14 DAY TRIAL // Gardens is the name of the new remote-first studio founded by Journey, Skyrim, and Spider-Man veteran developers. Co-founders Chris Bell (Journey, What Remains of Edith Finch, Sky: Children of the Light, Way), Lexie Dostal (Dustforce), and Stephen Bell (Blaseball, What Remains of Edith Finch), alongside a talented team of developers from projects such as Spider-Man, Ratchet & Clank, Skyrim, the Fallout series, Ashen, and The Hobbit have teamed up to create Gardens.
Something that lately can only be achieved by indie studios, Gardens promises to remain a studio that’s transparent, sustainable, inclusive, and empowering. The main focus of the new studio is to create “vibrant online games that foster meaningful multiplayer moments and relationships between players around the world.”
That being said, it’s important to add that Gardens is currently hiring for multiple positions, including 3D Artist, Animator, and Engineer roles; a full list of open positions can be found in Gardens’ career section of its website, so make sure to check that out if you’re a developer looking for work.
As mentioned earlier, Gardens operates as a fully remote studio, but it’s based primarily in Portland and Los Angeles. Another interesting tidbit revealed in the press release is that the studio will offer competitive pay, equitable salaries across departments based on years of experience, mentorship, stock options, unlimited PTO, 35-hour work weeks, and other benefits.
And since this is still about gaming, it’s worth mentioning that Gardens’ upcoming, yet unnamed game, builds upon the special ways members of the team have designed shared online experiences in the past (Journey, Sky: Children of the Light, Ashen, Blaseball, Way), with players crossing paths in a mysterious and magical world driven by the concept art of ma-ko, art direction by Leighton Milne (Ashen, The Hobbit), and an art team led by Ryan Benno (Spider-Man, Ratchet & Clank).
The list of veteran developers who have already joined the Gardens team is quite impressive and includes names like Sarah Sands (Fullbright, Nike, DirectTV), Ryan Benno (Spider-Man, Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Telltale Games The Walking Dead and The Wolf Among Us, and Ratchet & Clank), Rose Dale (Skyrim, Fallout 3, Fallout 4), Roldán Melcon (Blaseball, Where Cards Fall), Tonia Beglari (Monster Hunter World: Iceborne XR Walk, The Under Presents), and Leighton Milne (Ashen, The Hobbit).