Deck Nine (Idol Minds)

Independent American video game development studio specializing in **narrative / story-driven AAA games**. Headquartered in **Westminster, Colorado, United States** (per Wikipedia 'Deck Nine' and Zippia 'Deck Nine Games History'). **REBRAND HISTORY (Atlas rule 13 ribrand naming):** The studio was originally founded as **Idol Minds, LLC in 1997**, a PlayStation-focused developer responsible for racing/arcade titles in the late 1990s and 2000s (Cool Boarders, Pacific Rift, ModNation Racers series support, etc.). The studio **rebranded to Deck Nine Games in 2014** following a strategic pivot to narrative/story-driven AAA development, supported by the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) per Wikipedia. Atlas name: 'Deck Nine (Idol Minds)' per Atlas rule 13 ribrand convention. **FLAGSHIP IP — LIFE IS STRANGE FRANCHISE:** Deck Nine has been Square Enix's external development partner on the Life is Strange franchise since 2017 (originally Dontnod's IP). Deck Nine titles: **Life Is Strange: Before the Storm** (2017, the prequel that established the partnership — per Westword 'Life Is Strange in Haven Springs, Colorado'), **Life is Strange: True Colors** (2021), **Life Is Strange: Double Exposure** (2024). **PROPRIETARY TECH:** StoryTeller — Deck Nine's in-house narrative-game development engine/toolchain (per deckninegames.com 'Deck Nine built and integrated StoryTeller into our storytelling...'). Other titles include The Expanse: A Telltale Series (co-developed with Telltale Games successor). MobyGames: 53 'Developed by' credits across the Idol Minds + Deck Nine eras. Independent — no parent corporation (despite being Square Enix's primary external Life is Strange partner; ownership remains independent). Moby record: 'Deck Nine'. 2026 UPDATE: Life is Strange: Reunion — reported in development in 2025 as a sequel to Double Exposure, officially announced January 2026 (per en-wiki 'Life Is Strange: Reunion'); reveal handled with Square Enix via livestream. FINANCIAL/STABILITY RISK: after Double Exposure's underwhelming launch — 20% staff layoffs announced February 2024 (per GameDeveloper/Insider Gaming), on top of ~30 layoffs in May 2023; GameRant reports the studio 'may soon run out of funding'; long-time co-founder and COO Jeff Litchford departed after 20 years at Idol Minds/Deck Nine to found Second Unit Games (per his LinkedIn, discussed on Resetera) — reduced-activity risk noted, watch next tick.

• Type: Developer · Buyer
• Headquarters: United States
• Data updated: 15 Nov 2026

Key facts

• According to Games Atlas analysis of shipped-game credits, Deck Nine (Idol Minds) published or developed 7 games released 2017–2026.
• Games Atlas data shows 7 of 7 Deck Nine (Idol Minds) titles with known production credits (100%) used external service partners.
• The most frequent external partner on Deck Nine (Idol Minds) titles is Square Enix Holdings (6 shared credits, 2017–2026).
• Games Atlas tracked 1 news stories about Deck Nine (Idol Minds) in the last 24 months.

What Deck Nine (Idol Minds) outsources and how open it is to new partners

The verdict rates how hard it is for a new vendor to win work in each discipline: how much of the work goes to outside vendors rather than staying inside, whether the same partners come back or change from project to project, and how often first-time partners got in over recent years.

• Audio design and production services: Open: partners change from project to project. Sourcing model: regularly outsourced (2 vendors per title, typical 1.8). 7 of 7 titles with detailed credits since 2015 used an external partner (100%); 11 external partners, 2 of them returning (71% of outsourced titles), most often Audio Network (43%); since 2022: 7 first-time partners on 60% of 5 outsourced titles. Small base: a first signal, not a settled pattern.
• Casting services: Open: partners change from project to project. Sourcing model: regularly outsourced (1.6 vendors per title, typical 1.2). 5 of 7 titles with detailed credits since 2015 used an external partner (71%); 3 external partners, 2 of them returning (80% of outsourced titles), most often Sylvia Gregory Casting (80%); since 2022: 1 first-time partners on 25% of 4 outsourced titles. Small base: a first signal, not a settled pattern.
• QA and testing services: Full breakdown available to registered members.
• Art, assets and fonts production services: Full breakdown available to registered members.
• Localisation services: Full breakdown available to registered members.
• Additional development & engineering: Full breakdown available to registered members.
• Lead & co-development: Full breakdown available to registered members.
• Motion capture services: Full breakdown available to registered members.

Members-only data, free account. The full sourcing breakdown for Deck Nine (Idol Minds) is available to registered Games Atlas members. Registration is free. After sign-in, the page shows for QA and testing services, Art, assets and fonts production services, Localisation services, Additional development & engineering, Lead & co-development, Motion capture services: share of titles outsourced, number of external partners, the largest vendors and their share, new partners in recent years, and how open each discipline is to new vendors, plus 33 more external partners. Create a free account.

External partners proven by shipped credits

• Square Enix Holdings — Distribution, Additional development & engineering, Publishing, 6 shared credits, 2017–2026
• Testronic — Localisation services, QA and testing services, 5 shared credits, 2017–2026
• Keywords Studios — Audio design and production services, Casting services, QA and testing services, 4 shared credits, 2021–2026
• Sylvia Gregory Casting — Casting services, 4 shared credits, 2021–2026
• Altagram Group — Audio design and production services, Localisation services, 3 shared credits, 2021–2026

Latest related news

• Deck Nine co-founder launches Second Unit Games as co-dev and live-ops shop (2026-08-21)

Methodology

Source: Games Atlas (gamesatlas.app), based on MobyGames production credits and Games Atlas analysis; the sourcing figures cover work credited on releases from 2015 onwards. One game counts once regardless of platforms, editions or add-ons. Games Atlas does not estimate revenue or report the performance of individual games. Profile: https://gamesatlas.app/companies/deck-nine-idol-minds