Defiant Studios

Defiant Studios was an independent video game development studio founded in New York City in 2016 by David Grijns and Roland Lesterlin. Its work spanned AAA game development, technical contracting, consultation and virtual reality projects for PC and consoles. The studio combined development engineering with narrative design, world-building and systems implementation.

During its early years, Defiant supported other developers and publishers through a range of collaborative projects. It partnered with Rockstar Games on L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files, worked with Starbreeze Studios on Megalodon VR, provided technical contracting assistance for Digital Extremes’ Warframe, and contributed consultation work to Human Head Studios’ Rune 2. These engagements supported the business before its principal development commitment shifted to a major action-RPG sequel.

Lords of the Fallen 2

In June 2018, publisher CI Games appointed Defiant to develop Lords of the Fallen 2. The studio pursued an original direction for the sequel, contributing pre-production, narrative design and vertical slice development between June 2018 and May 2019. Its involvement represents an earlier development phase rather than responsibility for the completed 2023 release.

CI Games terminated the development contract in May 2019, alleging shortcomings in a key vertical slice milestone. Grijns publicly disputed the publisher’s characterization of the team’s work. With its resources concentrated on the project, Defiant lost the funding needed to continue and ceased operations that month.

Subsequent team transition

In June 2019, People Can Fly opened a new New York studio led by Grijns and Lesterlin, recruiting a portion of Defiant’s former team. People Can Fly explicitly described this as a newly established operation in a different location, rather than an acquisition of Defiant. The personnel transition therefore forms part of Defiant’s history without establishing a corporate rename, merger or continuation under the People Can Fly brand.