Former Disco Elysium devs at Summer Eternal reveal Red Rooster and a player-owned stake

Summer Eternal, one of several studios started by former Disco Elysium developers, has announced its first game, Red Rooster. Gematsu reports the game is coming to PS5, Xbox Series, Switch 2 and PC. The studio also explained an unusual ownership setup in which players hold a stake in the company.

Gematsu reports that Summer Eternal calls Red Rooster an “incendiary, physics-driven RPG.” Eurogamer describes it as a blend of text-heavy isometric role-playing and the world-building and player freedom of an immersive sim. The game is still in development. Neither source gives a release date.

A non-profit for players

Eurogamer reports that anyone who buys something from Summer Eternal can join the Players Non-Profit, a community organization that owns 5 percent of the studio and takes part in running it. In a press release quoted by Eurogamer, the studio said the remaining 95 percent is split among full-time workers, freelancers and investors.

The studio says the stake is small but still lets members call a general Assembly to discuss an issue. Summer Eternal said the organization will act as the “voice of the gamers” in what it calls an experimental attempt to formalize community decision-making in game development. According to the press release, the non-profit can spend game revenue on events, support for union work or anything else its assembly of members agrees on. Eurogamer says the setup is meant to let players push back on features, mechanics, characters or scenes they object to.

Anthology book

The studio also formally announced a 500-page Anthology, and buying it comes with membership in the non-profit. Eurogamer describes the book as part treatise on the studio’s development ideas and the politics of making games, and part development diary for Red Rooster. It includes interviews with economists Yanis Varoufakis and Richard Wolff, science fiction author Ted Chiang, and former BioWare developers Mark Darrah and David Gaider. It also has contributions from worker-run organizations including the UVW-CWA, Aftermath and Peregrine Coast Press.

According to Eurogamer, the Standard edition costs €69. A €99 Deluxe Firestarter bundle adds a vinyl record and extra merchandise.