“It’s something epic, but something beautiful,” says William Dubé when asked to explain the etymology of his studio’s name, Thunder Lotus. “To me that combination of a thunderstorm that’s big powerful and scary, and then the lotus flower which is something very delicate, and really beautiful. And it sounds really cool too! One of [our aims] is to make beautifully powerful games. I think that really reflects the name of the studio.”
Thunder Lotus might not be a name you’re super familiar with just yet, but they’re an emerging talent – first with 2015’s Jotun, then with the lavish Metroidvania Sundered and now with Spiritfarer, an ambitious, curious little adventure that caused ripples when it broke cover at Microsoft’s E3 conference back in June.
“It’s something we’d been driving towards since the beginning of the studio, and to have that opportunity was really special. We were onstage after Keanu Reeves! It was Cyberpunk, Keanu Reeves and then Spiritfarer – and now I’ve got an awesome story for my friends, if they don’t understand gaming. It’s the Super Bowl of gaming! We’re onstage after Keanu Reeves! They’re like oh my god, then they understand the reach and magnitude of it all.”
