Arrowhead Game Studios

Arrowhead Game Studios is an independent Swedish video game developer. It was established in 2008 by a group of Luleå University of Technology students studying in Skellefteå. The company gradually moved to Stockholm in 2011–2012. As of 2024, the studio employs about 120 people.

History
Their first game, Magicka, won the Game of the Year award at the Swedish Game Awards 2008. In 2011, Magicka was released, published by Paradox Interactive, after a contract with the publisher was signed in 2009.

In the following years, Arrowhead developed The Showdown Effect, a 2.5D multiplayer action game inspired by 1980s and 1990s action movies, for which they stuck with Paradox Interactive to publish it in 2013, and Gauntlet, a co-op dungeon action game, which was published by WB Games in 2014.

In 2015, Arrowhead developed Helldivers, which was published by Sony Computer Entertainment for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, and Windows. A sequel, Helldivers 2, was first teased in 2021 and released in 2024 by Sony Interactive Entertainment for PlayStation 5 and Windows.

On 22 May 2024, Johan Pilestedt announced that he had stepped down as CEO and hired Shams Jorjani, a longtime business associate to succeed him. Pilestedt assumed the role of CCO in order to fully involve himself in game development.

Awards

 * Magicka won the Game of the Year award at the Swedish Game Awards 2008.
 * Helldivers was nominated for "Action Game of the Year" and won for "Handheld Game of the Year" at the 19th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards held by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences.