The trailer for Join Us first appeared during the Xbox Showcase in June, offering a glimpse of a darkly humorous cooperative cult simulator. In the preview, robed followers charge on pigs while firing machine guns, culminating in a shot of massive, Cthulhu‑like tentacles.
One element that didn’t make the final cut was the infamous "snake gun," a quirky weapon that Joe Dietsch, the CEO and creative director of Wolf Haus Games, says was inspired by a child’s off‑hand suggestion. "One of our team member’s son asked, ‘What would a snake‑shooting gun look like?’ We had a rapid‑prototyping tool that let us spin up a new firearm in about thirty minutes, so I built it on the fly. The kid was thrilled, and the gun stayed in the game," Dietsch recalls. That anecdote encapsulates the chaotic, experimental spirit that defines Join Us, an open‑world sandbox survival experience where players can recruit NPC followers or friends into a 1970s‑style cult.
It also highlights the studio’s technology‑first mindset, which has allowed a small crew to produce a high‑fidelity title that would normally require a far larger staff. Michael Abbott, Wolf Haus’s chief operating officer, summed up their ambition: "We wanted to be disruptors. We told everyone we could build a AAA‑quality experience with just twelve people. Most people laughed and said it was impossible." Their confidence stems from a background in indie filmmaking, where working with shoestring budgets and limited crews is the norm.
"We’re used to punching well above our weight," Abbott says. After 80 pitches, the team finally secured equity investment from Krafton and Lifelike Capital, both of which took a stake in Wolf Haus.
The founders’ Hollywood pedigree runs deep. Dietsch studied film at Chapman University alongside Louie Gibson, son of Mel Gibson, and together they co‑wrote and co‑directed the indie features Happy Hunting and Manifest West. Abbott is the son of veteran makeup artist Larry Abbott and helped launch Ascendant Pictures, the production company founded by Chris Roberts before he moved on to the Star Citizen universe. Abbott later produced films such as Fight for ’84, starring Jamie Foxx.
Join Us originated from Dietsch’s early experiments in Unreal Engine. "Unreal was free to download, and I’d always loved games, but the barrier to actually creating something felt huge.
I started learning from YouTube tutorials and built a few tiny prototypes," he explains. Even without formal training, Dietsch managed to craft a couple of modest games before deciding to tackle something larger: a doomsday cult simulator that fused survival mechanics with grindhouse cinema aesthetics. He built a proof‑of‑concept demo, ran into technical roadblocks, and showed the prototype to Abbott, who then introduced it to Dooma. Dooma Wendschuh, Wolf Haus’s chief financial officer and narrative director, began his career as a film producer and screenwriter before transitioning to games in the early 2000s.
He founded Sekretagent Productions, which supplied narrative work for titles like Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones, Assassin’s Creed, and Batman: Arkham Origins. Later, Wendschuh launched several tech ventures, most notably the cannabis‑formulation company Ebbu, sold for roughly C$430 million (US$330 million).
After the sale, he bought a remote island restaurant in Canada, intending to retire. Yet, a call from his old Hollywood‑hillroommate Michael Abbott pulled him back into the industry. "I got a call out of the blue: ‘A buddy of mine made a video game.’ I watched the demo, it blew my mind, and I decided to come out of retirement," Wendschuh says.
He brought the project to Reid Schneider, former VP at Warner Bros. Games and now head of Raccoon Logic, who became a strategic advisor and recruited Pierre‑Olivier Chartrand, a former Ubisoft Montreal programmer, as chief technology officer. Funding proved to be the next hurdle.
The studio began pitching in the summer of 2023, a period marked by a broader industry downturn. "People liked what we were building, but the market was tight," Dietsch notes. After initial outreach, Wolf Haus signed with Creative Artists Agency (CAA) in Los Angeles, refined their pitch, and returned to investors in 2024.
Their persistence paid off when Lifelike Capital and Krafton closed a seed round, providing the capital needed to continue development. Wendschuh credits the CAA connection and the involvement of seasoned veterans like Schneider and Chartrand for smoothing the fundraising process. "My old agent Derek Douglas, who also heads the video‑game department at William Morris, helped open doors," he adds.
Despite the high aspirations, the studio has remained lean, employing only thirteen full‑time staff members. "From day one we understood the scope of the project and deliberately kept the team small so everyone could have a voice and contribute creatively," says Dietsch. To make such an ambitious game feasible with a tiny crew, Wolf Haus invested heavily in custom tooling early in development. "Every system must be scalable and debuggable by a single person.
We built a toolkit that lets us expand features across an open world without the project collapsing under its own weight," he explains. This tooling philosophy not only supports Join Us but also lays the groundwork for future titles.
The equity‑funded model gave Wolf Haus the runway to perfect these tools. "Krafton and Lifelike’s investment essentially self‑funded the game. We’re now adding a modest amount of project finance for marketing, but the core development was covered by their equity," Wendschuh clarifies.
The investors’ alignment with the studio’s long‑term value creation encouraged the team to keep building internal solutions, even when it slowed short‑term progress. When asked about generative AI, a hot topic in game development, Dietsch gives a clear answer: the studio does not rely on it for creative work. "We believe a human touch is essential. Using AI to generate core content would defeat the purpose of why we love making games," he says.
Wendschuh adds that the studio only uses AI for administrative tasks like calendar management and email drafting, not for any artistic or design decisions. Krafton, despite branding itself as an "AI‑first" company, also insisted that Wolf Haus avoid generative AI in the creative pipeline. "Our investors wanted to be sure they weren’t funding a studio that outsourced artistic creation to AI," Wendschuh notes, echoing similar statements from Krafton‑owned Neon Giant. The team’s commitment to handcrafted content extends to the game’s world and audio.
The six‑kilometre‑square map was built entirely by hand, and Join Us features roughly 15,000 voice lines recorded by human actors. "Even as a tiny indie, we felt it was crucial to keep the experience human," Dietsch emphasizes.
Dietsch reflects on the differences between filmmaking and game development. In film, an idea can take years to materialise, requiring approvals, casting, and studio greenlights.
In contrast, a game concept can be prototyped within hours. "You can have an idea this morning, drop it into the engine, and see it instantly.
That immediacy is exhilarating," he says. Wendschuh points out that movies are heavily front‑loaded: securing a few high‑profile directors or actors is often the make‑or‑break factor for a studio. While anyone can shoot a backyard film, breaking through without big names or distribution is rare.
Games, however, have far fewer gatekeepers. "You don’t need an A‑list star or director to launch a successful title," he argues, noting that the lower barrier to entry makes the medium especially attractive for creators.
Both men agree that the core creative impulse—telling stories and delivering experiences—remains the same across mediums. "When I was six, I wanted to make either movies or games.
It boiled down to a coin toss and maybe getting a camera for Christmas. I learned to program on a TI‑83, so I’ve always been drawn to both," Dietsch reflects. "Whether it’s film or a game, the goal is to engage an audience, tell a story, and create an emotional journey.
The tools change, but the intention stays constant."