Creators of Risk of Rain and Deadbolt Are Officially Ceasing Operations on Their Next Title as Developers Move Over to Work at Valve Instead

Hopoo Games is arguably one of the most influential teams of indie developers within the gaming industry, giving us not only a groundbreaking action roguelike in Risk of Rain but also one of the more compelling titles of the stealth-action genre with Deadbolt.

Now, though, it appears that the team is turning toward their journey’s next chapter, getting absorbed into Valve and presumably working directly on the organization’s various projects. As one would expect, this new chapter brings both good and bad news for fans of this developer.

Hopoo Games’ Many Developers Will Now Work on Game Development Directly at Valve

When Risk of Rain 2 first came out, many regarded it as one of the most addicting roguelikes out there. It far exceeded other games in the genre with its unbelievable depth and complexity.

That’s the kind of impact Hopoo Games made working independently for the better part of the decade. Perhaps it is the same kind of impact we may see them making at Valve, pushing both new IPs and bringing older ones back from the brink of extinction:

Today, we have an exciting update: Duncan and Paul, alongside many other talented members at Hopoo Games, will now be working on game development directly at @valvesoftware !

— Hopoo Games (@hopoogames) September 3, 2024

While most people are more than happy to see the switch, many are also saddened by the shuttering of their unannounced project, Snail, which was believed to have possibly been just as impressive as Hopoo’s action roguelike:

We’re incredibly grateful to Valve for their partnerships in the last decade, and are excited to continue working on their awesome titles. However, this does mean that we are stopping production on our unannounced game, “Snail”.

— Hopoo Games (@hopoogames) September 3, 2024

Outside of the firm handshakes all around, a few people seem worried about the studio as well. Often, developers who get absorbed by Valve somewhat disappear in the midst of long development times between projects.

Only time will tell whether that’d be the case with Hopoo. Rather than dwell on some unsavory possibilities, however, it’s perhaps better to speculate on what projects these talented developers will help Valve with.

What Projects Would Hopoo Games’ Developers Be Taking While Working With Valve?

Let’s get the most obvious one out of the way first – there’s very little chance that Hopoo Games would jump on the Half-Life straight away, even with all the recent leaks taken into account.

On the other hand, another likely candidate is most certainly going to be Valve’s not-so-secret hero shooter, Deadlock. With the developers’ foray into the third-person shooter and their penchant for the genre, as seen by Risk of Rain, there’s a good combination here that can further benefit the already successful game.

Another possibility is that Hopoo Games may still continue working on some projects independently, though most likely under Valve’s banner. Similar to how Campo Santo is still working on their upcoming title, In The Valley of Gods, there’s always a chance that the newly hired devs may follow in their footsteps.

That said, though, while we’d be more than happy if Hopoo Games took on a lot of Valve’s projects, perhaps even fixing games like Team Fortress 2 in the process, what awaits them in the future will remain a fog-shrouded mystery for now.

With all that out of the way, what are your thoughts on this announcement? Were you also saddened by that unannounced project’s sudden demise? Let us know in the comments below.