Hearth and Hamlet publisher Runic Forge rebrands as Pythia Games

Runic Forge, the publisher behind Hearth and Hamlet, has undergone a rebranding and now operates under the name Pythia Games. Rune, the UK-based indie marketing agency, is shifting its focus entirely towards publishing. This switch came after the launch of their debut title, Phorust Studios' Hearth and Hamlet, which ranked among the top sellers on Steam, selling over 100,000 units within its first week.

The game's success was evident even before its release, with more than 100,000 unique players testing its free demo and wishlist growing to over 125,000. Pythia Games has lined up several new releases, including Carnholt, a roguelike deckbuilder by Magic: The Gathering artist Maxime Minard, and Dragon's Tear, an idle dungeon-crawler RPG developed by LilChill Games. The publisher is also open to collaborating with additional indie developers.

Aidan McGrath, founder and marketing director of Pythia Games, expressed delight at the team's transition into publishing. The team is driven by a shared passion for discovering and elevating innovative indie games, as well as supporting small teams and solo developers.