Less than two years ago, Surgent Studios found itself at a crossroads. The studio’s inaugural venture, the afrofuturist metroidvania Tales of Kenzera: Zau, garnered positive reviews but fell short in commercial success. By July 2024, Surgent had to make the difficult decision to lay off around a dozen employees, and just three months later, the entire team was put on notice for redundancy. This narrative is all too common in the current gaming landscape, yet the tale of Surgent took an unexpected turn.
A Remarkable Turnaround
Since those challenging days, Surgent has not only rebounded but has also launched two distinct games, showcasing a remarkable pivot from their initial strategy of spending five years developing Zau. Abubakar Salim, the studio’s director and an actor, reflects on this shift during a video call. “We were very much close to going down the route of making a game every three to four years and going bigger and bigger,” he shares. “We just had to adapt and change because we’re still indie, and we’re still quite close to the ground.”
Salim credits the development of Palworld as a catalyst for this change. Initially, he pitched a grand idea with a budget three times that of Zau, but feedback from his colleague Bucky prompted him to rethink his approach. “Bucky was like, ‘Ah, it’s a bit too big for us,'” Salim recalls. Undeterred, he pivoted to a more manageable concept, leading to the creation of a darkly humorous horror game.
The result was Dead Take, a concise narrative horror experience featuring performances from Neil Newbon and Ben Starr. Released in 2025, the game was well-received on Steam, and its lower production costs meant it didn’t require a massive audience to achieve success. This new direction allowed Surgent to rethink its development strategy, focusing on smaller, more creative projects that prioritize sustainability over lengthy production cycles.
Building Institutional Knowledge
Salim emphasizes that the development of Zau was not in vain. The experience gained during that project has equipped Surgent with the institutional knowledge necessary to produce games like Dead Take more efficiently. “It’s a very nice dynamic,” he explains. “Because we’ve now built this really nice cadence between each other, that’s why we’re able to make games faster.”
Interestingly, Salim draws inspiration from his work with renowned director Ridley Scott. “When I worked with Ridley on Raised by Wolves, this guy was constantly working,” he says. “He built this conversation with the people that he uses, and because they understand one another, he’s able to build these films out and put these things out, which should take years to make.”
In addition to horror, Salim has also ventured into more lighthearted territory with FixForce, a game designed to be overtly child-friendly. He notes that many multiplayer games often target older audiences, filled with elements that may not be suitable for younger players. “I wanted to create a friendslop game that feels like a laugh,” he states. FixForce allows for cooperative play with a twist, enabling players to prank each other without the fear of being eliminated from the game.
The Future of Surgent Studios
Salim remains open to the possibility of returning to larger projects in the future, including a potential sequel to Zau. However, he acknowledges the realities of today’s gaming market, where the competition on platforms like Steam is fierce. Smaller, shorter projects not only require less financial investment but also allow indie developers to iterate on their work more frequently, ultimately building the knowledge and experience needed for future successes.
Reflecting on the industry’s evolution, Salim concludes, “If Supergiant—the creators of Hades—had released their game in this climate, it would have been so difficult. They had to work with one another and find the rhythm to get to Hades. It’s like any other director in film and TV or actors. You have to do the work in order to find that voice, or find that thing that makes you kind of stick out and stand out.”
