Firefly, the studio best known for the Stronghold series, has taken its next step into publishing by launching a new label called Wuselfaktory, dedicated to strategy games. The label’s inaugural title, Fool King, was showcased at UKIE’s For One Night Only event earlier this year. Fool King comes from Loot Donkey, a first‑time developer, and bills itself as a tactical autobattler with a roguelike twist: players assemble and position their forces, then watch the combat resolve automatically.
Nick Tannahill, the head of Firefly, says the move mirrors what many indie studios are doing right now, but he believes the company’s deep roots in strategy give it a unique advantage. "We’ve spent decades building and supporting strategy titles, so we understand the genre’s nuances better than most," he told GamesIndustry.biz. Wuselfaktory aims to join the ranks of established strategy publishers such as Paradox Interactive and the newer Hooded Horse, though Firefly is keeping its ambitions modest in terms of both scale and the number of releases it will handle. For Fool King, Firefly is providing funding and marketing support, while its parent company Devolver has assigned a producer to assist with localisation and quality assurance.
Tannahill notes that the studio plans to bring those localisation and QA responsibilities in‑house as its team of around fifty staff members grows. "We already have a small publishing unit, which is why we can take on this work," he explained. "Since 2010 we have been self‑publishing, so we have established pipelines for localisation, marketing, and platform relations." Beyond the usual publishing duties, Firefly can also lend development expertise.
"Having been on the other side of the table, we know how to negotiate with platform holders and we can also help with actual game development," Tannahill said. He described how the team has been working directly with Loot Donkey on Fool King’s online component, offering advice on UI design and providing multiple rounds of feedback on the core game.
While this level of hands‑on support consumes time that could be spent on Firefly’s own projects, the studio believes a short, focused conversation can dramatically accelerate a partner’s development timeline. The decision to enter publishing was encouraged by Devolver, which recognised its own lack of experience in the strategy niche. "We were acquired by Devolver in late 2021, and they basically said, ‘You know strategy inside‑out, we don’t. Why don’t you fill that gap?’" Tannahill recalled.
The studio’s constant monitoring of upcoming strategy titles also helped it spot promising candidates. In fact, Tannahill first learned about Fool King from a Rock Paper Shotgun article. Playing smaller, experimental titles is a habit for Tannahill, who says he regularly dives into indie releases on Steam and Itch to keep his ideas fresh for the Stronghold franchise.
"When I see a game I love, I think about how we could help it—whether that means funding, guidance, or a partnership," he added. Devolver is comfortable letting Firefly run both the scouting and the marketing side of things. "Devolver doesn’t have deep connections in the strategy community, so they trust us to know which press outlets, content creators, and sub‑genre communities to engage with," Tannahill explained. He emphasised that strategy fans expect publishers to speak their language, and that close communication is essential.
To stay in touch with its audience, Firefly embeds short surveys into every demo it releases, asking players how much they would pay, which features they want, and what future games they’d like to see. "We get around 6,000 responses per survey, which gives us a solid data set," Tannahill said. The feedback has revealed a surprisingly young demographic: a large chunk of players are between 18 and 25 years old. The studio now targets the platforms and social channels where that age group spends its time, hoping to grow the community around its IPs.
Tannahill believes the strategy genre is both vast and under‑served. "If you look at the top‑hundred wish‑listed games on Steam, many are strategy titles," he observed.
Yet classic franchises such as Command & Conquer have faded from the mainstream, not because the intellectual property lacks appeal, but because few new entries have been produced. He sees this as an opening for fresh, high‑quality experiences. Even as flashier genres like Roblox dominate headlines and console sales face challenges, strategy remains a quiet powerhouse on Steam.
"It’s not the sexiest genre, but it’s consistently one of the most successful on the platform," Tannahill said. He highlighted how deep, systems‑driven games reward players who enjoy long sessions of tactical experimentation and emergent gameplay. This audience has attracted newcomers like Hooded Horse, which recently entered the space after discovering the untapped demand.
Firefly itself is spreading its bets across the strategy spectrum. The studio continues to develop 2.5‑D isometric titles reminiscent of the original Command & Conquer and Age of Empires, while also working on fully 3D projects such as Stronghold 4. "The retro‑style isometric look is popular right now, but we don’t want to put all our eggs in one basket," Tannahill cautioned. "We aim to diversify within the genre while staying sustainable for our small team." Wuselfaktory currently has only Fool King in its catalogue, but the label plans to add a few more modest‑sized releases over time.
Since joining Devolver, Firefly has shipped four games and six expansions, with additional projects in development. Third‑party publishing will be part of the long‑term roadmap, but the studio will integrate those titles carefully so they fit within existing production schedules. "We won’t announce a publishing label and then flood the market with three big titles at once—we can only spin so many plates," Tannahill concluded.
"We’ll start with smaller projects, keep our teams lean, and make sure the operation remains sustainable."