Cathedral Studios

What Cathedral Studios does

Cathedral Studios is a UK-based video game developer and publisher building horror-themed interactive entertainment on Unreal Engine. The studio operates two product streams: a first-party development track centered on The Bornless, a first-person PvP/PvE horror game targeted at the AAA-quality horror segment, and a publishing track via the Little Bird indie label, which provides independent developers with production, marketing, and distribution support and released HAM: The Game on Steam.

The studio's technical foundation rests on deep Unreal Engine expertise, motion capture capabilities, and cinematic design, used to deliver both technical precision and narrative depth across its portfolio. Headquartered in Wokingham, United Kingdom, the company is led by CEO and founder Toby Saunders (film/TV and advertising background) alongside co-leads in operations, marketing, business development, and game development, supported by an indie-leaning team of roughly ten core contributors covering art, animation, sound, UI, programming, content, and community.

Commercially, Cathedral Studios generates revenue through one-time game license sales on Steam and direct-to-consumer channels (thebornless.com, cathedral-studios.com), supplemented by publishing/professional-services revenue from the Little Bird indie label. The studio is privately held and venture-backed, having closed a $6.66 million seed round in March 2024 led by Arca with participation from a 16-investor syndicate spanning crypto-native and gaming-focused funds, and is supported by Nvidia Inception, Microsoft, and AWS Activate infrastructure programs.

Name

Cathedral Studios

Legal name

Cathedral Studios Limited

Website

https://www.cathedral-studios.com/

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cathedral Studios is a UK-based video game developer and publisher building horror and indie titles on Unreal Engine, including the PvP/PvE FPS The Bornless and the Little Bird indie publishing label that releases games like HAM: The Game to global consumers via Steam and direct web channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Video Game Development and Publishing

NAICS

Software Publishers (5132)

akta.pro primary industry

Indie Game Studios (MPAFAAAC)

Keywords

• Video game development
• Indie game publishing
• Horror FPS games
• Unreal Engine games
• Game development studio

Headquarters

HQ city

Colchester

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Game Sales - The Bornless: Direct sales of flagship horror FPS game The Bornless to consumers through digital distribution.
2. Game Sales - HAM: The Game: Sales of chaotic co-op comedy game through Steam marketplace and other digital distribution channels.
3. Publishing Revenue - Little Bird Label: Revenue from publishing independent games through Little Bird indie label, providing production support, marketing, and distribution expertise to independent development teams.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Cathedral Studios is a UK-based video game publisher and developer that creates immersive, story-driven games. Its flagship title is The Bornless, a first-person horror FPS game developed in Unreal Engine. The company also operates Little Bird, an indie development label that publishes independent games such as HAM: The Game, providing production, marketing, and distribution support to indie teams.

Product overview

Cathedral Studios is a UK-based video game publisher and developer operating as both a developer and publisher. As a developer, they create The Bornless, an AAA-quality horror FPS game. As a publisher, they support their internal indie label Little Bird, which publishes titles like HAM: The Game, providing independent teams with production support, marketing, and distribution expertise. The company leverages motion capture, Unreal Engine expertise, and cinematic design to deliver both technical precision and emotional depth across its portfolio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Little Bird: Indie development label bringing quirky, creative, and chaotic new experiences to life. Publishes games like HAM: The Game.

Products and services

• The Bornless Flagship horror FPS game developed by Cathedral Studios using Unreal Engine, motion capture, and cinematic design. Targeted at horror game enthusiasts seeking AAA-quality immersive, story-driven first-person experiences with PvP/PvE gameplay.
• HAM: The Game Chaotic co-op comedy indie game published by Cathedral Studios under the Little Bird label, featuring factory chaos gameplay for players seeking quirky, unconventional multiplayer experiences.
• Little Bird indie publishing label Indie game publishing label under Cathedral Studios that brings quirky, creative, and chaotic new experiences to life, providing independent development teams with production support, marketing expertise, and distribution through the studio's channels.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Nvidia Inception ProgramminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCathedral Studios is supported by the Nvidia Inception Program, which provides startups with development tools, hardware access, and marketing support for AI and gaming applications.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Kinetic Games: UK-based indie studio behind Phasmophobia — a multiplayer horror breakout hit. Same UK indie base and horror multiplayer mechanic overlap as The Bornless.
• Red Barrels: Canadian indie studio behind the Outlast franchise — a first-person horror series with PvP-style pursuit mechanics. Closely comparable to Cathedral's horror FPS ambitions and indie-studio production model.
• Frictional Games: Swedish indie studio behind Amnesia and SOMA — small-team horror developers operating in Unreal Engine-adjacent tooling, with a track record of premium horror titles. Closely matches Cathedral's indie + horror positioning.
• Bloober Team: Polish studio behind Layers of Fear, Blair Witch, Observer, and the Silent Hill 2 remake — premium horror developers using Unreal Engine. Demonstrates a plausible trajectory from indie horror to AAA-tier horror IP holder that Cathedral is aiming toward.
• Supermassive Games: UK-based horror studio behind Until Dawn and The Dark Pictures Anthology — narrative-driven horror with cinematic production values on Unreal Engine. Directly comparable to Cathedral's cinematic-horror thesis.
• Heart Machine: Indie studio behind Hyper Light Drifter and Solar Ash — Unreal Engine-based developer with cinematic art direction at indie scale. Comparable in team size and ambition-to-resources profile.
• Mundfish: Russian/Cypriot studio behind Atomic Heart — small-to-mid studio that delivered a cinematic AAA-quality first-person shooter using Unreal Engine. Comparable scale-to-ambition profile to Cathedral.

Broad incumbents

• Devolver Digital: Public indie publisher (Hotline Miami, Fall Guys, Cult of the Lamb). Comparable to Cathedral's publishing ambitions via the Little Bird label, though at vastly larger scale and as a third-party publisher rather than integrated studio.

Emerging players

• Raw Fury: Indie publisher (Sable, Norco, Kingdom Two Crowns) — closely comparable to Little Bird as a publisher working with indie developers on premium titles, though Raw Fury is more established.

Others

• Sky Mavis: Developer of Axie Infinity and a major web3 gaming platform. Relevant as a web3-native gaming ecosystem player whose trajectory directly impacts Cathedral's web3 distribution thesis.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TheBornlessGame
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cathedral-studios-limited

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors17 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cathedral Studios