Fishlabs
German video game developer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Fishlabs GmbH (formerly Fishlabs Entertainment GmbH and Deep Silver Fishlabs) is a German video game developer based in Hamburg. Founded in 2004 by Michael Schade and Christian Lohr, the studio is best known for its Galaxy on Fire series.[2] Following a brief bankruptcy proceeding, Fishlabs was acquired by Koch Media and reorganized as part of their game publishing label Deep Silver.
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| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Video games |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Founders |
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| Headquarters | , Germany |
| Products |
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Number of employees | 70[1] (2024) |
| Parent | Deep Silver (2013–present) |
| Website | fishlabs |
History
Michael Schade and Christian Lohr opened Fishlabs in 2004, incorporated under the name Fishlabs Entertainment GmbH.[3] That same year, the company received a round of financing, which allowed them to pay for development expenses for several years while generating revenue from their releases.[4] It developed advergames like Barclaycard's Waterslide Extreme.[5] In May 2010, Fishlabs planned a series B round and announced its plans to move into the massively multiplayer online games market.[6]
By mid-2013, Fishlabs had run out of money; in October, 25 jobs were cut before the company went into self-administration.[4] On 2 December, media company Koch Media announced that it had acquired Fishlabs, which would henceforth operate as the dedicated mobile studio for its game publishing label, Deep Silver.[3] As the agreement was an asset deal, all of Fishlabs' assets, including 52 employees, were transferred to Koch Media and incorporated in a new division, called Deep Silver Fishlabs.[4] The company's former legal entity, Fishlabs Entertainment GmbH, was to be dissolved, and both founders left the company.[3] Schade and Lohr left the company and founded Everspace developer Rockfish Games.[7] As result of the change in ownership, and the associated financial stability, Fishlabs also moved into video game publishing.[4]
In March 2022, Fishlabs received €5.5 million in funding from the German government for the company's Project Black. Described as a third-person action game, the project was expected to be completed by August 2026.[8] By January 2023, the company employed 95 people.[9] In September, Embracer Group, the parent company of Koch Media (now known as Plaion), underwent cost cutting restructuring. Project Black was cancelled and about 12 employees were laid off.[10]
Fishlabs then pitched a new Red Faction game following the closure of series developer Volition. Despite initial positive reception, the title was cancelled in November 2023 and around 50 Fishlabs employees were laid off.[10][11]