Studio Reset, a new Canadian independent game studio founded by developers whose credits include Mass Effect, Dragon Age, The Long Dark, and Anthem, today announced its formation and offered a first glimpse at the creative direction behind its debut project: a neon-noir supernatural mystery game set in a stylized Canadian cityscape.
Founded by Kaelin Lavallée, Kris Schoneberg, and Francis Lacuna, Studio Reset brings together a team with a long-standing working relationship and, according to a press release, “a shared belief in building games with intention and sustainability.” After years spent contributing to large-scale narrative worlds, the founders are choosing a smaller, more intentional model: original IP, sustainable ambition, and experiences shaped around the players they are made for.
“Studio Reset is smaller by design,” said Kaelin Lavallée, producer and creative director at Studio Reset in a press release. “We are not trying to recreate blockbuster development at a smaller scale. We want to build original worlds with focus, intention, and a team that can stay close to the work, the creative vision, and the players we are making it for.”
Studio Reset’s first project channels the satisfaction of classic adventure mysteries while modernizing the form through “bold 3D visuals, multiple investigators, intuitive clue-solving, mature themes, and meaningful replayability.” The game is “designed for players who want a mystery that feels strange, atmospheric, and deeply thought-out, without forcing them through arbitrary puzzle logic.”
At the heart of the project is Parallax Deduction, Studio Reset’s approach to narrative mystery design. Inspired by the idea that something can appear different depending on the viewer’s position, Parallax Deduction makes each investigator a different lens on the case. Characters do not simply collect clues; each provides a different perspective on the scene — informing what a player can perceive, interpret, and believe.
“We’re interested in mysteries that trust the player,” said Kris Schoneberg, design director at Studio Reset in the same press release. “A good mystery should make you feel clever, not confused. With Parallax Deduction, we want players to understand that perspective is part of the evidence. Who is looking at the case matters, because each investigator brings their own expertise, history, instincts, and blind spots.”
The studio is also taking a “no moon logic” approach to clue and puzzle design. In adventure games, “moon logic” is what happens when a puzzle solution feels arbitrary, forcing the player to guess the designer’s personal logic rather than following clues. Studio Reset wants the opposite: if a player uncovers a hidden motive, opens a locked path, or connects two strange details, the solution should feel like something they could have reasoned toward through observation, context, and deduction.
Studio Reset’s debut project is currently in its early stages with support from the Canada Media Fund. Today’s announcement marks the beginning of a longer development journey.
The team is opening the door early to players, industry peers, and potential partners drawn to mystery, atmosphere, and story-rich games built around discovery.
“We want Studio Reset to be known for games about strange places, hidden stories, and the curious characters compelled to uncover them,” said Francis Lacuna, art director at Studio Reset, in the press release. “Visually, we’re building toward a world that feels beautiful, uneasy, and familiar in the wrong way. The kind of place where the ordinary starts to feel like it is hiding something.”
Studio Reset will share more about the studio, its development philosophy, and its first project in the months ahead.