Zoink

Zoink AB
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryVideo games
Founded2001; 23 years ago (2001)
FounderKlaus Lyngeled
Defunct2020 (2020)
FateMerged
SuccessorThunderful Development
Headquarters
Gothenburg
,
Sweden
Key people
Brjánn Sigurgeirsson (CEO)
Number of employees
25 (2018)
ParentThunderful Group (2018–2020)
Websitezoinkgames.com

Zoink AB was a Swedish video game developer based in Gothenburg. The company was founded by Klaus Lyngeled in 2001 and formed the Thunderful group with Image & Form in 2017. In 2020, Zoink was integrated into Thunderful Development.

History

Zoink was founded in 2001 by Klaus Lyngeled, who acted as its chief executive officer.[1][2] Lyngeled had initially started developing games when he and some friends produced a pinball game for the Amiga.[3] They later got together with a similar team based in Norrköping and, together, founded Unique Development Studios.[3] When Lyngeled got tired of working for Unique Development Studios, he moved to the United States to work for Shiny Entertainment.[3] He worked on Messiah and Sacrifice but when he began working on Enter the Matrix, he faced, among other things, issues with his visa, wherefore he returned to Sweden, where he founded Zoink.[2][3] By 2003, Zoink was working on animated films, later advertisement films, and finally advertisement games; clients for the latter included Sony, The Coca-Cola Company, Cartoon Network, and Google.[3] Zoink's first full game was The Kore Gang, revived after its original Xbox version had been cancelled for six years.[4] Zoink's break-out title was Stick It to the Man!, later spawning a spiritual successor, Flipping Death.[2] Bergsala Holding acquired half of Zoink in 2014, after Image & Form's Brjánn Sigurgeirsson introduced Lyngeled to the company.[5][6] Lyngeled, Sigurgeirsson, and Bergsala Holding decided to merge the two studios and created Thunderful as their parent company in December 2017.[7][8] In May 2018, Zoink had 25 employees.[2] That year, Zoink released a new game, Fe. Its next title, Lost in Random, was released in 2021.[9] In 2020, Thunderful (now called Thunderful Group) merged Zoink with Image & Form and Guru Games to create Thunderful Development.[10]

Games developed

Year Title Platform(s)
2010 The Kore Gang Wii
WeeWaa
Billions: Save them All! Facebook Platform
2012 Reality Fighters Dojo! Android, iOS
Fair Place Browser
EnergyMix Android, iOS
WeeWaa: Rock On!
2013 Adventure Time: Rock Bandits
Swing King
PlayStation All-Stars Island
Stick It to the Man! Microsoft Windows, macOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
2015 Zombie Vikings Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
2016 Zombie Vikings: Stab-a-thon Microsoft Windows
2018 Fe Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Flipping Death
2019 Ghost Giant PlayStation 4
2021 Lost in Random Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One[11]

References

  1. ^ Dring, Christopher (3 July 2018). "Thunderful acquires UK and US publisher Rising Star Games". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 10 May 2019. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d Garst, Aron (23 May 2018). "How Zoink Games combined Monkey Island and Rayman to make Flipping Death". Red Bull. Archived from the original on 11 July 2019. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d e Arnroth, Thomas (13 September 2013). "Speldoldis från Göteborg kliver fram" [Game-gambling from Gothenburg is emerging]. Computer Sweden (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 11 July 2019. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  4. ^ Whitehead, Thomas (20 February 2014). "Interview: Ripstone and Zoink on Prioritising Fun in Stick It To The Man". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on 11 July 2019. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  5. ^ Skrebels, Joe (25 January 2018). "Two Best Friends Are Running Two of Europe's Most Exciting Developers". IGN. Archived from the original on 11 July 2019. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  6. ^ "History". Thunderful Group. 2020. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  7. ^ Kerr, Chris (3 July 2018). "UK publisher Rising Star Games acquired by Thunderful". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 30 September 2018. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  8. ^ McFerran, Damien (25 January 2018). "Image & Form And Zoink! Games Join Forces Under New Company Thunderful". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on 6 October 2018. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  9. ^ Doolan, Liam (19 June 2020). "Zoink Teams Up With EA To Release Lost In Random On Switch Next Year". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  10. ^ "History". Thunderful Group. 2020. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  11. ^ "Explorez Lost in Random™, un titre EA Originals proposé par le studio primé Zoink Games". 17 June 2021.