Firefly, best known for the Stronghold series, has taken its next step into publishing by unveiling a new label dedicated to strategy games, called Wuselfaktory. The label’s debut title, Fool King, was presented at the UKIE For One Night Only showcase earlier this year. Fool King comes from Loot Donkey, a first‑time developer, and bills itself as a tactical autobattler with roguelike elements: players assemble and position their forces, then watch the combat unfold automatically.
The decision to become a publisher, according to studio head Nick Tannahill, is “like every other indie developer at the moment.” Yet Firefly believes its deep experience in the strategy niche gives it a distinct advantage in a genre that consistently ranks among the most lucrative on PC. While veteran publishers such as Paradox Interactive and newer entrants like Hooded Horse have already proven the market’s appetite, Wuselfaktory is aiming for a more modest scope—fewer titles and a tighter focus on quality rather than quantity. For Fool King, Firefly is providing the development funding and handling the marketing push, while its parent company Devolver is contributing a producer to oversee localisation and quality assurance. Tannahill notes that, moving forward, the studio intends to keep those responsibilities in‑house, leveraging its existing 50‑person team.
“We already run a small publishing operation, which is why we can do this,” he explains. Firefly has been self‑publishing since 2010, which means it has established pipelines for localisation, marketing, and distribution, as well as strong relationships with platform holders. More importantly, the studio’s decades‑long work on strategy titles equips it to offer practical development assistance to partners.
“One of the real benefits a publisher can bring is that we’ve been on the other side of negotiations and relationships, and we can also help with actual development work,” Tannahill says. The support being offered to Loot Donkey includes direct consultation on the game’s user interface, multiple rounds of feedback on core mechanics, and guidance on the online component that makes Fool King an asynchronous auto‑battler. While such hands‑on involvement diverts time from Firefly’s own projects, the team believes a brief, focused conversation can accelerate a partner’s progress dramatically.
The push into publishing was encouraged by Devolver, which recognised its own limited expertise in the strategy arena. “We were bought by Devolver in late 2021, and they basically said, ‘You know strategy; we don’t.
Why don’t you fill that gap?’” Tannahill recalls. The studio’s constant monitoring of upcoming strategy releases also positioned it well to spot promising indie projects. In fact, Tannahill discovered Fool King after reading a feature on Rock Paper Shotgun.
Playing smaller titles on Steam and itch.io is a habit for Tannahill, who says it fuels fresh ideas for future Stronghold games. “I love digging into tiny experiments; they spark concepts that can be refined for larger projects,” he notes. When he encounters a game that shows potential, he considers whether funding, mentorship, or partnership could help bring it to a wider audience.
Devolver trusts Firefly to handle both sourcing and marketing because the latter lacks deep connections within the strategy community. “They don’t really know the strategy space, so they rely on us to know which press outlets, content creators, and community hubs matter for each sub‑genre,” Tannahill explains. Speaking the language of strategy fans is essential, he adds, because the audience expects a certain level of depth and nuance. To stay close to its players, Firefly embeds short surveys into every demo it releases, asking respondents about price expectations, desired features, and future game ideas.
The studio typically receives around 6,000 replies per survey, providing a robust data set that informs both development and publishing decisions. This feedback loop has revealed an unexpectedly youthful demographic; a sizable portion of the audience falls in the 18‑25 age bracket.
Consequently, Firefly tailors its outreach to the social platforms where younger gamers congregate, aiming to nurture long‑term loyalty to its IPs and to the broader strategy genre. Tannahill argues that, despite its size, the strategy category remains under‑served. “If you look at the top‑hundred‑plus wish‑listed games on Steam, many are strategy titles,” he says. Yet classic franchises such as Command and Conquer have faded from mainstream awareness, not because the intellectual property lacks appeal, but because few new entries have been produced.
This gap represents a fertile opportunity for publishers willing to invest in high‑quality, systems‑driven experiences. While other genres wrestle with shifting market dynamics, strategy games continue to thrive quietly. “It’s not the flashiest genre any more, but it’s one of the most successful on Steam,” Tannahill observes. In an ecosystem where titles like Roblox dominate attention and console sales face challenges, PC‑centric, deep‑thinking games retain a dedicated base that enjoys long play sessions and emergent gameplay.
The success of studios such as Hooded Horse underscores the latent demand for premium strategy experiences. Firefly’s own portfolio reflects a diversified approach within the genre. The studio produces retro‑style 2.5D isometric games reminiscent of early Command and Conquer or Age of Empires, alongside fully 3‑D offerings like Stronghold 4.
This blend allows the team to experiment with different visual and mechanical styles while hedging against market volatility. “The golden era of 2.5D pixel art is popular now, but we don’t want to put all our eggs in one basket,” Tannahill cautions. Wuselfaktory currently has only Fool King in its catalogue, but the label is positioned to add a handful of additional small‑scale titles over time. Since joining Devolver, Firefly has shipped four games and six expansions, with more projects in development.
Third‑party publishing will be integrated into this pipeline gradually, respecting the studio’s limited capacity. “We won’t announce a publishing label and immediately have three titles ready because we can only spin so many plates,” Tannahill says.
“We’ll start with modest releases, keep our teams lean, and ensure sustainability.”