At this year’s Game Developers Conference, I had the opportunity to engage in a conversation with Stephen Kick, founder of Nightdive Studios, and Larry Kuperman, the VP of business development. Our discussion revolved around the studio’s upcoming remaster of the iconic System Shock 2, a title that holds a special place in Nightdive’s history as it was the catalyst for the studio’s inception.
The Journey to Revive a Classic
Kick shared an intriguing narrative about how he navigated the complexities of reviving a seemingly dormant franchise. He revealed a surprising detail: for an extended period, the rights to System Shock were held by an insurance company that was, quite frankly, at a loss regarding what to do with them.
“I looked them up and sent an email to their general counsel, which is just listed on the website: ‘Hey, you guys still have the rights to System Shock.’ And they wrote me back almost immediately, but they asked me if I wanted to do System Shock 3,” Kick recounted. At the time, he found himself in Guatemala with only a couple of thousand dollars to his name, hardly the ideal situation for embarking on a triple-A project. Instead, he proposed the idea of re-releasing the original games.
The rights to the series had been split between Star Insurance and EA, with Star retaining the IP copyright and EA holding the trademark. This division was a strategic maneuver orchestrated by Warren Spector to prevent any System Shock projects from materializing. “He would tell us that many years later,” Kick noted.
Fortuitously, when Kick reached out to Star, EA’s trademark had recently lapsed due to lack of use, granting Star full ownership but leaving them without a clear strategy to leverage it. “I came to them with a business idea that was quick, cheap—by comparison to developing a new triple-A game—and that would allow them to own the rights of System Shock,” Kick explained. The proposal was accepted, and he promptly sent the contract to GOG, who were initially skeptical of his claims.
“[Former GOG SVP Oleg Klapovskiy] didn’t believe that Steve had the rights. Steve had gone in through the support email,” Kuperman elaborated. “That gets forwarded to Oleg, saying, ‘Hey, this guy says that he has the rights to System Shock.’ Oleg writes back, saying, ‘He’s probably full of shit. It’s probably all bullshit.’” This exchange highlighted the skepticism surrounding Kick’s unexpected acquisition of the rights, a sentiment that persists even today.
As Kuperman joined Nightdive, he took on the task of securing the remaining rights held by Star Insurance. Under Nightdive’s stewardship, the System Shock series has experienced a revival. The upcoming remaster of System Shock 2 is set to launch on June 26, while the studio’s complete remake of the original game has already garnered acclaim, earning a “best remake” award in 2023, competing against heavyweights like the Resident Evil 4 remake.
While Nightdive has yet to disclose its plans following the release of System Shock 2, anticipation is building, and the gaming community is eager to see what the future holds for this revitalized franchise.
