Raid Base

Raid Base Inc is a video game development studio building an open-world, sandbox PvPvE game in an original IP, referred to as "Specter". The studio positions the project as a live game service centered on social play, in which players form crews, build reputation among allies and rivals, and cooperate to overcome adversity. Its stated design philosophy emphasizes contrast between high and low moments in gameplay and continuous adjustment of designs based on player feedback.

The studio describes itself as staffed by developers who actively play games, and says it was established to maintain a closer dialogue with players. Internally it emphasizes personal ownership, agility across disciplines beyond individual specialties, and prioritizing feedback from players who best exemplify the core gameplay experience, which it expects to broaden over time. It also states an intent to build a development team reflecting the geographically diverse communities its game is meant to serve.

Founding story

Raid Base was founded by Stephen Lim and Trevor Romleski, both formerly of Riot Games. Lim, the studio's product director and CEO, spent eight years at Riot in project lead and VP of R&D roles, building multiple teams of over 100 developers around specific player needs, and was a co-creator of VALORANT with Romleski, with whom he developed a process for defining and sustaining new game ideas through long development cycles. Romleski, the game director, entered game development after discussing balance and game health on the League of Legends official forums as an aspiring pro player, which led to a design role at Riot; he worked on League of Legends live balance and reworks during seasons 1 and 2, created champions, and co-created VALORANT, leading its design team through launch. The pair state they established the studio to begin a more intimate dialogue with players.

Business model

The studio develops an original-IP game intended to operate as an ongoing game service, with development evolving through continued dialogue and partnership with its player base.

Traction

Raid Base is a portfolio company of BITKRAFT Ventures, where Jasper Brand, Partner, is the deal lead, and was named a client of the AccelByte backend platform as of May 2022.

Latest developments

As of the BITKRAFT portfolio listing, the studio's game "Specter" is described as a forthcoming open-world sandbox PvPvE experience, with Stephen Lim as CEO and Trevor Romleski as Game Director and co-founder. The studio is recruiting developers.