Former Volition staff at new co-development studio Shapeshifter Games are working on steampunk RPG Clockwork Revolution

A screenshot of two robot-like figures in Clockwork Revolution.
(Image credit: Xbox Game Studios)

It’s been confirmed that the new co-development studio Shapeshifter Games, which was founded by a number of former Volition staff, is teaming up with inXile Entertainment on its upcoming steampunk role-playing game Clockwork Revolution.

In case you missed it, Shapeshifter Games was unveiled earlier this week. At the time, it was said that the studio would “partner with world class developers and publishers” and be “focused on AAA game development,” with a goal of creating “a more sustainable environment for developers to do their best work.” It also teased that it was “already hard at work with a top publisher on their next great IP,” and it now seems that we know what it is.

The latest news was announced in a post on the inXile Entertainment website, which states: “Shortly after Volition closed, we flew to Illinois and worked with Xbox and the then ex-Volition leadership to secure this new team as our co-development partner. Their wealth of industry experience further bolstering our efforts in developing our upcoming steampunk RPG Clockwork Revolution.”

Volition was closed last August as part of Embracer Group’s restructuring, in an effort to “strengthen Embracer and maintain its position as a leader in the video game industry.” 

In a statement shared in the latest news post, the president of inXile, Chris Keenan, said that he has “a special place in [his] heart for the Parallax/Volition team” due to him previously testing its classic first-person shooter Descent

“First priority was ensuring these folks had a place to land on Clockwork Revolution, and we're thankful we were able to get it done so quickly,” Keenan added. “Bringing in new development partners can be challenging, but this was a rare partnership that felt right from the beginning.”

Clockwork Revolution was first announced last June and is being published by Xbox Game Studios. While it doesn’t currently have a release window, it’s set to launch on PC and Xbox Series X|S at some point in the future.

Clockwork Revolution is certainly one of the most intriguing upcoming games on the horizon. However, if you’re eager for something to dive into right now, you can find some excellent recommendations on our roundup of the best Xbox Series X games. 

Catherine Lewis
News Writer, TechRadar Gaming

Catherine is a News Writer for TechRadar Gaming. Armed with a journalism degree from The University of Sheffield, she was sucked into the games media industry after spending far too much time on her university newspaper writing about Pokémon and cool indie games, and realising that was a very cool job, actually. She previously spent 19 months working at GAMINGbible as a full-time journalist. She loves all things Nintendo, and will never stop talking about Xenoblade Chronicles.