Soile Suvanto
soile.suvanto@digipolis.fi
What started as a summer game development project in Kemi has quickly grown into an international team, a startup in the making and a game attracting interest from publishers. Now Soul Shard Studio is taking Fornaught towards global markets.
Photo Maedeh Amani
A game project launched during a summer course in Kemi has quickly grown into an international team with ambitions reaching far beyond Northern Finland.
Fornaught is an atmospheric stealth adventure in which a small wind-up doll tries to survive in a dangerous world. Developed by Soul Shard Studio, the game has already attracted attention at industry events in Finland and Sweden, while the team is now taking its next steps towards establishing a startup.
From a summer course to an international team
Fornaught began during an intensive game development course in summer 2025.
“We wanted to create something a little different. That is how Fornaught and its world began to take shape,” says game developer Niko Koivisto.
The game’s visual world and characters received encouraging feedback, and six members of the original team decided to continue developing the project after the course.
Today, Soul Shard Studio has five core members and works with contributors from several countries, including Finland, Sweden, the Netherlands, Iran and Pakistan. Some of the collaborators have joined the project through international game development communities.
“We are doing this because we genuinely love it. What is particularly exciting is that people from around the world have wanted to join us simply because they believe in the game,” Koivisto says.
Publisher interest brings new momentum
The team has presented Fornaught at game industry events in Finland and Sweden. Its pitch deck placed second in a competition in Umeå, and the Shine event in Tampere in autumn 2026 provided valuable contacts and feedback from international industry professionals.
“When we started receiving invitations to events and attracting interest from outside Finland, we realised things were really beginning to move. There are no brakes on this train anymore,” Koivisto says with a smile.
The team is currently working to complete the game and has launched a crowdfunding campaign to support the next phase of development. The current target is EUR 5,000.
Support Fornaught’s journey here
Building a startup in Kemi
Alongside game development, Soul Shard Studio is preparing to establish a company.
Game developer Maedeh Amani has received business advisory support through Lapland Startup Hub and Business Kemi. The team has also been able to use Lapland Startup Hub's workspace in Kemi.
“The expertise and support we have received from Lapland Startup Hub have been very important to us,” Amani and Koivisto say.
They have also found the northern game development community welcoming and supportive. Smaller indie developers share knowledge and help each other, while encounters with established game companies and publishers have provided valuable advice for taking the project forward.
Putting Lapland on the game industry map
Soul Shard Studio ultimately has an international market in mind. The team's goal is to release Fornaught for PC through Steam, with consoles such as PlayStation and Xbox as possible future platforms.
For Amani and Koivisto, the project is also an example of what can be created from Lapland.
“We want to do our part to put Lapland on the video game map. It would be great to show that an international game can be built from here too.”
Photo Soile Suvanto
