This morning Guy "Dr Disrespect" Beahm revealed his new AAA game studio created with veteran Call of Duty developers. The streamer made headlines last summer when he was banned from Twitch. In August of this year, Dr Disrespect announced that he was suing Twitch and that he knew the reason behind his ban. Now the popular streamer is making headlines once again with the announcement of his new game studio.
Despite being a video game streamer, Dr Disrespect actually has the background needed to start a game studio. Beahm previously worked as a developer at Sledgehammer Games creating several of the multiplayer maps for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. This ultimately gave him experience in the field of game development. However, it has been confirmed that he will not be his studio's head of development. This past August, Beahm posted a job opening on his streamer's website looking for the studio's head of development. The job opening indicated that the focus of the games in development would be on PC and consoles. The job description also mentioned that the studio's games will revolve around partnerships with influencers, effectively making Dr Disrespect's game studio a streamer's dream.
Today on his Twitter account, Dr Disrespect revealed Midnight Society, the name of his new AAA game studio, in partnership with veteran Call of Duty developers. Midnight Society's website explains that it is "focused on delivering the best, most community-focused, online PVP multiplayer experience the world has ever seen." The studio's first title is being built on Unreal Engine 5 and will be available to a 'Day-Zero Community' and major content creators. The website goes on to say that the studio is dedicated to including influencers and gaming communities much earlier in the development process of a game.
This new approach of including influencers in the game development process is unconventional but might just prove successful for the fledgling studio. Inviting influencers into the early stages of a project's development could influence design decisions and encourage innovation in the shooter genre. Dr Disrespect realizes this as a past game developer and current streamer himself. The fact that his studio is welcoming the influencer community from day one shows just how closely Midnight Society will work with these streaming partners.
Dr Disrespect's Midnight Society will not only introduce players to new games but will also introduce the gaming industry to a new way of developing games. Whether or not Midnight Society's business model will succeed has yet to be seen, but fans and AAA studios alike will be watching.
Sources: Dr Disrespect/Twitter, Midnight Society