Story-driven RPG · PC & Console
Runebound Ascension
1.2M copies sold in the first quarter, 92% positive reviews.
Boutique Game Studio — Shoreditch, London
Worlds worth returning to, engineered rune by rune.
EtherRuneWorld is a Shoreditch studio building bespoke RPGs, competitive multiplayer worlds, and the live-ops that keep players coming back — for publishers and independent studios across the UK.
9 yrs
Shipping games
24M+
Players reached
31
Titles launched
Our Mission
We build games with the craft of a jeweller and the ambition of a world-builder.
Founded on Leonard Street in 2017, EtherRuneWorld exists to prove that small teams can ship extraordinary games. We pair narrative designers, systems engineers, and live-ops specialists on a single floor so ideas move from whiteboard to build in days, not quarters. Every title we touch is measured against one question: will players still be talking about it a year from now?
Player-first design
We prototype mechanics with real players in our Shoreditch playtest lab every Thursday before a single line of production code is written.
Engineering that lasts
Deterministic netcode, rollback multiplayer, and observable live services — the unglamorous work that keeps a launch stable at 3am.
Long-tail live ops
Seasons, events, and economy tuning informed by weekly cohort data, so your game grows for years rather than spiking and fading.
What We Do
End-to-end game development, from first sketch to live season.
Full-Cycle Game Production
Concept, vertical slice, and full production for PC and console. Dedicated pod of 6–10 across design, art, and engineering. From £120,000 per milestone.
Multiplayer & Netcode Engineering
Rollback netcode, dedicated server fleets, matchmaking, and anti-cheat for competitive titles. Typical engagement 4–9 months, from £85,000.
Live Ops & Season Design
Battle passes, live events, and economy balancing driven by weekly cohort analytics. Retainer from £9,500 / month, 3-month minimum.
Art Direction & Concept
Character, environment, and UI art with a signature painterly style. Style guides and asset pipelines included. Sprints from £14,000.
Selected Work
A few of the worlds we have shipped.
Competitive 5v5 · Cross-platform
Aether Clash
Rollback netcode holding sub-40ms rollups across 3 regions.
Co-op survival · Early Access
Hollow Tide
340k wishlists converted at a 28% day-one rate.
Cozy sim · Mobile & Switch
Lantern & Lore
Day-30 retention of 19% after our live-ops overhaul.
Kind Words
Studios and publishers who trusted us with their worlds.
"EtherRuneWorld took our messy prototype and shipped a vertical slice in eleven weeks. The playtest discipline alone reshaped how our whole studio works."
Marcus D.
Executive Producer, Camden · March 2025
"Their netcode team saved our launch. We went from rage-quit rollbacks to a genuinely competitive experience that our esports partners could stand behind."
Priya S.
Studio Director, Manchester · November 2024
"The live-ops retainer paid for itself in one season. Day-30 retention nearly doubled and the economy finally stopped leaking. Utterly professional team."
Tom H.
Head of Product, Brighton · August 2024
Get In Touch
Tell us about the world you want to build.
We take on a handful of projects each year. Share a few details and our production lead will reply within two working days. Studio hours are Monday to Friday, 9:30am–6:00pm.
Phone
+44 20 7613 0209Studio
58 Leonard Street, Shoreditch, London EC2A 4LX
Email
[email protected]Hours
Mon–Fri · 9:30–18:00 GMT