Soulbound Studios
- Open roles
- 0
- Founded
- 2015
- Employees
- N/A
- Offices
- 1
About Soulbound Studios
Soulbound Studios was an independent video game developer founded in 2015 in Bellevue, Washington. Its work centered on PC massively multiplayer online role-playing games and simulation systems, particularly worlds shaped by player decisions, changing characters and persistent consequences. The studio pursued game design, software engineering, digital world-building, and character and environment production for its own projects.
Its flagship project, Chronicles of Elyria, proposed an MMORPG built around character aging and permanent death. Planned systems included player-run feudal kingdoms, finite resources, a closed economy and an evolving storyline. Together, these features were intended to make individual choices affect the wider shared world, with political structures and economic activity driven substantially by players.
Crowdfunding and development
The studio launched the game's Kickstarter campaign in May 2016, raising $1.36 million. Subsequent funding came through ongoing pre-orders and virtual land auctions. Development encountered substantial technical and financial difficulties, including changes to networking technology, game mechanics and engine pipelines.
On March 24, 2020, the studio announced that it had exhausted its funds, laid off all staff and suspended development. Following that announcement, founder Jeromy Walsh stated that development would continue on a pro bono basis. Work subsequently shifted toward smaller standalone titles intended to develop portions of the broader concept, principally Kingdoms of Elyria, a settlement and domain simulation spin-off. Development milestones were repeatedly delayed.
The studio's wider development history also included VoxElyria, an early voxel-based prototype, and Prelyria, a pre-alpha mechanics testing milestone. These represented stages of development rather than a catalogue of completed commercial releases.
Closure
On October 19, 2026, Walsh publicly announced that he had dissolved Soulbound Studios after 11 years and was seeking new employment. The supplied research identifies this as the end of the studio and its remaining development efforts. Chronicles of Elyria remained unreleased, and both it and Kingdoms of Elyria were cancelled.
More about Soulbound Studios
Founders and historical leadership
- Jeromy Walsh's background included engineering at Microsoft and programming at Pandemic Studios. The report identifies his studio roles as owner, CEO, and creative and technical director before dissolution.
- Co-founder Eddie Smith served as art director and had previously worked as a concept artist on Halo and Ryse: Son of Rome. These are individual background credits.
Technology
Development included a custom system called the Soulborn Engine. The studio also abandoned SpatialOS networking technology during changes to its production pipeline.
Legal history
Backers brought a federal class-action lawsuit against Soulbound Studios and payment processor Xsolla in 2020–2021, alleging breach of contract and consumer protection violations. The claims against Soulbound Studios were dismissed with prejudice in October 2022. That dismissal was affirmed on appeal in October 2023.
Notable credits
4 creditsOffices
Where Soulbound Studios is based
- Bellevue, Washington, United States
Bellevue office
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