Ron Gilbert, creator of Monkey Island, has completely abandoned traditional publishers and platforms like Kickstarter for the production of Thimbleweed Park 2. The development, with a budget of over $1 million, is being funded by an anonymous private investor—a wealthy fan of the original game—who has agreed to a 50/50 profit-sharing arrangement. The release is scheduled for early 2028.
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Why Gilbert is tired of publishers?
The traditional model of working with large gaming companies has long ceased to suit the game designer. A standard contract typically requires the publisher to retain all revenue until it recoups its costs, and then continues to retain the lion’s share of the proceeds.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Ron Gilbert openly stated the unfairness of such terms. According to him, publishers often impose strict deadlines, whereby the author receives absolutely nothing from sales until the project becomes a huge hit. This time, Gilbert decided not to compromise and maintain complete independence.
How Gilbert Found an Anonymous Fan Investor?
The deal was brokered by a chance intermediary. A mutual acquaintance contacted Gilbert and said someone outside the gaming industry was willing to fund a new game. The developer was skeptical—he’d been approached about similar offers many times before.
Nevertheless, Gilbert emailed him and sent a realistic estimate. He budgeted two years of full-time production, adequate salaries for the Terrible Toybox team, and inflation risk. The total cost exceeded $1 million. The mysterious fan agreed without question, assembling an all-star cast for the project: Mark Ferrari, Gary Winnick, David Fox, Octavi Navarro, and Robert Megon were back on board.
“A Fair Deal”: How the Investor Earns
The financial model of this partnership is transparent. The investor invests capital and expects to recoup their investment with the first sales, after which an agreement with an equal or reasonable split of shares takes effect.
Gilbert emphasizes that the investor “breaks even very quickly.” Unlike standard contracts, the investor does not claim ownership of Terrible Toybox’s intellectual property and does not dictate creative decisions.
“Not a sequel, not a prequel”: what does that mean?
Thimbleweed Park 2’s Steam page greeted players with an intriguing banner: it’s not quite a sequel, and not quite a prequel. Given the surreal ending of the first game, fans wondered how the developers were planning to develop this lore.
Commenting on the situation on the Grumpy Gamer blog, Gilbert wryly noted that untangling this knot is half the fun. The game will retain its pixelated aesthetic and signature dark humor, expanding the universe without directly tying it to the timeline.
Is Monkey Island’s future sealed? Why won’t we see a new game?
After completing Return to Monkey Island, Gilbert encountered a bureaucratic wall at Disney, which owns the rights to the franchise. The corporation is reluctant to work directly with small teams, preferring to conduct business through large partners like Devolver Digital.
Every approval step becomes a complex chain of intermediaries. An attempt to establish direct production of a new pixel adventure game about Guybrush Threepwood is running into legal difficulties that would require too much time. For this reason, Gilbert has shifted all resources to his own franchise.
What does this mean for the indie industry?
The case of Thimbleweed Park 2 exemplifies the emergence of an alternative path for established developers. Finding a private investor among wealthy fans solves the financial issue without the pressure of publishing deadlines and the public commitments of crowdfunding.
Checklist: Choosing a Model for an Independent Studio
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Publisher: Suitable if the team is critically concerned about guaranteed marketing and international distribution, and selling the rights is not a concern.
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Kickstarter: Works for studios with an active community willing to invest resources in ongoing PR in the lead-up to release.
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Private Investor: Ideal for experienced, reputable creators who need a budget of at least $1 million and absolute freedom of action.
When and where will Thimbleweed Park 2 be released?
The game is scheduled for release in early 2028. It’s being developed for Windows PC, Mac, Linux, and Switch, and will be available on GOG. There’s no word yet on a PS5 or Xbox release.
