Jane Jensen Goes Indie, Launches Pinkerton Road Studio With “Community Supported Gaming”
Game designer veteran most famous for the Gabriel Knight adventure game series, Jane Jensen, has launched her own indie studio called Pinkerton Road Studio and is asking her fans to help fund and decide what games she should make over the next year.
With more and more industry veterans realizing that they can go back to their roots and rediscover the kinds of games they really want to make, it is not a huge surprise (if a delightful one) that Jen Jensen has followed that path. Known for her mystery novels and similarly themed adventure games, Jane Jensen most famously authored the Gabriel Knight series for Sierra Entertainment back in the nineties. More recently she released Gray Matter in 2010 which featured music composed by Robert and Raleigh Holmes, Jane has also been working for Zynga.
Now, however, Jane has set-up her own studio called Pinkerton Road Studio which will be operated from her farm, making games alongside Robert and Raleigh. The studio is founded with a vision of “community supported gaming” or CSG which is derived from agriculture practices and means that fans can pre-invest into the games, currently through Kickstarter, and then choose and help shape the games into what they want them to be.
“I’ve wanted to return to adventure game development for years, and now is exactly the right time. The casual game market is ready for meatier fare and the hardcore audience is nostalgic for games like these. Plus, tablet use is exploding, which gives us access to a brand new audience of e-book readers — an ideal target for story-based games,” says Jane. “Forming Pinkerton Road means retaining control of my ideas and ensuring my games’ quality all the way through development. At this point in my career, this level of involvement is very important to me, and I know it will enable me to get my best work out to my fans.”
Currently there are three project ideas which those who invest can start discussing – all of the games are adventure game thrillers, typical of Jane’s style.
The first is Moebius – “A man investigates a series of events around the world for a mysterious benefactor and learns a secret that changes his entire world view.”
Secondly we have Gray Matter 2 – “Dr. David Styles, a renegade neurobiologist, and Samantha Everett, a street magician, seek the truth about a dead girl’s strange powers.”
Last but not least is Anglophile Adventure – “Visit Regency England for a little sex, lies and scandal.”
You can help fund Pinkerton Road Studio and the many planned game projects over on Kickstarter until May 19th 2012.
More information on Pinkerton Road Studio and their upcoming games can be found over on the official website.
