Ishtar Games is an indie studio based in Lille and Bordeaux (France). Formerly known as “CCCP”, we previously made the “Dead in” games (Dead in Bermuda, Dead in Vinland), and The Last Spell. We love games that are complex, mix different genres, especially with an RPG component.
Ishtar Games is built, run, and founded by gamers. Because of this, we are passionate about being true to ourselves and crafting games that not only hold our values, but are also games that we’d like to play ourselves.
Our games won’t hold your hand, they will challenge you, test you, and require your dedication and investment to master. We strive to create experiences that are both beautiful and thought-provoking, while also being disturbing and dark. Our gameplay might be violent and aggressive while telling a delicate and honest story. Or our artwork may be beautiful and engrossing, while it’s depicting a dire and depressing reality. Just like our namesake the Goddess of Ishtar, we pair things that might not typically be seen together.
OUR PHILOSOPHY
Ishtar is the Mesopotamian Goddess of War. The martial values not being considered feminine in the Ancient Middle-East (nor elsewhere), her femininity is expressed in her Goddess of Love function. Ishtar is the symbol of a strong feminine – free of all masculine guardianship – contrasting with the patriarchal society norms. Using Ishtar’s name – a strong and free woman – is to fully assume our feminist convictions.
She echoes our game creation philosophy. Whether it be in the “Dead in…” games or “The Last Spell”, each of our games is built upon strong pillars.
Goddess of War
We love strategy games, with deep gameplay. Our productions are sometimes quite violent in their representations, whether it be in bloody clashes, or through the fate we have in store for our characters. Our stories are often “grey” and challenge the players’ choices in worlds that are not black-and-white. That is especially the case in the “Dead in” games.
Goddess of Love
Although we make games that are sometimes violent, we want our values as a studio to be expressed in our productions, in particular through representation. No matter if our words are fictional or close to reality, we put a lot of care into our characters, especially through mixity, LGBTQ+ people representation, as we try to move away from the usual clichés. There is always an underlying message in adequation with our humanist values.
OUR VALUES
DIVERSITY
We work hard towards the improvement of mixity and diversity at our scale. We learn from our differences, they challenge us and widen our perspectives. We believe it’s crucial for our productions to reflect our convictions regarding mixity and diversity.
KINDNESS
The well-being of our team is essential. We believe happy and serene teams will be more creative and productive. This will is represented in the healthy and safe work environment we create as much as in our players communities.
TEAMWORK
Working together involves setting up relationships that are built upon trust, thanks to self-accountability and the sharing of information in complete transparency. Victories and failures are achieved together.
HANDCRAFTED
We want our games fine-tuned with deep gameplay asking for reflection while being accessible to all kinds of players. We take the time to make things right, so we can offer games we are proud of and meet players’ expectations.