Experienced games managers Claire Barilla, Martine Spaans, Thomas Rössig and Thorsten Hamdorf have founded Fourth Moon Games, a studio-as-a-service partner. The aim is to support indie developers with administrative expertise by filling the CxO roles small independent studios often cannot afford.
According to the founding quartet, the name Fourth Moon Games is a reference to Europa, Jupiter's fourth moon. “Reaching for the stars is about overcoming difficulty, equipped with courage, data and a compass,” says Thorsten Hamdorf, CMO. “Europa represents hidden potential and the ambition to look further. We chose this name to reflect our commitment to European values and culture, while remaining open to world-class talent from any corner of the globe - or universe.
The name also fits the founders themselves, a team consisting of people of different genders and nationalities who work together across borders in Europe and bring different experiences from the gaming industry. Together, the four founders have around 75 years of industry experience.
Thomas Rössig, who serves as CEO, is a German-French serial entrepreneur who, among other things, formed Flying Sheep Studios. Martine Spaans, COO, was the founder and managing director of Tamalaki Games and currently heads the Dutch Games Association and is VP of the EGDF. Claire Barilla (CPO) brings over 16 years of executive experience in indie development and is a specialist in the Steam ecosystem. Thorsten Hamdorf was marketing director at dtp before moving to the game association and later to the agency Jung von Matt Nerd.
“Great games often fall short of their potential because creative developers lack the specialized business infrastructure to turn potential into success,” says Thomas Rössig, initiator and CEO. “Our mission is to foster sustainable independent growth by freeing devs of the ballast of administration, HR, and finance enabling them to stay focused on their vision. So, if an indie dev team wants the business administration to be handled professionally but is lacking the resources, we come on board as part of the team taking good care of it.”
