Cathedral Studios

Cathedral Studios is a UK-based video game developer and publisher whose flagship project is The Bornless, a first-person horror shooter set in the fictional town of Farmouth, where demonic entities and the human world intersect. The game includes a mode called 'The Ritual' that combines extraction, horror survival and strategy elements within a lore-driven setting. Press coverage describes the studio as an indie game studio located in Colchester, UK, while its investor Hartmann Capital lists it as London-based.

Beyond development, the company operates as a publisher through an internal indie label, Little Bird, which receives production, marketing and distribution support; Little Bird's first title is HAM: The Game, a co-op comedy project. The studio states that its work is grounded in motion capture, Unreal Engine expertise and cinematic design. A second initiative, LaunchForge, is described by Hartmann Capital as an AI-powered publishing platform intended to help game developers improve visibility, user acquisition and revenue through data-driven marketing optimisation.

The team is organised into development, publishing/community and leadership groups, covering 3D art, sound design, UI and programming, animation, content and community management. Coverage of the seed round notes team members with prior experience on Far Cry, Borderlands, Assassin's Creed, Sea of Thieves and Call of Duty.

Founding story

The company is led by founder and CEO Toby Saunders, whose background is in film and TV, including TV drama and advertising work for brands such as Snapchat and Twitter. His Unreal Engine remake of Final Fantasy X circulated widely online and was featured by Eurogamer and YouTube Gaming, which the studio describes as the start of his move into high-end game production. Other leadership includes Bobby (operations), Jonas (marketing, a co-founder of Gamerzclass), Josh (business) and Branton (game), an Unreal Engine developer involved with The Bornless from its early stages and mentored by Lee Perry of Gears of War 1 and 2.

Business model

Cathedral Studios operates both as a developer of its own titles, led by The Bornless, and as a publisher supporting independent teams through its internal label Little Bird, to which it provides production support, marketing and distribution expertise. A related initiative, LaunchForge, is positioned as an AI-powered publishing platform for game developers.

Traction

The Bornless had accumulated more than 300,000 Steam wishlists and over one million trailer views across IGN channels according to investor Hartmann Capital. The studio closed a $6.66 million seed round in March 2024 intended to expand its talent roster and accelerate development.

Latest developments

In March 2024 the studio closed a $6.66 million seed round led by Arca with Hartmann Capital, LiquidX, IVC and 6th Man & Spartan participating, earmarked for hiring and accelerated development. The Bornless added a mode called 'The Ritual' blending extraction, horror survival and strategy. The studio has since expanded into publishing with the internal indie label Little Bird and its first title, HAM: The Game, and lists LaunchForge as an AI-powered publishing platform initiative.