How a Dublin game creator secured funding from one of Hollywood's biggest developers

·26 min·2 clips

How did a 5-person Dublin game studio land a deal with horror movie giant Blumhouse before meeting anyone face-to-face?

This episode of The Big Tech Show, hosted by Ronan Price, features Colm Larkin, founder of the Dublin game studio Gambrinus. They discuss Larkin's journey securing a publishing deal with Hollywood horror powerhouse Blumhouse for his studio's upcoming game, Eyes of Hellfire. The conversation explores the realities of game development, funding, and Ireland's gaming industry. Eyes of Hellfire is a supernatural escape room multiplayer game set in Dublin's Hellfire Club, incorporating social deduction elements similar to TV's *The Traitors*. Blumhouse, known for films like *Five Nights at Freddy's* and *Megan*, is expanding into horror game publishing. Larkin pitched to roughly 100 publishers, refining his approach over months of remote meetings before securing the deal with Blumhouse. The game features a voice cast including Irish actor Liam Cunningham, who is a personal connection through his daughter, a writer at the studio. Development follows an "early access" model, launching on Steam on August 27th for community co-development before a full release. Larkin's studio operates with a four-day workweek and a hybrid remote/in-person model. Larkin suggests Blumhouse's move into games is a strategy to reach younger audiences who socialize through gaming rather than traditional cinema. He reveals the deal was signed before he ever met the Blumhouse team in person. The game's design intentionally sows "friction" by giving each player a secret, cursed agenda to create suspicion. Larkin's studio previously received validation and funding from the competitive EU Creative Europe Media program for the game's concept. He notes the games market is intensely competitive, with publishers making high-stakes financial investments in a global field. The tone is conversational and educational, blending an interview about business strategy with insights into creative game design. The style is informative, focusing on the practical steps of pitching, development workflows, and industry analysis. This episode would appeal to listeners interested in the business of creative industries, indie game development, or Irish tech entrepreneurship. Those seeking highly technical deep dives into game design or horror movie analysis might find it less focused.

As heard by us

A haunted Irish game turns into a practical conversation about design, tax breaks, and the economics of making games.

An Irish game creator talks through a haunted escape room project built around the Hellfire Club, and the episode stays grounded even when the premise turns spectral.

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Want a Dublin horror-game interview built around the Hellfire Club?

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