarters of its film, television, interactive and corporate operations in Santa Monica, California.[11]

The console work continued alongside the VR projects. In June 2016, 2K announced that Firaxis Games had partnered with The Workshop, "now a dedicated subsidiary of Skydance Media", to bring XCOM 2 to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.[12]

Archangel (2017-2018)

Skydance Interactive's first VR game, Archangel, is a first-person mech shooter in which the player controls a six-storey-high mech. It launched in July 2017 on PlayStation VR, ahead of other headsets, priced at 39.99 US dollars on the PlayStation Store, and was scheduled for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift on 2 August 2017. Skydance also announced a location-based version for IMAX VR centres.[13] In April 2018 the studio announced Archangel: Hellfire, a free multiplayer update for existing owners with a cooperative horde mode, a two-versus-two team deathmatch mode, four maps and six mechs. It became available worldwide for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift on 28 June 2018.[14]

The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners (2020-2024)

The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners launched on 23 January 2020 for PC VR headsets through Steam and the Oculus Store, with Skybound Games credited as publisher at launch. Road to VR gave it 9/10 and described the game as "genuinely terrifying".[15] Versions for PlayStation VR and Oculus Quest followed later in 2020.[16] Skydance reported in January 2021 that the game had passed 29 million US dollars in revenue, and said that since the Quest launch in October 2020 it had sold "10x more" on Quest than on the Oculus PC version.[17] At the same time the studio was hiring for its VR team, including a narrative director and a senior software engineer for its "next generation of groundbreaking games".[18] Revenue passed 60 million US dollars in January 2022, and by February 2022 the studio had announced the standalone sequel Chapter 2: Retribution.[16][19] Skydance's own studio description noted that the first game had been nominated for "Best VR/AR Game" at the 2020 Game Awards.[3]

In February 2022 Skydance hired Dan Prigg, previously vice president of production at Aspyr Media, as head of Skydance Interactive. Chris Busse, who had been acting head, moved to head of content. Announcing the hire, Skydance president and COO Jesse Sisgold said the studio aimed "to expand its operations and game output".[19]

The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners - Chapter 2: Retribution was released on Meta Quest 2 and Meta Quest Pro on 1 December 2022 at 39.99 US dollars, with PlayStation VR2 and Steam versions following on 21 March 2023 after the PC VR version was moved from February to launch alongside the PS VR2 release.[20][21][22] In January 2024 Skydance released a Meta Quest 3 update for the first game and said that the two Saints & Sinners games together had earned nearly 100 million US dollars since January 2020.[4]

Behemoth (2022-2024)

Skydance Interactive revealed its next original game, then called Behemoth, at Meta Connect on 11 October 2022 with a 2023 target.[23] The game slipped to late 2024;[24] a 14 November 2024 date was announced in August 2024 and then moved to 5 December 2024 on all platforms "to add that extra bit of polish".[25][24] Variety reported that the game was built in Unreal Engine 5 and used what Skydance called "foveated gaze-based rendering", and that it reworked the dismemberment system from Saints & Sinners.[5]

Skydance's Behemoth was released on 5 December 2024 for Meta Quest 2, Meta Quest 3 and Meta Quest 3S, PlayStation VR2 and Steam. Shawn Kittelsen, then SVP Creative at Skydance Games, told UploadVR that the team had worked overtime near the end of development, though no mandatory crunch was called, and that Steam approval arrived about an hour and a half after the launch on the other platforms. UploadVR also reported that Skydance had started calling the game Skydance's Behemoth rather than Behemoth because of potential "trademark liabilities".[26] Road to VR's review, headlined "A Colossal Step Forward in VR Action-Adventure Gaming", scored it 8.5/10 and said the game showed "hard-won lessons in VR design" from the studio's work on Saints & Sinners.[7]

Skydance Games label and Paramount Games Studio (2024-2026)

A Skydance Games press kit hosted by the PR agency Zebra Partners described the label as covering both of the company's game studios, one led by Dan Prigg (Behemoth, Saints & Sinners) and one led by Amy Hennig and Julian Beak (Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra and an untitled Star Wars game), together with its publishing, licensing and transmedia teams.[6] Variety reported in 2024 that, working with outside publishers, Skydance had also released the licensed VR game Journey to Foundation, based on the Skydance-produced Apple TV+ series Foundation.[5] Steam lists Archiact as that game's developer and publisher.[27]

Skydance Media completed its merger with Paramount Global on 7 August 2025, creating the company Variety described as "Paramount, a Skydance Corporation".[28] On 5 June 2026 the company launched Paramount Games Studio, which combined Skydance Interactive and Skydance New Media with Paramount's intellectual property. Tony Driscoll was named president of the new studio. Dan Prigg became executive vice president and head of games for Paramount, and Shawn Kittelsen became senior vice president and head of creative and production.[8] Game File reported that the team behind Saints & Sinners and Behemoth was making a non-VR game for PC and consoles, which Road to VR said Kittelsen had confirmed.[29][9] Road to VR wrote that the change appeared to mark "the end (or significant pause)" of the studio's time as a dedicated VR developer.[9]

On 6 October 2026 Paramount completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, creating a combined company called Skydance.[30] On Steam, Skydance's Behemoth lists Paramount Games as publisher, and Chapter 2: Retribution lists Skydance Games and Paramount Games; Skydance Interactive remains the credited developer of both.[31][21]

Products

Title Release Platforms at release Notes
Archangel July 2017 (PS VR); 2 August 2017 (PC VR) PlayStation VR, HTC Vive, Oculus Rift First-person mech shooter; first Skydance Interactive game[13]
Archangel: Hellfire 28 June 2018 HTC Vive, Oculus Rift Free multiplayer update with co-op horde and 2v2 modes[14]
The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners 23 January 2020 PC VR via Steam and Oculus Store; later PS VR and Oculus Quest Survival horror; published at launch by Skybound Games[15][17]
The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners - Chapter 2: Retribution 1 December 2022 (Quest); 21 March 2023 (PS VR2, Steam) Meta Quest 2, Meta Quest Pro, PlayStation VR2, SteamVR Standalone sequel[20][21]
Skydance's Behemoth 5 December 2024 Meta Quest, PlayStation VR2, Steam Original fantasy action-adventure; Unreal Engine 5[26][5]

XR work

Skydance presented the studio's launch as a move into VR. David Ellison said in 2016 that VR was "the perfect medium" for an interactive platform "where immersive storytelling intersects with active gameplay", and Game Developer reported that the new studio planned to prioritize VR development.[1][2] Skydance's 2024 description of the studio said it "creates and publishes original and IP-based virtual reality and other immersive video games".[3]

Road to VR described both Saints & Sinners and Behemoth as built around physics-based combat, with Behemoth placing heavy emphasis on melee.[16][7] Its review of the first Saints & Sinners also focused on scavenging, crafting and stamina management, and Behemoth carried over and reworked that game's dismemberment mechanic.[15][5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Justin Kroll (2016-05-03). "Skydance Acquires Game Developer The Workshop, Launches Interactive Division". Variety. https://variety.com/2016/film/news/skydance-game-developer-workshop-skydance-interactive-1201765401/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Alex Wawro (2016-05-03). "Skydance buys studio The Workshop, rebrands it Skydance Interactive". Game Developer. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/skydance-buys-studio-the-workshop-rebrands-it-skydance-interactive. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Interactive". Skydance Media. 2024-12-27. https://web.archive.org/web/20241227163032/https://skydance.com/interactive/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Henry Stockdale (2024-01-16). "The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners Has Grossed Nearly $100m Revenue". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/the-walking-dead-saints-sinners-revenue/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Jennifer Maas (2024-07-25). "How Skydance's Small but Mighty Games Studios Could Give Paramount a Jolt in the Sector". Variety. https://variety.com/2024/gaming/news/skydance-paramount-gaming-acquisition-impact-1236080327/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Skydance Games - Press Kit". Zebra Partners. https://zebrapartners.com/skydance-games-press-kit/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Scott Hayden (2024-12-05). "'Skydance's Behemoth' Review - A Colossal Step Forward in VR Action-Adventure Gaming". Road to VR. https://roadtovr.com/skydances-behemoth-review-quest-3-psvr-2-steam/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Jennifer Maas (2026-06-05). "Paramount Skydance Launches New Video Game Studio as 'Core Pillar' of Content Strategy Alongside TV, Films and Streaming (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. https://variety.com/2026/gaming/news/paramount-skydance-video-game-studio-1236767557/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Scott Hayden (2026-06-08). "Following Parent Company Merger, 'Walking Dead VR' Studio's Next Project Won't Be in VR". Road to VR. https://roadtovr.com/merger-walking-dead-studio-no-more-vr/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  10. ↑ Brian Upton (2012-05-04). "The Making Of Sorcery: The Magical Technology of Move". PlayStation.Blog. https://blog.playstation.com/2012/05/04/the-making-of-sorcery-the-magical-technology-of-move/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  11. ↑ "FAQ". Skydance Media. 2025-01-02. https://web.archive.org/web/20250102213555/https://skydance.com/faq/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  12. ↑ "XCOM 2 Coming to Consoles on September 6, 2016". Take-Two Interactive. Business Wire. 2016-06-07. https://ir.take2games.com/static-files/ee1bb161-bcaa-42fe-9318-92265ec7b5af. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Dominic Brennan (2017-07-20). "'Archangel' Launches on PSVR, Vive and Rift Support Coming in August". Road to VR. https://roadtovr.com/archangel-launches-psvr-vive-rift-support-coming-august/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Vic Hood (2018-04-23). "VR shooter Archangel is getting a free multiplayer update". PCGamesN. https://www.pcgamesn.com/archangel/archangel-hellfire-multiplayer-update. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Scott Hayden (2020-01-23). "'The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners' Review - Satisfyingly Drenched in Existential Angst". Road to VR. https://roadtovr.com/the-walking-dead-saints-sinners-review-vr/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Scott Hayden (2022-01-24). "'The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners' Surpasses $60M in Revenue Since Launch". Road to VR. https://www.roadtovr.com/walking-dead-saints-sinners-50m-revenue/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Scott Hayden (2021-01-26). "'The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners' Surpasses $29M in Revenue". Road to VR. https://www.roadtovr.com/walking-dead-saints-sinners-29-million-revenue/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  18. ↑ Jamie Feltham (2021-01-25). "Skydance Hiring For 'Next Generation Of Games' As TWD Turns 1". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/skydance-hiring/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Alexandra Del Rosario (2022-02-15). "Skydance Taps Former Discovery Exec Dan Prigg As Head Of Interactive Division". Deadline. https://deadline.com/2022/02/skydance-dan-prigg-head-of-interactive-division-1234933638/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Ian Hamilton (2022-12-01). "The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners - Chapter 2: Retribution Launches On Quest". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/the-walking-dead-2-quest-launch/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 "The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners - Chapter 2: Retribution on Steam". Steam. Valve. https://store.steampowered.com/app/1947500/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  22. ↑ Harry Baker (2023-01-23). "Saints & Sinners: Chapter 2 Launches March 21 On PSVR 2 & PC VR". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/saints-sinners-chapter-2-psvr-2-release-march/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  23. ↑ Harry Baker (2022-10-11). "Saints & Sinners Developers Announce New Game Behemoth". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/behemoth-skydance-interactive/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 Henry Stockdale (2024-09-25). "Skydance's Behemoth Delayed Until December For Extra Polish". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/skydances-behemoth-delay/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  25. ↑ Henry Stockdale (2024-08-14). "Skydance's Behemoth Slays Fantasy Giants In VR This November". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/skydances-behemoth-release-date/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 Ian Hamilton (2024-12-17). "Devs Worked Overtime To Ship Skydance's BEHEMOTH". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/skydance-behemoth-devs-overtime-2024/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  27. ↑ "Journey to Foundation on Steam". Steam. Valve. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2950330/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  28. ↑ Jennifer Maas (2025-08-07). "Skydance Closes $8 Billion Paramount Acquisition: 'Today Marks Day One of a New Paramount,' David Ellison Says". Variety. https://variety.com/2025/tv/news/paramount-skydance-deal-closes-1236477281/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  29. ↑ Stephen Totilo (2026-06-05). "All about Paramount's new gaming division". Game File. https://www.gamefile.news/p/paramount-games-studio-tmnt-last-ronin. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  30. ↑ Aisha Malik (2026-10-06). "Paramount closes historic Warner Bros. merger to form Skydance". TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2026/10/06/paramount-closes-historic-warner-bros-merger-to-form-skydance/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
  31. ↑ "Skydance's BEHEMOTH on Steam". Steam. Valve. https://store.steampowered.com/app/1707990/. Retrieved 2026-10-06.
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