What Cold Iron Studios does

Cold Iron Studios is a fully remote, privately held game development studio (Cold Iron Studios, LLC) founded around 2015 and currently employing 11-50 staff distributed across the United States and Canada. The studio's product portfolio is centered on a single franchise — the Aliens: Fireteam Elite series of cooperative third-person shooters developed under license from 20th Century Studios. Its core products are the original Aliens: Fireteam Elite (2021), a three-player squad-based co-op shooter set in the Alien universe, and the upcoming sequel Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 (planned summer 2026), which expands co-op to four players, introduces a customizable Specialist class alongside five playable classes, adds new Xenomorph types (Harbinger, Siren) and pathogen horrors, and ships with adaptive enemy AI plus crossplay across PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. The studio operates on a custom-built game engine and toolchain supporting high-fidelity sci-fi environments, adaptive combat behaviors, and cross-platform multiplayer.

The studio's business model is one-time-purchase digital game retail, with distribution handled exclusively through publisher Daybreak Game Company — a subsidiary of Sweden-listed Enad Global 7 AB (EG7). Cold Iron does not operate its own storefronts or direct-to-consumer monetization; revenue accrues through the publisher, and EG7's broader portfolio is heavily weighted toward live-service and back-catalog revenue (91% of group net revenues in Q1 2026). The customer base is consumer-only and segmented toward Alien franchise fans, co-op multiplayer gamers, and current-generation console and PC players. Marketing relies on event-driven exposure (Summer Game Fest 2026), earned media across gaming and tech press, announcement trailers, and wishlisting on digital storefronts.

The studio is being brought in-house by EG7, which announced in Q1 2026 plans to restructure its existing Cold Iron publishing deal into a full acquisition. The transaction had not been completed as of the latest source reporting. No venture funding rounds, cap-table details, or standalone financials are disclosed, and the studio's growth profile is structurally tied to sequel launch cycles, continuation of the Alien franchise license, and the EG7/Daybreak publishing relationship.

Name

Cold Iron Studios

Legal name

Cold Iron Studios, LLC

Website

http://coldironstudios.com/

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cold Iron Studios is a fully remote game development studio building cooperative third-person shooters in the Alien franchise. Its portfolio includes Aliens: Fireteam Elite (2021) and the upcoming sequel Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2, distributed across PS5, Xbox, and PC via publisher Daybreak Game Company.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

San Jose

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

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 (digital retail): One-time purchase of full game titles (Aliens: Fireteam Elite, Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2) sold via console and PC digital storefronts; wishlisting enabled at announcement.
2. Live service and back catalog revenue (via parent EG7/Daybreak): Back catalog and live service titles across EG7 portfolio generated 91% of group net revenues in Q1 2026; Cold Iron is being brought in-house as part of EG7's publishing and live service strategy.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Cold Iron Studios develops cooperative third-person shooter video games set in the Alien franchise, with two main titles: Aliens: Fireteam Elite (released 2021) and Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 (announced for summer 2026 release on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S). The studio builds its own custom game engine and tools, supporting squad-based cooperative multiplayer with adaptive enemy AI, crossplay, and high-fidelity sci-fi environments.

Product overview

Cold Iron Studios is a fully remote game development studio whose product portfolio centers on a single franchise: the Aliens: Fireteam Elite series of cooperative third-person shooters set in the Alien universe. The studio's current offering is built around two titles, the original Aliens: Fireteam Elite (2021) and the upcoming sequel Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 (summer 2026), with the sequel extending the core product's squad-based co-op combat to four players, adding new playable classes, new enemy types, and adaptive enemy behavior. Both titles are published by Daybreak Game Company, and Cold Iron is being brought in-house by parent company Enad Global 7 (EG7) via a planned acquisition that restructures the existing publishing arrangement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Aliens: Fireteam Elite: The studio's flagship franchise of cooperative third-person shooters set in the Alien universe, including the 2021 original and the 2026 sequel.

Products and services

• Aliens: Fireteam Elite Cooperative third-person shooter video game set in the Alien franchise, in which a squad of players battles Xenomorphs and other threats; it establishes the franchise baseline of squad-based co-op combat that the sequel expands upon. Sold to consumers via digital storefronts and published by Daybreak Game Company.
• Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 Sequel cooperative third-person shooter that expands co-op from three to up to four players, introduces a fully customizable Specialist class alongside five unique playable classes, and adds new enemy types (including the Harbinger and Siren Xenomorphs) with smarter adaptive enemy behavior; planned for release in summer 2026 on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S with crossplay at launch.

Quantifiable outcome

• Expanded co-op player count from 2–3 players in the predecessor to 4 players in Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2.
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Behaviour Interactive: Behaviour Interactive operates Dead by Daylight, a long-running asymmetric cooperative multiplayer title. It is comparable to Cold Iron as a studio that has sustained a cooperative PvE/horror-adjacent multiplayer franchise over multiple years.
• 4A Games: 4A Games developed the Metro series, sci-fi first-person shooters with cooperative elements. Comparable to Cold Iron on the sci-fi shooter category and licensed/semi-licensed franchise positioning within publisher Embracer Group's restructured portfolio.
• Arrowhead Game Studios: Arrowhead developed Helldivers 2, a cooperative PvE third-person shooter that proved commercial viability of the squad co-op shooter model. It directly competes for the same player base Cold Iron targets with Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2.
• Digital Extremes: Digital Extremes developed Warframe, a free-to-play cooperative PvE third-person shooter with deep customization and live-service operations. Comparable to Cold Iron on the dimensions of squad-based co-op combat, character build customization, and live-service monetization.
• Turtle Rock Studios: Turtle Rock Studios developed Back 4 Blood and the original Left 4 Dead, both cooperative PvE shooters. It is the closest direct peer to Cold Iron in terms of squad-based cooperative shooter design, target audience, and category positioning.
• Ghost Ship Games: Ghost Ship Games developed Deep Rock Galactic, an indie cooperative PvE shooter. Comparable to Cold Iron as a small-studio cooperative shooter developer with strong community engagement and player retention.
• Saber Interactive: Saber Interactive developed World War Z and the co-op-focused Space Marine 2, sci-fi/horror cooperative shooters, and is also a portfolio company of Embracer Group's restructured publishing umbrella, giving it structural and category parallels to Cold Iron.
• Sumo Digital: Sumo Digital developed co-op titles including Sackboy: A Big Adventure and worked on multiple licensed cooperative projects. Comparable to Cold Iron as a mid-sized cooperative game developer with multi-platform delivery.

Broad incumbents

• Bungie: Bungie develops the Destiny franchise, a live-service cooperative FPS with PvE and PvP modes. Comparable on cooperative PvE shooter design and live-service operations, but at vastly larger scale as a Sony-owned incumbent.
• The Coalition: The Coalition develops the Gears of War franchise at Xbox Game Studios, a flagship cooperative third-person shooter with squad-based PvE combat. Comparable on product category (co-op TPS) but operates at substantially larger scale under a major platform holder.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/coldironstudios

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Cold Iron Studios