Firefly, the team behind the acclaimed Stronghold series, has taken its next step into publishing by unveiling a new label dedicated to strategy games, dubbed Wuselfaktory. The debut title for the imprint, Fool King, was showcased at UKIE’s For One Night Only event earlier this year. Fool King comes from first‑time developer Loot Donkey and bills itself as a "tactical autobattler" with a roguelike twist: players assemble and arrange their forces, then watch the battles resolve automatically.
Nick Tannahill, studio head, admits that moving into publishing feels "like every other indie developer right now," but he argues that Firefly’s long‑standing expertise in strategy gives it a distinct advantage in a genre that consistently tops Steam’s charts. While heavyweight publishers such as Paradox and newer entrants like Hooded Horse have already proven the viability of the space, Wuselfaktory aims to operate on a more modest scale, both in terms of the number of releases and the breadth of each project. For Fool King, Firefly is providing the development funding and handling the marketing push, while its parent company Devolver has supplied a dedicated producer to oversee localisation and quality assurance. Tannahill notes that as the publishing arm matures, those responsibilities will shift in‑house to Firefly’s own 50‑person team.
"We already have a small publishing crew, which is why we can pull this off," he explains. The studio’s publishing know‑how is built on a decade of self‑publishing experience dating back to 2010.
Over those years Firefly has refined localisation pipelines, marketing strategies, and relationships with platform holders. More importantly, the company has spent decades crafting strategy titles, allowing it to offer hands‑on development assistance as well. "One of the real benefits a publisher can bring is that we’ve been on the other side of negotiations and can also help with actual dev work," Tannahill says. Firefly’s support for Fool King extends beyond finances.
The studio runs three online titles and has set up an asynchronous multiplayer component for Fool King, meaning the developers can schedule calls with Firefly’s team to discuss technical details, UI design, and overall game balance. "We’ve given them several rounds of feedback on the core game and UI, and that kind of direct interaction can shave weeks off the development timeline," Tannahill adds.
While such involvement does pull resources from other projects, the team believes the trade‑off is worthwhile when it accelerates a partner’s progress. The decision to add publishing to Firefly’s portfolio was prompted by Devolver, which recognised its own gap in the lucrative strategy market. "We were acquired by Devolver in late 2021, and they basically said, ‘You know strategy inside out; we don’t, so why don’t you fill that space,’" Tannahill recalls. The studio’s constant monitoring of upcoming strategy releases put it in a prime position 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 helps Tannahill stay inspired for future Stronghold entries. "I browse a lot of indie strategy games to keep my brain fresh and to harvest ideas for new projects," he says. When he encounters games he likes, he considers how they could benefit from funding, mentorship, or partnership opportunities.
Devolver has granted Firefly full autonomy over sourcing and marketing, trusting the studio’s deeper knowledge of the strategy community. "Devolver doesn’t have the same connections with press, content creators, and niche sub‑genre audiences, so they rely on us to speak the language of strategy fans," Tannahill notes. To stay close to that audience, Firefly embeds short surveys into every demo, asking players how much they’d pay, which features they’d like, and what future games they’d enjoy. The studio typically receives around 6,000 responses per survey, providing a robust data set that shapes both development and marketing decisions.
One surprising insight from the data is the youthfulness of the strategy audience. "We expected an older demographic, but a significant chunk—people aged 18 to 25—are actively playing these games," Tannahill explains. To reach them, Firefly focuses on the social platforms where younger gamers congregate, aiming to funnel that interest into its IPs and studio brand.
Tannahill sees the strategy genre as massive yet under‑served. "If you look at the top‑hundred wish‑listed games on Steam, a large proportion are strategy titles," he observes. However, many classic franchises have faded from the spotlight. "Command & Conquer was a personal favorite growing up, but it’s no longer relevant—not because the IP lacks appeal, but because new entries haven’t been made," he says.
He believes this gap creates an opportunity, especially as other high‑profile genres encounter headwinds. "Strategy isn’t the flashiest genre any more, but it quietly dominates Steam’s sales. While Roblox balloons and console sales plateau, Steam remains a strong platform for deep, systems‑driven experiences," Tannahill argues.
Players who enjoy sinking hours into intricate scenarios and emergent gameplay are the core audience, and publishers like Hooded Horse have recently realised the size of that market. Firefly’s own development slate reflects a diversified approach within strategy. The studio produces retro‑style 2.5D isometric games reminiscent of early Command & Conquer or Age of Empires, as well as fully 3D titles like Stronghold 4.
The resurgence of pixel‑perfect isometric aesthetics is evident, but Tannahill cautions against over‑committing to any single trend. "You want a varied basket of eggs, not all in the same basket, so you can adapt if the market shifts," he says. Wuselfaktory currently represents a single small‑scale title, but the label could expand to a handful of additional releases as the team balances publishing duties with its internal projects.
Since joining Devolver, Firefly has shipped four games and six expansions, with more on the way. Third‑party publishing remains part of the long‑term vision, yet it must be slotted into an already busy schedule. "We won’t announce a publishing label and immediately have three games ready; we can only spin so many plates at once," Tannahill concludes.
"We’ll start with modest titles, work in small teams, and keep it sustainable—that’s the key to success."