The trailer for Join Us first appeared during the Xbox Showcase in June, giving viewers a glimpse of a darkly humorous co‑op cult simulator. In the clip, robed followers zip around on pig‑mounted platforms, unleash a barrage of machine‑gun fire, and the sequence culminates with a monstrous, Cthulhu‑like mass of 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 born out of a child’s off‑hand suggestion.
"One of the team members’ kids asked, ‘What if there was a gun that shot snakes?’" Dietsch recalls. "Because we had built a modular weapon system, I could prototype it in about thirty minutes. The kid went nuts, and the snake‑shooter stayed in the game." This anecdote captures the chaotic, improvisational spirit that defines Join Us, an open‑world sandbox survival title where players can recruit followers—or teammates in co‑op mode—to build a 1970s‑style cult empire. The game’s wild mechanics are only one side of the story.
Behind the scenes, Wolf Haus has taken a decidedly tech‑first approach, allowing a small crew to produce a high‑fidelity experience that would normally require a much larger staff. Michael Abbott, the studio’s chief operating officer, explains the team’s philosophy: "We set out to be disruptors. Everyone told us a twelve‑person team couldn’t deliver a AAA‑level product, but we knew from indie film that a lean crew can punch well above its weight." Indeed, the founders lean heavily on their Hollywood backgrounds.
Dietsch studied film at Chapman University alongside Louie Gibson—son of Mel Gibson—and the two later 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 originally founded by Chris Roberts before he turned his attention to Star Citizen.
Abbott later produced movies such as Fight for ’84 starring Jamie Foxx. This blend of film experience and entrepreneurial grit gave the team confidence to pursue big ambitions on modest budgets. Funding the project proved to be a marathon. Wolf Haus pitched the concept roughly eighty times before securing equity investment from Kraft on and Lifelike Capital.
Both investors took a stake in the studio, providing the capital necessary to keep development on track without resorting to external loans or massive publisher advances. The genesis of Join Us can be traced back to Dietsch’s early experiments with Unreal Engine. "Unreal was free to download, and I was frustrated by the high barrier to entry for creating games," he says. "I started learning from YouTube tutorials, built a few tiny prototypes, and eventually settled on the idea of a doomsday cult simulator—a mash‑up of survival mechanics and grindhouse cinema that let me merge my love of movies and games into a single IP." After creating a proof‑of‑concept demo, Dietsch showed it to Abbott, who then introduced it to Dooma, a production partner.
The demo’s quirky charm caught the attention of Dooma’s CFO and narrative director, Dooma Wendschuh, who had previously worked as a screenwriter and producer in Hollywood before transitioning to games in the early 2000s. Wendschuh founded Sekretagent Productions, contributing writing to titles such as Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones, Assassin’s Creed, and Batman: Arkham Origins. He later built several tech ventures, including the cannabis formulation company Ebbu, which sold for roughly C$430 million.
After selling Ebbu, Wendschuh bought a remote restaurant on a tiny Canadian island, intending to retire. Yet a call from his old Hollywood‑Hill roommate, Michael Abbott, pulled him back into the industry. "I watched the demo Joe had made and it completely blew my mind," Wendschuh says. He then brought in Reid Schneider, a former Warner Bros.
Games VP, as a strategic advisor, and recruited Pierre‑Olivier Chartrand, an ex‑Ubisoft Montreal programmer, to serve as chief technology officer. With the core team assembled, the next hurdle was financing during a market downturn. The studio began pitching in the summer of 2023, a period marked by industry contraction. Despite the tough climate, the concept generated excitement, and after partnering with CAA (Creative Artists Agency) for representation, Wolf Haus secured a seed round from Lifelike Capital and Krafton in early 2024.
The involvement of CAA—known for representing titles like 007: First Light—proved valuable, as did the presence of seasoned veterans Schneider and Chartrand. "My agent Derek Douglas had represented me for twelve years in games and previously headed the video‑game department at William Morris," Wendschuh notes, underscoring the importance of industry connections. What truly sets Join Us apart is the way it’s being built: a full‑scale, open‑world sandbox developed by just thirteen full‑time staff members. Dietsch emphasizes that the team deliberately kept the roster small to preserve a collaborative culture where every voice matters and each employee can touch both the creative and technical sides of the project.
To make such an ambitious scope feasible, Wolf Haus invested heavily in custom tooling from day one. "Any system we create must be scalable and debuggable by a single person," Dietsch explains. "We built a toolkit that lets us expand features across a massive map without the project collapsing under its own weight.
The first year was as much about engineering the tools as it was about designing the gameplay." The equity funding model gave the studio the runway to perfect these tools without the pressure of short‑term milestones. "Krafton and Lifelike’s investment essentially self‑funded the game," says Wendschuh.
"We’ve used those funds for development, and only now are we tapping a bit of project finance for marketing." One of the most striking aspects of Wolf Haus’s approach is its staunch refusal to rely on generative AI for creative work. While many studios are experimenting with AI‑generated assets, Wolf Haus deliberately avoids it. "We believe a human touch is essential for games," Dietsch states.
"Turning the creative process over to an algorithm would defeat the purpose of why we get up every morning." Wendschuh adds that the studio only uses AI for administrative tasks like calendar management and email drafting. "We have no AI involvement in art, design, or writing," he confirms.
Interestingly, Krafton—an investor that publicly positioned itself as an "AI‑first" company—insisted that Wolf Haus not use generative AI for core development, echoing similar statements from Krafton‑owned Neon Giant. The commitment to handcrafted content extends to the game’s massive six‑kilometre‑square map and its 15,000 voice lines, all recorded by human actors. "Even as a tiny indie, we felt it was crucial to keep the world hand‑crafted and the performances authentic," Dietsch says. Dietsch also highlights the immediacy of game development compared with film.
In cinema, an idea can take years to materialize, requiring approvals, casting, and extensive pre‑production. In contrast, a game concept can be prototyped in a single morning, inserted into the engine, and instantly visualized.
This rapid iteration fuels the team’s creative energy. Wendschuh points out that film production is heavily front‑loaded, often dependent on securing a handful of high‑profile talent to greenlight a project. While anyone can shoot a low‑budget movie with a backyard camera, breaking through without star power or distribution is rare. Game development, however, faces fewer gatekeepers; a small team can launch a successful title without needing A‑list actors or directors.
Both founders agree that the core impulse behind movies and games is the same: to craft experiences, tell stories, and engage audiences. "When I was six, I wanted to make either movies or games, and it came down to a coin toss and maybe getting a camera for Christmas," Dietsch reflects. "Whether it’s film or interactive media, the goal is to deliver an experience that resonates with people." In summary, Wolf Haus’s journey illustrates how a blend of Hollywood lineage, savvy tech development, and disciplined financing can enable a tiny team to produce a sprawling, high‑quality game without leaning on generative AI.
Their story underscores the power of small, focused crews, the value of handcrafted artistry, and the enduring appeal of creative storytelling across mediums.