Those Awesome Guys

Those Awesome Guys is an independent video game developer and boutique publisher based in Bucharest, Romania. Founded in 2012 by game designer and artist Nicolae “Xelu” Berbece, the company began as the legal entity needed to release independent games on Steam. Its development and publishing work brings together an international, distributed team of programmers, designers, artists and community managers.

The studio became known for Move or Die, released in 2016. The four-player party game changes its gameplay rules every 20 seconds, combining rapid rounds with an emphasis on multiplayer competition. Its commercial success helped establish the studio and provided the foundation for an expansion into publishing games made by other independent developers.

Development and publishing

Those Awesome Guys supports full-cycle game development, including programming, 2D and 3D art, level design, mechanics prototyping and audio integration. Its publishing work extends from evaluating pitches and consulting on game design to preparing releases and supporting games through marketing and community outreach. Available support includes UI/UX refinement, quality assurance, trailer production, influencer relations, store optimization and PC and console release management.

The company made its third-party publishing debut in 2018 with Monster Prom, the multiplayer dating simulator developed by Beautiful Glitch. Its subsequent catalog spans several genres and visual styles: Deepest Chamber: Resurrection, developed by Balcony Softworks, combines card battles with dungeon crawling; Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom, from Panik Arcade, is a retro collectathon platformer; and Valley Peaks, developed by Tub Club, is a first-person climbing adventure. These projects represent publishing partnerships with independent developers, with development credits remaining with their respective creators.

Alongside its commercial releases, the studio maintains a collection of experimental and game-jam projects. This smaller-scale work sits alongside its broader focus on independent games for PC and consoles, combining internal development with practical support for external teams bringing their games to market.