Behaviour Interactive acquires Darkest Dungeon developer Red Hook Studios

Dead by Daylight publisher and developer Behaviour Interactive has acquired the Vancouver-based Red Hook Studios for an undisclosed amount, as announced in a Tuesday press release. Red Hook Studios is notable for the multi-million-selling series Darkest Dungeon.

Red Hook Studios remains independent

The states that the 29-person studio will remain independent within Behaviour. The decision was made as the publisher focused on its powerful position within the horror gaming market. Its multiplayer game Dead by Daylight has over 60 million players worldwide and features Hollywood movie characters like Ghost Face and even Nicolas Cage himself.

“Earlier this year, we established an ambitious goal for our future as a publisher – to make Behaviour synonymous with horror, and surround Dead by Daylight with a library of similarly exceptional horror games,” said Behaviour Interactive co-founder and CEO Rémi Racine in the press release. “Our acquisition of Red Hook is another emphatic step towards this objective, with more to come.”

The Casting of Frank Stone wasn’t received well

Behaviour Interactive recently published The Casting of Frank Stone, a cinematic spinoff from Supermassive Games set within the Dead by Daylight universe. It didn’t review particularly well, with an average as of the time of writing. We did give it a positive preview, however. “I love a good horror game, and The Casting of Frank Stone has all the makings of one,” author Jamie Moorcroft-Sharp wrote. “It feels fresh, scary, unsettling, and engrossing.”

Darkest Dungeon II, however, was reviewed far more favorably, with an 81 score. It launched into Early Access in May 2023. The s🐼eries has since sold over 𒀰seven million copies.

“Behaviour’s support will help us pursue our vision for Red Hook’s future, and focus fully on transforming Darkest Dungeon into an absolute juggernaut of the dark fantasy genre,” said Red Hook Co-Founder Chris Bourassa.