Former Riot Developers Discuss Shifting Focus to Co-op Gaming with Codename: Islands

Treehouse Games, a studio founded by Riot veterans, has been working on a cooperative survival crafting game called Codename: Islands. The game's focus on co-op play and social connections sets it apart from other survival crafting games. In a recent interview, Treehouse CEO Michael Chu and chief product officer Andrea Sepenzis discussed the studio's vision and its take on the metaverse trend. According to Chu, the metaverse wave felt like a distraction that skewed the gaming industry's attention away from what people truly want to do with their friends. Sepenzis added that the tech industry's attempt to commercialize and brand the metaverse experience overlooked the importance of creating a meaningful and engaging experience for players. The studio has been quietly working on Codename: Islands, which is slated for release next year. Sepenzis, who joined the studio about a year and a half ago, brought her experience in intelligence strategy and audience research to the project, and has been instrumental in shaping the game's direction. The game's emphasis on co-op play is also expected to help mitigate toxicity in the player base, a challenge that Riot has struggled with in the past. By focusing on cooperative survival crafting, Treehouse aims to create a game that invites groups of friends to play together, providing a deeper and more joyful experience than traditional PvP survival crafting games. As the gaming industry continues to grow and become a larger part of everyday life, Treehouse sees an opportunity to create games that provide meaningful social connections and experiences, and is committed to making Codename: Islands a success.