Steel Monkeys

Steel Monkeys was an independent video game developer founded in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1998. Its work spanned arcade racing, vehicular combat, licensed entertainment, action games and mobile titles. Across its history, the studio developed original games and handled platform adaptations, combining game design and programming with engine engineering and 3D graphics production.

Its early releases included Bob the Builder: Can We Fix It?, Master Rallye and Corvette, alongside the Nintendo GameCube port of Rocky. These projects reflected a business that worked across PC and console platforms, with racing and vehicle simulation forming a recurring part of its output. The studio also provided platform porting and 3D art outsourcing.

Development history

In 2002, Steel Monkeys established an art and development division in Minsk, Belarus, initially supporting graphical production. Financial difficulties subsequently led to the liquidation of the original Scottish operation in July 2004. Production continued in Minsk, which became the company's principal development base under a Belarusian operating entity incorporated in 2005.

During the following years, the studio pursued 2 Days to Vegas, an ambitious open-world, third-person action game set across the United States. The project attracted attention for its engine and physics work but remained unreleased and was ultimately canceled. The supplied history connects its difficulties securing publisher support with the financial climate following the 2008 global crisis.

Steel Monkeys later concentrated on standalone PC and mobile releases. Its subsequent output included the vehicular combat game Post Apocalyptic Mayhem, the combat title I, Gladiator and the mobile strategy game I, Viking. This period extended the studio's work into mobile platforms while retaining its background in real-time 3D development.

The Belarusian operating entity was liquidated and removed from the state register in summer 2024, bringing the studio's operating history to an end.