Neoludic Games

What Neoludic Games does

Neoludic Games is a Cologne-based independent games studio, legally registered as neoludic games UG (haftungsbeschränkt), that develops original indie games, Unity developer tools, and immersive interactive installations. The studio operates with an 8-person team split between Cologne and Weimar and is co-led by Raven Rusch (Co-CEO/Art Director) and David Zapfe-Wildemann (Co-CEO/Creative Director). Its consumer product, Tiny Bookshop, is a cozy bookshop management simulation released in 2023 across Steam, Nintendo eShop, PlayStation Store, and Xbox Store with physical editions distributed via Silverlining. The studio also publishes two Unity plugins — Pop Input (native mobile text input for WebGL builds) and U-DMX (DMX lighting fixture control) — through the Unity Asset Store and Itch.io.

The company's technical foundation is the Unity engine, extended with AR capabilities, spatialized audio, Bluetooth-based indoor tracking, networked multiplayer, and DMX stage-lighting integration. These capabilities were validated in the Maschinenklangwerk AR installation (March 2022) at the Gesenkschmiede Hendrichs industrial heritage museum, which controlled over 50 DMX fixtures across 500+ square meters of exhibition space for LVR and LWL cultural authorities. Earlier, in August 2022, the studio built Grouillons-nous!, a collaborative networked web walking game deployed across 22 Canadian schools in partnership with Conseil scolaire acadien provincial.

Neoludic Games generates revenue through three streams: one-time license sales of indie games via major gaming platforms and physical retail, one-time license sales of Unity developer tools via Unity Asset Store and Itch.io, and professional-services contract work for cultural institutions, museums, and educational organizations. The company is privately held and founder-owned, with public funding support from Film- und Medienstiftung NRW and CGI. Marketing is community-first via Discord, Instagram, TikTok, Bluesky, X, and YouTube. Tiny Bookshop has won multiple industry awards, including Best German Game at the 2025 Deutscher Entwicklerpreis and Best Indie Game and Best Graphics at Gamescom 2025.

Name

Neoludic Games

Legal name

neoludic games UG (haftungsbeschränkt)

Website

https://neoludic.games

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Neoludic Games is a Cologne-based indie games studio developing cozy consumer games, Unity developer tools, and immersive AR installations for individual gamers, cultural institutions, and educational organizations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Indie Game Development

NAICS

Software Publishers (513210)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)

akta.pro primary industry

Indie Game Studios (MPAFAAAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Game Engine & Creation Platforms (UGC/Modding) (BPAMAKAE), Serious Games & Simulation Studios (Training, Defense, Enterprise) (MPAFAAAH)

Keywords

• Indie game development
• Unity developer tools
• Ar museum installations
• Cozy simulation games
• Interactive educational games

Headquarters

HQ city

Cologne

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Indie Game Sales: Digital and physical sales of original indie games through major gaming platforms (Steam, Nintendo eShop, PlayStation Store, Xbox Store) and retail distribution.
2. Developer Tool Sales: Sales of Unity plugins and tools through Unity Asset Store and Itch.io platform.
3. Contract Work: Custom game development and interactive installations for cultural institutions, museums, and educational organizations.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Neoludic Games is a Cologne-based indie games studio that develops and self-publishes original indie games (most prominently Tiny Bookshop) across PC and console platforms. Beyond published games, the studio sells Unity developer tools (Pop Input for mobile web input, U-DMX for DMX lighting control) and produces custom contract work including AR installations and educational games for cultural institutions such as museums and schools.

Product overview

Neoludic Games is a Cologne-based indie games studio that creates both independent games and custom projects for cultural institutions and companies. Their portfolio includes award-winning indie games (Tiny Bookshop, Grouillons-nous!) and experimental tools/technologies (Pop Input, U-DMX) as well as AR installations (Maschinenklangwerk). The company operates across two German cities (Cologne and Weimar) and specializes in combining indie game dev spirit with experimental technologies and creative use cases.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Tiny Bookshop A cozy indie bookshop management simulation game where players run a used bookshop in a coastal town, stock shelves with customers' favorite books, solve mysteries, and become part of the community. Released on Steam, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X & S with both digital and physical editions.
• Grouillons-nous! A fully networked web walking game where 22 Canadian schools collaboratively hike across a lovingly realized map of Nova Scotia, featuring real-time multiplayer, role-based views for students/teachers/admins, and companion educational materials. Built for educational engagement.
• Pop Input A lightweight Unity tool that uses native browser pop-ups to interact with Unity's Input fields, enabling mobile touch keyboard support in WebGL builds. Features include copy/paste, autocorrect, and special character support with a two-step drag-and-drop setup. Distributed via Unity Asset Store and Itch.io for Unity developers.
• U-DMX A Unity tool for controlling DMX lights that allows developers to treat DMX light sources like regular Unity light sources with industry-standard protocol compatibility. Tested in a large-scale museum installation with over 50 DMX fixtures across 500+ square meters. Distributed via Itch.io.
• Maschinenklangwerk An immersive AR installation at the Gesenkschmiede Hendrichs industrial heritage museum featuring industrial Bluetooth-based indoor-tracking, spatial audio, networked multiplayer, and DMX stage lighting where visitors control the environment by walking through the space.

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Fring FrangminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2022Game design, project management, and writing partner for Grouillons-nous! educational web game, collaborating on content development for Canadian schools.
• Conseil scolaire acadien provincialcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2022Ideator, partner, and client for Grouillons-nous! collaborative web game project involving 22 Canadian schools in Nova Scotia. Primary client for the educational game.
• Alexandra NieradzikminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 March 2022Programming collaborator for Maschinenklangwerk AR installation, providing technical expertise for the industrial museum project at Gesenkschmiede Hendrichs.
• Isabel GrünbergminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 March 2022Game Design and Narrative Design collaborator for Maschinenklangwerk, contributing to the creative direction of the immersive museum installation.
• Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe (LWL)coreOthers · 12 March 2022Regional cultural authority and client for Maschinenklangwerk installation at the Gesenkschmiede Hendrichs industrial museum.
• Landschaftsverband Rheinland (LVR)coreOthers · 12 March 2022Regional cultural authority and client for Maschinenklangwerk installation, partnering on the industrial heritage museum project.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Gummy Cat: Developer of Bear and Breakfast, a cozy management/life-sim. Highly comparable small indie studio with a similar cozy-management game shipped across PC and console storefronts.
• Studio Drydock: Developer of Wylde Flowers, a cozy farming/life-sim narrative game. Comparable small-studio cozy life-sim developer operating in the same niche as Neoludic's Tiny Bookshop.
• Spry Fox: Independent studio behind cozy/wholesome titles such as Cozy Grove and Alphabear. Highly comparable as a small-team indie developer focused on cozy, handcrafted game experiences for similar player audiences.
• Glumberland: Developer of Ooblets, a cozy creature-collection/life-sim game on PC and consoles. Comparable small indie studio shipping handcrafted cozy experiences to the same persona Neoludic targets.
• Thunder Lotus Games: Developer of Spiritfarer and other emotionally-driven indie titles. Comparable small-team indie studio with art-forward, cozy narrative games launched across multiple major platforms.
• Sirenix: Developer of Odin Inspector, a widely used Unity asset/tool sold via the Unity Asset Store. Comparable as a small developer monetizing proprietary Unity tooling through the same channel as Neoludic's Pop Input and U-DMX.
• Toge Productions: Indonesian indie studio/publisher behind Coffee Talk and similar cozy narrative experiences. Comparable as a small indie studio producing cozy, narrative-driven titles on PC and console.

Emerging players

• teamLab: International art collective producing large-scale immersive technology installations. Comparable as a producer of immersive, tech-forward experiences for cultural institutions, though at vastly larger scale than Neoludic's museum projects.

Broad incumbents

• Mimimi Games: German indie studio known for tactical/strategy titles (Shadow Tactics, Desperados III). Comparable as a small-team German indie studio with multi-platform releases, providing a regional and category benchmark.
• Daedalic Entertainment: Established German games publisher/developer with adventure and narrative catalog. Comparable as a German-headquartered games company operating in narrative and indie-adjacent titles.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/neoludic
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC5VfhLAwliCmTOdQRgWMiGw
• Instagraminstagram.com/neoludic
• TikTokvm.tiktok.com/ZMN2qK1Fp

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 Neoludic Games