Raconteur Games

Raconteur Games is an independent American video game development and publishing studio founded in 2014 by Nicholas "Nick" Laborde in Lafayette, Louisiana. Its work combines narrative-driven game design, experimental interactive experiences and accessible mechanics. Alongside its consumer games, the studio has applied its development capabilities to commercial augmented and virtual reality projects.

The company's early releases span arcade action and intimate storytelling. Close Order, which completed Steam Early Access in January 2016, is a space shooter built around modular fleet construction. Players accumulate surrounding escort craft, expanding their formation as part of the action. Its emphasis on fleet customization offered a different direction from the studio's subsequent narrative work.

Released in January 2017, Evangeline is a short first-person exploration game inspired by the death of Laborde's grandfather. It explores love, grief and emotional connection through a black-and-white neighborhood in which selective uses of color guide the experience. The project illustrates the studio's interest in using visual presentation and interaction to support personal storytelling.

Interactive storytelling and simulation

Raconteur Games later announced DOGGONE, a 2.5D puzzle-adventure about a lost dog trying to return home. Its stylized visual direction draws inspiration from classic animation background artist Eyvind Earle. The studio published You Can Pet The Dog VR in 2020 as a related virtual reality demonstration supporting the larger project. Its released work also includes the short interactive vignette EMBRACE THE VOID.

Beyond entertainment, the company has used Unity and virtual reality development to create industrial safety and enterprise training simulations. This consulting work extends its interactive design capabilities into practical training applications.

Public development activity subsequently slowed, and the official website became a parked holding page. Although DOGGONE retains a Steam presence, the supplied research describes its development as stalled and does not establish a completed release.