Zoink Explained

Zoink AB
Type:Subsidiary
Industry:Video games
Fate:Merged
Successor:Thunderful Development
Founder:Klaus Lyngeled
Hq Location City:Gothenburg
Hq Location Country:Sweden
Key People:Brjánn Sigurgeirsson (CEO)
Num Employees:25
Num Employees Year:2018
Parent:Thunderful Group (2018–2020)

Zoink AB was a Swedish video game developer based in Gothenburg. The company was founded by Klaus Lyngeled in 2001 and formed the Thunderful group with Image & Form in 2017. In 2020, Zoink was integrated into Thunderful Development.

History

Zoink was founded in 2001 by Klaus Lyngeled, who acted as its chief executive officer.[1] [2] Lyngeled had initially started developing games when he and some friends produced a pinball game for the Amiga.[3] They later got together with a similar team based in Norrköping and, together, founded Unique Development Studios. When Lyngeled got tired of working for Unique Development Studios, he moved to the United States to work for Shiny Entertainment. He worked on Messiah and Sacrifice but when he began working on Enter the Matrix, he faced, among other things, issues with his visa, wherefore he returned to Sweden, where he founded Zoink. By 2003, Zoink was working on animated films, later advertisement films, and finally advertisement games; clients for the latter included Sony, The Coca-Cola Company, Cartoon Network, and Google. Zoink's first full game was The Kore Gang, revived after its original Xbox version had been cancelled for six years.[4] Zoink's break-out title was Stick It to the Man!, later spawning a spiritual successor, Flipping Death. Bergsala Holding acquired half of Zoink in 2014, after Image & Form's Brjánn Sigurgeirsson introduced Lyngeled to the company.[5] [6] Lyngeled, Sigurgeirsson, and Bergsala Holding decided to merge the two studios and created Thunderful as their parent company in December 2017.[7] [8] In May 2018, Zoink had 25 employees. That year, Zoink released a new game, Fe. Its next title, Lost in Random, was released in 2021.[9] In 2020, Thunderful (now called Thunderful Group) merged Zoink with Image & Form and Guru Games to create Thunderful Development.[10]

Games developed

YearTitlePlatform(s)
2010The Kore GangWii
WeeWaa
Billions: Save them All!Facebook Platform
2012Reality Fighters Dojo!Android, iOS
Fair PlaceBrowser
EnergyMixAndroid, iOS
WeeWaa: Rock On!
2013Adventure Time: Rock Bandits
Swing King
PlayStation All-Stars Island
Stick It to the Man!Microsoft Windows, macOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
2015Zombie VikingsMicrosoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
2016Zombie Vikings: Stab-a-thonMicrosoft Windows
2018FeMicrosoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Flipping Death
2019Ghost GiantPlayStation 4
2021Lost in RandomMicrosoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One[11]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Thunderful acquires UK and US publisher Rising Star Games . Christopher . Dring . 3 July 2018 . . 12 July 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190510045233/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2018-07-03-thunderful-acquires-uk-and-us-publisher-rising-star-games . 10 May 2019 . live.
  2. Web site: How Zoink Games combined Monkey Island and Rayman to make Flipping Death . Aron . Garst . 23 May 2018 . . 12 July 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190711225303/https://www.redbull.com/int-en/flipping-death-zoink-games-interview . 11 July 2019 . live.
  3. Web site: Speldoldis från Göteborg kliver fram . sv . Game-gambling from Gothenburg is emerging . Thomas . Arnroth . 13 September 2013 . . 12 July 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190711230041/https://it24.idg.se/2.2275/1.522906/speldoldis-fran-goteborg-kliver-fram . 11 July 2019 . live.
  4. Web site: Interview: Ripstone and Zoink on Prioritising Fun in Stick It To The Man . Thomas . Whitehead . 20 February 2014 . . 12 July 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190711230044/http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2014/02/interview_ripstone_and_zoink_on_prioritising_fun_in_stick_it_to_the_man . 11 July 2019 . live.
  5. Web site: Two Best Friends Are Running Two of Europe's Most Exciting Developers . Joe . Skrebels . 25 January 2018 . . 12 July 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190711223802/https://www.ign.com/articles/2018/01/25/two-best-friends-are-running-two-of-europes-most-exciting-developers . 11 July 2019 . live.
  6. Web site: History . Thunderful Group . 2020 . 24 February 2021 . 30 November 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201130133531/https://thunderfulgroup.com/about-us/history . live.
  7. Web site: UK publisher Rising Star Games acquired by Thunderful . Chris . Kerr . 3 July 2018 . . 12 July 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180930174731/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/321253/UK_publisher_Rising_Star_Games_acquired_by_Thunderful.php . 30 September 2018 . live.
  8. Web site: Image & Form And Zoink! Games Join Forces Under New Company Thunderful . Damien . McFerran . 25 January 2018 . . 12 July 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181006075445/http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2018/01/image_and_form_and_zoink_games_join_forces_under_new_company_thunderful . 6 October 2018 . live.
  9. Web site: Zoink Teams Up With EA To Release Lost In Random On Switch Next Year . Liam . Doolan . 19 June 2020 . . 24 February 2021 . 26 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210126044238/https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2020/06/zoink_teams_up_with_ea_to_release_lost_in_random_on_switch_next_year . live .
  10. Web site: History . 2020 . Thunderful Group . 24 February 2021 . 30 November 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201130133531/https://thunderfulgroup.com/about-us/history . live .
  11. Web site: Explorez Lost in Random™, un titre EA Originals proposé par le studio primé Zoink Games. 17 June 2021.