Welcome to DON’T NOD

We are an independent video game developer and publisher with studios in Paris and Montréal, creating powerful and immersive narrative experiences.

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Who we are

Our studios are a place where we can dare to dream: we DON’T NOD along to everyone else’s tune.

We love to experiment and try new things and to innovate with our creations. Our main mission has always been to create meaningful and immersive stories that resonate with players and make an impact, and linking this powerful storytelling with innovative gameplay.
What we do

Developing and publishing games with meaning

Developer

We want our games to mean something. We strive to create universal experiences that everybody can relate to, while telling thought-provoking and authentic stories. Each game we develop is an original creation with something new to offer to our community of players.

Our games
Publisher

We are now in a position where we’re able to self-publish our games and put them directly in the hands of our players. We also share our publishing expertise and collaborate with other developers to bring their stories to life. We work with studios who share our values and whose creative vision aligns with our own.

Partner with us

Our philosophy

DON’T NOD: Two studios

DON’T NOD Paris

DON’T NOD Paris is where it all began in 2008, creating unique narrative experiences in a variety of genres (RPG, adventure, action…) and with industry-leading publishers. Telling thought-provoking and authentic stories is at the heart of what we do. Now we are proud to self-publish most of our games while still collaborating with fantastic partners. We also have the privilege of working with third-party studios, sharing our expertise and helping bring their own stories to life.

DON’T NOD Montréal

In 2020, DON’T NOD expanded internationally with the establishment of its first subsidiary in Montreal. The team comprises members of the creative team from Life is Strange, as well as talented individuals from Quebec and around the world. They are currently working on an entirely new intellectual property developed entirely in Montreal.

Learn more about DON’T NOD Montréal

Our Story

2008
  • May – Studio founded by Hervé Bonin, Aleksi Briclot, Alain Damasio, Oskar Guilbert and Jean-Maxime Moris
2012
  • August – Remember Me is officially presented at the Cologne Gamescom!
2013
  • April – Start of the concept phase for the project WHAT IF? later renamed Life is Strange
  • June – Remember Me released on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC”
2014
  • August – Life is Strange announced for almost all consoles and PC at the Cologne Gamescom
  • End of 2014 – DON’T NOD signs a publishing contract with Focus Home Interactive for Vampyr
2015
  • January – Life is Strange Episode 1: Chrysalis released in digital form on PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One
  • June – Vampyr announced
  • July – Life is Strange reaches the one million sales mark!
  • July – Develop Awards 2015 – DON’T NOD wins 2 awards: New Game IP and Use of Narrative
  • October – Life is Strange’s finale, Episode 5: Polarized released
  • October – PING Awards – Life is Strange wins the Grand Prix du Jury and the Prix du Meilleur Scénario (Best Story Award)
  • October – Golden Joystick awards – Life is Strange wins Best Gaming Performance Award
  • November – Announcement of the limited edition version of Life is Strange
  • End of 2015 – Life is Strange has won over 60 awards!
2016
  • January – Life is Strange standard and limited editions released in boxed version (PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4) — the team uses the occasion to include various upgrades in each episode, five new languages, and a one-hour video commentary
  • February – First in-game demonstration to the media of Vampyr during Focus Home Interactive’s ‘What’s Next’ 2016 press event
    March – Life is Strange released in Japan (PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PC), fully dubbed
  • March – Life is Strange wins the Audience Award at the Game Developers Choice Awards in San Francisco!
  • April – Life is Strange wins the BAFTA for Best Story at the British Academy Games Awards
2017
  • June – For 3 days, the Vampyr team gave exclusive closed-door presentations and interviews at the Focus Home Interactive booth, at E3 2017 in Los Angeles
  • August – DON’T NOD signs a publishing contract with BANDAI NAMCO for the creation of a new IP based on a brand new narrative adventure experience
2018
  • February – For 2 days, the Vampyr team gave exclusive closed-door presentations, interviews, and journalists could play the first 2 hours of the game at the Focus Home Interactive’s ‘What’s Next’ event
  • June – Vampyr releases on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC!
  • June – Twin Mirror, a story-driven investigation game published by Bandai Namco Entertainment, is announced during Sony’s E3 Countdown
  • June – The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit announced during the Microsoft Conference at E3 2018
  • June – The release date of the first episode of Life is Strange 2 revealed
    June – The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit releases on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC
  • June – DON’T NOD celebrates its 10 year anniversary!
    September – Life is Strange 2 Episode 1 releases on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC
2019
  • January – Episode 2 of Life is Strange 2 releases on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC
  • April – DON’T NOD Entertainment and Focus Home Interactive announce the renewal of their strong partnership for a new project
  • May – Episode 3 of Life is Strange 2 releases on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC
  • August – Episode 4 of Life is Strange 2 releases on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC
  • October – Vampyr releases on Nintendo Switch!
  • November – Tell Me Why, our new narrative adventure game published by Microsoft, is unveiled during X019 in London
  • December – Episode 5 of Life is Strange 2 releases on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC
2020
  • February – Life is Strange 2 standard and collector editions become available across the Americas
  • February – The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit releases in Japan on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC!
  • June – Creation of the DON’T NOD Montréal studio
  • July – The release dates of Tell Me Why revealed
  • December – Twin Mirror releases on Xbox One, Playstation 4 and Epic Games Store!
2021
  • January – DON’T NOD announces a successful capital increase of €50M to finance its development towards more self-published games
  • April – DON’T NOD enters into third-party game publishing with Danish studio, PortaPlay
  • September – DON’T NOD presents its FROG programme: a new organisation designed for teleworking. Dontnodians can now choose to work from home or on the premises, with the opening of new offices in Paris and Montreal
  • December – Twin Mirror comes to Steam
  • December – Gerda: A Flame in Winter unveiled at Nintendo Indie World, a brand new narrative game developed by Danish studio PortaPlay
DON'T NOD - 2022
2022
  • February – DON’T NOD pursues its external publishing strategy through a new co-production with studio TOLIMA.  
  • May – DON’T NOD unveils a brand-new visual identity and website on its 14th anniversary. 
  • SeptemberGerda: A Flame in Winter, a new narrative game developed by PortaPlay and published by DON’T NOD, releases on Steam & Nintendo Switch.  
  • September – DON’T NOD expands its line-up with a new co-production in the growing action-RPG segment with Tiny Bull Studios. 
  • DecemberBanishers: Ghosts of New Eden, a new action-RPG developed by DON’T NOD and co-produced by Focus Entertainment, is unveiled during the Game Awards ceremony.
2023
  • February – DON’T NOD announces its new narrative experience Harmony: The Fall of Reverie at the Nintendo Direct.
    A port of Life is Strange 2 is released for Nintendo Switch.
  • May – Release of Liva’s Story DLC for Gerda: A Flame in Winter, developed by Bird Island.
  • June – DON’T NOD celebrates its 15th anniversary!
    Release of Harmony: The Fall of Reverie on Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and PC.
    New Intellectual Property announced! Jusant is revealed at the Xbox Games Showcase.
  • August – DON’T NOD announces Koira, developed by Belgian studio Studio Tolima and published by DON’T NOD.
    DON’T NOD at gamescom 2023 with Jusant, Banishers: Ghost of New Eden and Koira!
  • October – Jusant releases on Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and PC.
  • November – Bundle release for Gerda: A Flame in Winter and This War of Mine from 11 bit Studios!
  • December – DON’T NOD announces Lost Records: Bloom & Rage as a world exclusive at The Game Awards! A new narrative adventure from the creators of Life is Strange!

Come tell stories with us

Join a team of passionate, independent, and talented people in Paris or Montreal. We’d love to hear how you’d make us better.

Work with us