Joey Drew Studios
Joey Drew Studios Inc. is a privately held Ottawa-based independent game studio that develops and publishes the Bendy horror franchise across PC, console, and mobile, selling one-time digital licenses and merchandise directly to individual horror game enthusiasts and indie gamers worldwide.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersOttawa, Canada
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Joey Drew Studios does
Joey Drew Studios Inc. is a privately held, Ottawa-based independent video game development studio that owns and operates the Bendy horror franchise. Founded in 2017, the studio builds first-person puzzle-action-horror, survival horror, and roguelike games using industry-standard game engines, distributed as one-time digital purchases across Steam, PlayStation Store, Xbox Store, Nintendo eShop, Apple App Store, Google Play, and GOG. Its product portfolio includes Bendy and the Ink Machine (the 2017 original), Bendy and the Dark Revival (2022 sequel), Bendy: Lone Wolf (2024 mobile-led roguelike), Bendy and the Ink Factory, and the announced Bendy: The Cage (third-person action psychological horror). The studio's technology centers on a distinctive 1930s rubber hose animation aesthetic applied to ink-soaked horror environments, with proprietary mechanics spanning stealth, puzzle-solving, melee combat, and survival resource management.
The studio's commercial model is B2C one-time license sales of games to individual horror and indie game enthusiasts, complemented by a direct-to-consumer merchandise storefront at bendymerch.com powered by Shopify. The franchise serves horror game enthusiasts and indie game players on PC, console, and mobile, with a secondary fan community that engages in fan art, cosplay, fan fiction, and streaming under a published Fan Content Policy. The studio holds registered trademarks on the Bendy character and all major titles, maintains an active social presence across X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, and discloses compliance with COPPA, GDPR, and PIPEDA. The planned movie and family-friendly title directions indicate intent to broaden the IP beyond its mature horror core.
Joey Drew Studios firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Joey Drew Studios
- Legal name
- Joey Drew Studios Inc.
- Website
- https://joeydrewstudios.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Joey Drew Studios Inc. is a privately held Ottawa-based independent game studio that develops and publishes the Bendy horror franchise across PC, console, and mobile, selling one-time digital licenses and merchandise directly to individual horror game enthusiasts and indie gamers worldwide.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Joey Drew Studios industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Indie Horror Video Games
- NAICS
- Doll, Toy, and Game Manufacturing (33993)
- SIC
- Games, Toys & Children's Vehicles (No Dolls & Bicycles) (3944)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Indie Game Studios (MPAFAAAC)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Narrative/Adventure & RPG Game Studios (MPAFAAAL)
Keywords
Where Joey Drew Studios is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Ottawa
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Joey Drew Studios business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
Revenue model
- Digital Game Sales: Sales of video games through digital distribution platforms including Steam, Apple App Store, Google Play, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation. Games are sold as one-time purchases with no subscription required.
- Merchandise Store: Sale of Bendy franchise merchandise including apparel, collectibles, and other branded products through the official bendymerch.com store powered by Shopify.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Games sold as one-time digital purchases through platform stores |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels7 records
Marketing channels9 records
Joey Drew Studios product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Joey Drew Studios is an independent game development studio that creates, publishes, and distributes horror-themed video games built around the Bendy intellectual property across PC, console, and mobile platforms via digital storefronts. The studio also sells branded franchise merchandise (apparel, collectibles, plush toys) directly to consumers through its own e-commerce storefront.
Product overview
Joey Drew Studios is a game development studio operating as a single-platform game publisher with multiple distinct titles in the Bendy franchise. The core portfolio includes Bendy and the Ink Machine (first-person puzzle-action-horror), Bendy and the Dark Revival (first-person survival horror sequel), Bendy: Lone Wolf (mobile/PC survival horror), and the upcoming Bendy: The Cage (third-person action horror). The studio also publishes Bendy and the Ink Factory and maintains The Archive for historical press materials. All titles share the Bendy intellectual property featuring cartoon characters from a 1930s-era fictional animation studio, with gameplay spanning horror survival mechanics, melee combat, puzzle-solving, and stealth.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Bendy and the Ink Machine: Indie first-person puzzle-action-horror game set in Joey Drew Studios cartoon workshop
- Bendy and the Dark Revival
- Bendy: Lone Wolf
- Bendy: The Cage
- Boris and the Dark Survival
Products and services
- Bendy and the Ink Machine A first-person survival horror puzzle game set inside a haunted 1930s animation studio, where the player explores and confronts ink-based horrors. It is aimed at horror and indie game fans on PC and console.
- Bendy and the Dark Revival A first-person narrative horror experience and direct sequel to Bendy and the Ink Machine, featuring exploration, stealth, puzzles, and combat in the Bendy ink world. It targets existing fans and new horror game players on PC and console.
- Bendy: Lone Wolf A mobile action horror spin-off featuring roguelike corridor generation and rubber-hose style combat in first-person view. It is aimed at mobile horror gaming enthusiasts on iOS and Android.
- Bendy and the Ink Factory A Bendy franchise title published on Steam, expanding the Bendy universe with additional content for existing franchise fans.
- Boris and the Dark Survival A standalone Bendy universe spin-off title operated as its own sub-brand under Joey Drew Studios, with a dedicated support channel at [email protected].
Quantifiable outcome
- Bendy has become 'once again a global phenomenon' after originating in the 1930s-40s
Companies that use Joey Drew Studios
Customer profileSegments5 records
Joey Drew Studios technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Joey Drew Studios partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- ShopifycoreShopify powers the company's official merchandise store at bendymerch.com, handling payment processing, order management, and e-commerce functionality for physical merchandise sales.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Joey Drew Studios competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Kindly Beast (theMeatly Games): Originally co-developed Bendy and the Ink Machine with Joey Drew Studios under the theMeatly banner; remains the closest creative and operational peer, sharing IP DNA and indie-horror expertise.
- Frictional Games: Independent Swedish studio behind Amnesia and SOMA — a comparable small-team developer specializing in atmospheric first-person horror across PC and console, the exact subgenre Bendy operates in.
- Red Barrels: Montreal-based indie studio behind the Outlast survival-horror franchise; directly comparable as a small independent team building a multi-title horror IP distributed across PC and console storefronts.
- Bloober Team: Polish studio specializing in psychological and survival horror (Layers of Fear, The Medium, Silent Hill 2 remake) — a peer operating in the same horror subgenre with multi-platform releases.
- Supermassive Games: UK developer of narrative-driven horror games including Until Dawn and The Dark Pictures Anthology; comparable as a multi-title horror franchise publisher with cross-platform distribution.
- Studio MDHR: Canadian indie studio behind Cuphead, sharing the 'cartoon-era aesthetic fused with modern game design' positioning that defines Bendy's brand identity; both are small, IP-driven, cross-platform indie studios.
Emerging players
- Kinetic Games: UK indie developer of Phasmophobia, a breakout indie horror title distributed via Steam and consoles — a peer demonstrating the indie-horror scale ceiling Joey Drew Studios is targeting.
Broad incumbents
- Capcom: Owner of Resident Evil, the dominant survival-horror franchise; a broad incumbent whose releases directly shape the competitive landscape for horror studios like Joey Drew Studios.
- Konami: Owner of the Silent Hill franchise; a broad incumbent setting genre expectations and competing for horror audiences across console platforms where Bendy also distributes.
Others
- Fangamer: Independent game-merchandise specialist producing apparel and collectibles for major gaming IPs — directly comparable to bendymerch.com as a model for D2C merchandise monetization around a game franchise.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Joey Drew Studios social profiles
Digital presenceJoey Drew Studios compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
Joey Drew Studios financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Joey Drew Studios leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Joey Drew Studios funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Joey Drew Studios M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Joey Drew Studios
What does Joey Drew Studios do?
Joey Drew Studios is an independent game development studio that creates, publishes, and distributes horror-themed video games built around the Bendy intellectual property across PC, console, and mobile platforms via digital storefronts. The studio also sells branded franchise merchandise (apparel, collectibles, plush toys) directly to consumers through its own e-commerce storefront.
Is Joey Drew Studios a public or private company?
Joey Drew Studios is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Joey Drew Studios founded?
Joey Drew Studios was founded in 2017. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Joey Drew Studios based?
Joey Drew Studios is headquartered in Ottawa, Canada, in the North America region.
How does Joey Drew Studios make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Digital Game Sales are the primary driver. The others are merchandise Store.
Who are Joey Drew Studios's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Kindly Beast (theMeatly Games), Frictional Games, Red Barrels, Bloober Team, Supermassive Games and Studio MDHR. Kinetic Games is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Capcom and Konami. Fangamer is listed as an others.
Does Joey Drew Studios have an API?
No public API is recorded for Joey Drew Studios.
What industry is Joey Drew Studios in?
Joey Drew Studios's product category is Indie Horror Video Games. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAFAAAC, Indie Game Studios, with a secondary code of MPAFAAAL, Narrative/Adventure & RPG Game Studios. Its NAICS code is 33993 and its SIC code is 3944.