Development veteran James Brooksby (pictured) has opened a brand new studio in Guildford called Absolutely Games.

The outfit says it wants to work on titles with "no BS, no politics" – whatever that means – and is currently developing a premium strategy game. The studio has been backed by an initial round of funding led by Rebellion's Chris Kingsley OBE and Cedric Littardi from Anime Virtual.

Brooksby has been in the industry since 1995 and is more recently known for founding Born Ready and Edge Case Games. The latter was acquired by World of Tanks giant Wargaming in November 2018 with Brooksby holding a studio director role before leaving in July 2019.

Absolutely Games was founded in October 2019, with Brooksby serving as the company's CEO. Right now, the studio employs seven members of stuff, including senior game designer Lee Brimmicombe-Wood, formerly of Supermassive Games and Guerrilla Cambridge, as well as programmer Joey Love.

“Being back running a new studio with a great and growing future ahead is extremely exciting," Brooksby said.

"We have already made excellent progress with our first game and the new team is really working well together. It has been somewhat of a challenge setting up a new venture due to recent global events, however each challenge has been surmountable and the team and partners have been great in solving each problem. The culture and values of the new studio are very important to me - we will be making smart choices and excellent games, however there must be a focus on those games and their players, no nonsense around the edges. It will be a studio that is staffed by good, honourable, reliable people who love what they do - all building a real family spirit. As well as our first game, we are already talking with partners about some pretty cool parallel projects, which will help us grow to become another Guildford success story."

Chris Kingsley added: "Experience and passion are key when it comes to the creative business of making video games. So when the opportunity arose to invest in James and his team at Absolutely Games, it was an easy decision for me, even in the current unique times. I have great faith in James’s abilities; he has a keen eye for games and gameplay, understands the detail of running a games company, and has a wealth of industry contacts. I am excited to be an investor in a new studio in such a vibrant hub that is Guildford."