Game Development for Publishers

A senior Unity studio for publishers who need pitch-ready prototypes, work-for-hire production capacity, or embedded co-development teams. Direct senior engineers, no junior layer.

Publishers buy from studios like ours for three reasons: a vertical slice they can put in front of a greenlight committee in 6 to 8 weeks, work-for-hire production they don't want to staff internally, or an embedded co-dev team that scales an existing internal project. We can quote on any of the three. The decision-maker on our side is the engineer, not a producer.

Three buying patterns, one studio that fits all three

Most publishers we speak to walk in with one of three problems: a pitch deadline that needs a vertical slice, a project on the slate they don't want to staff internally, or an internal team that needs senior Unity capacity for the next milestone. The shape of the engagement is different in each case, but the engineering bar is the same. Whichever path applies, you speak to David personally throughout: Director and Principal Unity Engineer, 12 years on Unity, Technical Developer on RuneScape Mobile at Jagex (2017 to 2019), Unity Certified Expert. Adam Kaye, Lead Unity Engineer (14 years, gameplay and AI specialist), leads design-led work. There is no junior layer between the publisher and the engineering, and no producer reading from a sales script. Standard mutual NDA at no cost before any technical conversation. IP transfers on payment. Cash terms only.

Genres and platforms we cover

We are Unity-only and proud of it. Within Unity, we cover the platforms and genres that fit our team's track record:

Mobile (iOS, Android): David's RuneScape Mobile pedigree at Jagex (2017 to 2019), plus shipped commercial mobile titles including Pocket Factory, Nova Blast, and Word Fun World.
PC (Steam, Epic Games Store, browser/WebGL): live multiplayer (Domi Online) and modernised re-release work (When Ski Lifts Go Wrong, Unity 2018 to Unity 6 LTS for Hugecalf Studios).
Cross-platform 2D and 3D: builds shared across mobile, PC, and web from a single Unity codebase.
Educational and serious games: team prior experience includes work for Cambridge University Press, the Museum of London, and the EU Horizon 2020 iRead programme during earlier roles at Fish in a Bottle. At OVG we have shipped Vocab Builder for The Language Conservancy.
Hypercasual and casual mobile: What's That and Pocket Factory, with a proprietary Unity framework that compresses prototype time.

Genres we don't take: NSFW, real-money or social-casino-adjacent gambling. Other ethical or fit concerns we'll raise before signing rather than after.

Publisher-relevant track record

Direct OVG work plus earlier roles where the team shipped to publisher-level standards. Cambridge, Museum of London, and EU Horizon 2020 iRead were delivered through team prior employment at Fish in a Bottle, not as OVG client engagements.

Jagex

RuneScape Mobile (David, 2017 to 2019)

Cambridge University Press

Word Fun World, team prior work at Fish in a Bottle

Museum of London

Fire of London, team prior work at Fish in a Bottle

EU Horizon 2020 iRead

Navigo, team prior work at Fish in a Bottle

Hugecalf Studios

When Ski Lifts Go Wrong, Unity 2018 to Unity 6 modernisation and mobile/EGS port

Three ways we work with publishers

Pick the engagement that matches the problem you're solving. Each one is a different commercial shape: fixed milestones, work-for-hire, or day rates.

🎯

Pitch prototypes and vertical slices

6 to 8 week typical turnaround.
Built to survive a greenlight committee, not just a demo reel.
Documented for handover to your internal team if greenlit.
Proprietary Unity framework cuts prototype time roughly in half. See our rapid prototyping service.
Indicative budget: £20,000 to £60,000.

🏭

Work-for-hire production

Full-cycle Unity development under publisher direction.
Mobile, PC, WebGL, console (Switch, PS5, Xbox via partners).
Senior engineering, contractor bench for art and additional dev capacity.
Standard NDA, IP transfers on payment, milestone-based billing.
Indicative budget: £80,000 to £500,000.

👥

Co-development and team augmentation

Embedded into your existing studio team.
Day rates: £600/day per developer, £1,200/day for two.
Typical engagements 2 to 6 months, can scale up or down.
Senior-only embeds, no junior pass-through. See our co-development service.

Why publishers work with us

👤

Direct senior access

You speak to David (Director and Principal Unity Engineer, 12 years Unity, ex-Jagex Technical Developer on RuneScape Mobile, Unity Certified Expert) throughout the engagement. The diagnostic, the scoping, and the lead engineering are the same person.

🎯

Pitch-grade polish

Our deliverables go in front of decision-makers. Presentation matches the engineering: clean builds on target devices, written documentation, and a vertical slice that demonstrates the production foundation rather than a throwaway demo.

🔒

NDA-friendly

Standard mutual NDA at no cost before any technical conversation. We sign your template where reasonable; if you don't have one, we send ours. UK-registered (Company No. 13011771), UK IP law.

🗣️

Honest scoping

If the timeline or budget can't deliver the pitch, we'll say so before signing. We'd rather lose the deal than ship a bad outcome on a project we already think is the wrong shape.

Our Services for This Industry

Rapid Prototyping and MVP Development

Game prototypes and MVPs built 50% faster with our proprietary Unity framework. Validate your concept before committing to full production.

Learn More →

Co-Development & Staff Augmentation

Embedded Unity engineering led by an ex-Jagex developer. Scale your studio instantly with senior developers who integrate from Day 1.

Learn More →

Unity Game Development

Full-cycle Unity game development, prototype to App Store launch. Mobile, PC and multiplayer specialists. UK-based studio working with funded startups.

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Mobile Game Development

Mobile game development services for iOS and Android. UK-based Unity developers building new mobile games, porting existing titles, and improving live mobile projects.

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Game Porting Services

Game porting from senior UK Unity engineers. PC and console to mobile, mobile to PC and Steam, and engine-to-Unity rebuilds. Led by a principal engineer who worked on the RuneScape Mobile port. Fixed-scope feasibility audit first.

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Performance Optimisation Services

Unity performance optimisation: thermal throttling, memory management, draw call reduction, and crash resolution. Led by a developer who worked on RuneScape Mobile.

Learn More →

Portfolio relevant to publisher work

Explore Word Fun World

Explore Pocket Factory

Explore Domi Online

Case Studies

What's That

Rapid Prototyping & Reusable Framework Design

How we built a Unity framework to launch hypercasual MVPs and prototypes 50% faster. Read the full case study.

Rapid Prototyping
Framework Design
Hypercasual
Mobile

Read Case Study

Pocket Factory

Designing and Building a Mobile Merging Strategy Game

How we designed core gameplay and monetisation for Pocket Factory, a mobile strategy game for iOS and Android.

Game Design
Monetisation
Market Research
Mobile Strategy

Read Case Study

Need a Unity Development Partner for a Project?

Whether you need a prototype, work-for-hire development or engineering support alongside an existing studio, tell us what you’re looking to deliver.

Tell Us About Your Project

Already an established studio with a development team and need embedded capacity? See our game studios industry page.

Want to understand the prototype framework in detail? See our rapid prototyping service.

Co-development engagement specifics, day rates, IP terms, and embed shapes are on the co-development and staff augmentation service page.

Frequently Asked Questions

6 to 8 weeks for a vertical slice that survives a greenlight committee. 2 to 3 weeks for a playable concept demo if the goal is just to prove a core loop. Both are built on the production foundation rather than thrown away, so nothing is wasted if the pitch lands.

Yes. Standard mutual NDA at no cost before any code, roadmap, or IP changes hands. We will sign your template where reasonable; if you don't have one, we send ours.

IP transfers on final payment per milestone, work-for-hire terms. We retain the right to mention the engagement in our portfolio (subject to any specific NDA terms you require), but the bespoke codebase, assets, and resulting game are yours. Our pre-existing tools and frameworks remain ours and are licensed for use within the delivered project. Standard contract templates available on request.

Yes via partners for first-time submission. We cover the engineering (platform-specific build pipelines, performance budgets, controller and TRC requirements) and our partners handle the platform-specific compliance work for Switch, PS5, and Xbox where needed. We will not pretend to be a first-party-certified developer when we are not.

No, never. Cash terms only, paid in arrears against milestones (work-for-hire and prototypes) or in advance against day rates (co-development). We are not in the business of being co-financiers of publisher projects.

£10,000 minimum for prototypes (covers a focused 2 to 3 week vertical slice). Day rates have no formal minimum but we will usually ask for a 2-week commitment so the embed can ramp into your codebase and start contributing before the engagement winds down.

Stop Searching. Start Building.

Ready to start your next project? Tell us about your game and we’ll get back to you with a plan.

Start by telling us what kind of help you need.

Location

London, United Kingdom

Response Time

We typically respond within one business day.