nre@soho:~$ ./boot --engine_
We forge worlds worth losing yourself in.
NovaRuneEmpire is an independent game development studio on Berwick Street, building RPG worlds, mobile titles and console experiences — from the first playable slice to live service.
A note from the studio floor.
I started NovaRuneEmpire above a record shop on Berwick Street in 2014 with two programmers, a whiteboard and a stubborn belief that small teams can still build worlds that matter. Eleven years later we are eighteen people — designers, engine engineers, narrative writers and a QA team that breaks things for a living.
We do not chase trends or ship hollow live-service treadmills. Every project starts with a playable question: does this loop feel good in the hand after ninety seconds? If it does, we build outward. If it does not, we cut it. That discipline is why our clients keep coming back for the next cartridge.
— Priya Ramanathan, Founder & Creative Director
Engines
Unreal Engine 5 & Unity 6
Craft
Systems, narrative & feel
Home
West End, London W1
Cartridges from the vault.
A slice of what we have shipped across genres and platforms.
Ashfall Dominion — an isometric tactics RPG with a branching, choice-driven campaign.
Pick your production run.
Transparent scopes and starting prices in pounds sterling. Every build begins with a paid discovery week.
| What you get | Vertical Slicefrom £18,0006-week sprint | Full Productionfrom £220,0009–18 months | Live-Opsfrom £6,500 / morolling retainer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Playable build delivered | |||
| Dedicated engine engineer | |||
| Narrative & systems design | Core loop | Full campaign | Seasonal |
| Art & animation pipeline | 1 vertical slice | Full pipeline | Content drops |
| QA & certification support | — | ||
| Store & platform submission | — | ||
| Analytics & balancing loop | — | — | |
| Weekly playtest reviews |
All prices exclude VAT. Discovery week billed at £3,200 and credited against production.
What partners say after launch.
NovaRuneEmpire took our napkin sketch to a playable vertical slice in six weeks. The core loop tested at 71% day-one retention — the highest our publisher had seen from an external team.
Marcus O.
Executive Producer, Camden
Shipped Mar 2025
Patch notes, straight to your inbox.
Monthly build breakdowns, post-mortems and studio openings. No spam, unsubscribe any time.
Pitch us a game.
Tell us about the world you want to build. We reply to every serious enquiry within two working days.
Visit the studio
46 Berwick Street, Soho, London W1F 8NH
Studio hours
Mon–Fri, 09:30–18:30 GMT