What Pet Project Games does

Pet Project Games is an independent video game development studio founded in January 2020 and headquartered in Belgrade, Serbia (Debarska 16). The company operates with a six-person team of veteran developers, each carrying 5-20 years of industry experience and prior credits on titles including Genesis Rising, Tower Knights, Hollywood Rush, and Jane Wilde. The studio is organized as a founder-owned private company with no disclosed external funding, operating from a home workspace rather than a traditional office.

The company's sole product is Ripout, a co-op sci-fi horror first-person shooter built on Unreal Engine and designed for up to four players. Ripout's core differentiators are procedurally generated missions intended to maximize replayability, a dynamic difficulty system that scales enemy encounters to party size, and a proprietary "Pet Gun" mechanic — a sentient weapon companion that functions as both a firearm and an autonomous attack companion in canine form. The game is positioned against titles like Left 4 Dead and Dead Space and is targeted at core mature gamers seeking immersive co-op horror experiences.

Pet Project Games runs a product-led, community-driven go-to-market model. Distribution is planned through Steam and Epic Store on a one-time purchase basis with no subscription or microtransaction model disclosed. Marketing is executed through a teaser-to-official trailer funnel (with the official trailer showcased by IGN), Steam wishlist activation, and organic social engagement across Discord, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Reddit, supplemented by a corporate blog. As of the available data, the game has not yet been commercially released, and no revenue, funding rounds, partnerships, or third-party publishing agreements are documented.

Name

Pet Project Games

Legal name

Pet Project Games

Website

https://petprojectgames.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Pet Project Games is a Belgrade-based indie video game studio building Ripout, a co-op sci-fi horror FPS on Unreal Engine, for sale as a one-time purchase on Steam and Epic Store, targeting core mature gamers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Independent Video Games

akta.pro primary industry

AAA & Premium Game Studios (PC/Console) (MPAFAAAA)

Keywords

• Indie game development
• Video game development
• Co-op horror games
• First-person shooter games
• Sci-fi game design

Headquarters

HQ city

Belgrade

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Game Sales: One-time purchase model for Ripout on PC platforms (Steam and Epic Store). Console versions may be added in the future.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Pet Project Games is an independent video game development studio that designs and develops video games for PC using Unreal Engine. Its primary product is Ripout, an online co-op sci-fi horror first-person shooter featuring procedurally generated missions, sentient weapon companions (Pet Guns), and dynamic difficulty scaling for up to 4 players, sold as a one-time purchase on Steam and the Epic Games Store.

Product overview

Pet Project Games is a video game development studio that builds games using the Unreal Engine. The company's primary product is Ripout, a co-op sci-fi horror FPS game. Ripout is designed as an indie title available as a one-time purchase on PC through Steam and Epic Store, featuring procedurally generated levels, co-op multiplayer for up to 4 players, and unique sentient weapon companions called Pet Guns. The company was founded in January 2020 and consists of a small team of seasoned developers with 5 to 20 years of industry experience.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Ripout Ripout is an online co-op sci-fi horror first-person shooter (FPS) game featuring procedurally generated missions, sentient weapon companions (Pet Guns), and dynamic difficulty scaling for up to 4 players. Players assume the role of humanity's last soldiers fighting mutants aboard spacecraft in a dystopian future set between 2050 and 2184. It is sold as a one-time purchase for PC on Steam and Epic Games Store, targeting mature co-op gaming enthusiasts.

Quantifiable outcome

• Procedurally generated missions ensure no two playthroughs are identical
• +1 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Frictional Games: Swedish indie studio behind Amnesia and SOMA — horror-focused indie developer with similar team scale and content-driven approach. Closest peer on horror tone, though more single-player oriented.
• Coffee Stain Studios: Swedish indie studio behind Deep Rock Galactic — the most directly comparable co-op sci-fi shooter. Similar team scale and Steam-first distribution make it the closest commercial benchmark for Ripout's commercial and design trajectory.
• Klei Entertainment: Canadian indie studio behind Don't Starve Together and publisher of Deep Rock Galactic. Demonstrates a viable growth path for small studios shipping co-op content, with sustained engagement and DLC economics.
• Fatshark: Swedish developer of Warhammer: Vermintide and Darktide — co-op FPS titles with squad-based gameplay and procedural elements that compete in the same audience and genre slot as Ripout.
• Motion Twin: French worker-cooperative studio behind Dead Cells. Comparable team scale, content-quality bar, and Steam-first indie commercial path; demonstrates sustainable indie economics at similar headcount.
• Turtle Rock Studios: Creator of Left 4 Dead and Back 4 Blood — the genre-defining co-op horror shooters. They represent both the gold standard and the most direct competitive threat in this category.
• Hopoo Games: Small indie studio behind Risk of Rain 2 — a co-op roguelike shooter built and iterated over years by a similarly compact team. Closest peer on team scale combined with co-op shooter monetization.

Emerging players

• New Blood Interactive: Indie publisher focused on retro-style action and horror shooters. Comparable in indie scale, with overlapping audience targeting and a potential publishing pathway for Pet Project Games.

Broad incumbents

• Devolver Digital: Major indie publisher with a portfolio spanning shooters and horror titles. Represents both a competitive incumbent and a plausible publishing partner for Ripout given the studio's target audience and PC-first release strategy.
• 11 bit studios: Polish indie publisher-developer behind This War of Mine and Frostpunk. Relevant comparable for indie studios of similar scale targeting mature, narrative-driven audiences with premium PC releases.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/petprojectgames
• Facebookfacebook.com/ripoutgame
• Instagraminstagram.com/ripoutgame

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Pet Project Games