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With Mad About Pandas, Focus continues its goal of becoming another big name publisher in the games space.

Justin Carter, Contributing Editor

February 6, 2023

1 Min Read
Logo for game publisher Focus Entertainment.

Focus Entertainment announced a new partnership with indie developer Mad About Pandas. Through its Focus Indie label, the French studio will publish the next game from the Germany-based studio. 

Mad About Pandas' next title is said to "create [a] highly compelling core game mechanic with narrative storytelling skills." Vague as that is, it does fit within Focus' wheelhouse; the publisher's most recent game was Asobo's A Plague Tale: Requiem from 2022, which sold 1 million copies in two weeks and received multiple end of year nominations.

In the past, Focus has used its indie label to publish titles such as Othercide, Curse of the Dead Gods, and Necromunda: Hired Gun

Founded in 2005 by Patrick Rau, Mad About Pandas has developed mobile educational and puzzle games such as Laika and The Great Jitters: Pudding Public. More recently, the studio released Hitchhiker on Steam in 2021. 

Speaking on the new partnership, Focus' chief content officer Yves Le Yaouanq said Mad About Pandas "managed to enthuse us with an innovative take on the notion of gameplay, character, and universe."

"This partnership demonstrates once again our desire to break the codes while offering unique modern experiences, supported by spectacularly creative art directions."

At the start of 2023, Focus hired Sean Brennan as CEO to further its ambitions of becoming a more high-profile publisher. This year will reportedly also see the largest slate of releases in Focus history, and partnering with another developer is another step to establishing itself as a publisher for games that other studios wouldn't touch.

About the Author(s)

Justin Carter

Contributing Editor, GameDeveloper.com

A Kansas City, MO native, Justin Carter has written for numerous sites including IGN, Polygon, and SyFy Wire. In addition to Game Developer, his writing can be found at io9 over on Gizmodo. Don't ask him about how much gum he's had, because the answer will be more than he's willing to admit.

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