Offbrand is venturing beyond its roots. The company co-founded by streamer Ludwig Ahgren alongside Nick Allen, Nathan Stanz, and Brandon Ewing, which began in 2022 as a live production company, is launching an Offbrand Games unit. Jason “Thor” Hall, a developer who is known for streaming on the Pirate Software account, will play a big role in Offbrand Games as the company’s new Director of Strategy.
Offbrand Games releases will feature Ludwig’s “stamp of approval”
Ahgren announced Offbrand Games with a video on his Mogul Mail channel. The man known by the mononymous moniker Ludwig threw some irreverent jabs at existing creator products as he revealed his next business venture.
“I’m not going to announce that I’m making a chocolate bar or a hydration drink,” Ludwig said. “I like making things that I like playing and so we’re announcing today that Offbrand is adding a new vertical. We’re entering a new foray with Offbrand Games.”
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Ludwig is riding a wave of creators who have become game publishers. Reviewer Dunkey made headlines in 2022 with a new company called Bigmode, and his publisher has since produced some impressive results. Streamer collective OTK has also thrown its weight behind indie titles.
The game publishing industry is rife with issues, but Offbrand Games hopes to serve developers by putting their needs ahead of the desire to maximize profits. That approach, Ludwig hopes, will provide devs with a “stamp of approval.” It will be a sign that “you can trust us.”
Avast, ye!
Ludwig is not the only streamer attaching his personal credibility to the Offbrand Games project. Hall, who worked at Blizzard Entertainment (now part of Activision Blizzard) before becoming the CEO of Pirate Software, has drawn widespread attention for his takes on the gaming industry. Clips from his streams have received millions of views on platforms like YouTube Shorts, and Ludwig described him as “the guy when it comes to game development YouTube.”
Hall’s forays into streaming paid off in a big way earlier this year, when he set the record for the biggest “Hype Train” on Twitch. It’s estimated that Hall’s surge of subscriptions and bits brought in more than $500,000.
Ludwig believes that he and Hall can bring the “A24 feeling” to game publishing by building a portfolio filled with hyped and beloved titles. The first game coming out of the publisher will Rivals 2, a platform-based fighting game that will be released during the fourth quarter of 2024.
Change is also coming to Offbrand’s corporate structure.
Ludwig’s announcement video for Offbrand Games is titled “I sold my company.” That statement is technically true, since Ludwig has relinquished his ownership stake in Offbrand. But rather than selling the firm to a third party, the 28-year-old creator is giving back to his employees.
Offbrand is becoming a worker-owned cooperative, which will allow all of its staff members to have a say in its operations and corporate decision-making. From Ludwig’s point of view, the reasoning behind this transaction is simple. “I’m good, money-wise,” he said.
Don’t expect the shift to a worker-owned structure to fundamentally change Offbrand’s nature. At the end of the day, the company is the same entity it was when it first launched in 2022: It’s a studio that builds cool stuff for streamers.
But starting now, Offbrand’s productions will no longer be limited to speedrunning fundraisers and award shows. It will also put on some events that promote the games it publishes in-house. It’s becoming a bigger, more expansive company, and its workers are in line to benefit from that growth.
