Bonfire Studios

Bonfire Studios is an independent AAA video game development studio founded in 2016 and based in Irvine, California. It develops multiplayer experiences for PC and console, with an emphasis on competitive play, teamwork and social interaction. Its approach centers on games that give players opportunities to build friendships through shared challenges and adventures.

The studio brings together disciplines including engineering, game design, narrative, visual art and character animation. Its capabilities span competitive multiplayer design, combat systems, real-time gameplay animation, character and environment production, and systems architecture. These disciplines support the development of its own games, from the underlying gameplay systems to the worlds and characters players encounter.

Debut project

The studio's first announced game, Arkheron, is a competitive, team-based PvP action game set in a surreal dark fantasy universe. Teams of three compete to ascend a haunted, multi-tiered tower. Players adapt their character builds during encounters by collecting relics and changing their strategic loadouts, making adaptation part of the competitive experience.

Arkheron combines action combat with a focus on coordinated team play. Its tower setting provides the framework for competition, while changing builds and equipment influence how teams approach encounters. The project reflects Bonfire's broader focus on multiplayer systems and atmospheric world-building.

Officially unveiled in September 2025, Arkheron underwent a closed beta from July 15 to July 26, 2026. That test featured its Spires and Ascension modes. As of the October 2026 research, the game remained the studio's debut project in development.