Games Lift: tool1 Build on Their Community

Hamburg studio tool1 is profiled in this October 2021 Games Lift Incubator log as a small team building its studio around a community-first strategy. The three founders, creative director Timo Becker, technical director Stephen Sommerfeld and co-founder Martin Kleingräber, have worked together for years, with Becker and Kleingräber collaborating since university and Sommerfeld joining during a Games master's program at HAW Hamburg. Their project, "The Invitation," and the studio are intended to grow in tandem, with the game serving as a backbone for modular development and a new company.

"The Invitation" is planned as a looter-shooter with realistic 3D graphics, distinguished by player-driven missions. Players can issue Player Quests such as calls for help, bounties on griefers or invitations to raids. The project drew coverage from outlets including Gamestar and publications in Poland and India. A Kickstarter campaign missed its funding goal but delivered new contacts, visibility and a committed community. Backers were promised keys, and hundreds of people are waiting to test builds.

Audience retention is treated as essential for an online game, and tool1 uses the incubator to refine its approach. Plans include growing its Discord server, launching a Patreon for closer contact and resuming regular developer streams next year. Transparency, such as answering player requests personally and showing how major decisions are made, is positioned as a way to stand out against established AAA studios.

The team has so far relied on freelancers for 3D assets and animation and intends to add staff gradually. They value networking and advice from Hamburg's indie scene and from Kickstarter contacts. The game remains well short of Early Access, but the studio describes a measured, step-by-step plan.