Kepler Interactive Limited is a video game publisher based in London, with another office in Singapore. The company was started in 2021 through a partnership between seven independent game developers, led by Alexis Garavayan, who is the current CEO. The seven founding studios include A44 from New Zealand, Alpha Channel from Canada, Awaceb and Sloclap from France, Ebb Software from Serbia, Shapefarm from Japan, and Timberline Studio from the United States.
Kepler employs about 50 people and publishes games created by studios outside its group. Some of its most well-known games are Sifu (2022), Tchia (2023), Pacific Drive (2024), and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (2025).
History
Kepler Interactive was founded in September 2021 by Alexis Garavayan, a former Ubisoft employee and French entrepreneur who also co-founded the video game investment fund Kowloon Nights. Kepler describes itself as a "super developer" publishing group. It was created through a partnership between seven independent game studios: A44 (known for Ashen), Alpha Channel, Awaceb (known for Tchia), Ebb Software (known for Scorn), Shapefarm, Sloclap (known for Absolver and Sifu), and Timberline Studio. These studios agreed to combine their resources and knowledge to work together. Each studio had equal influence in Kepler’s decisions and shared financial benefits, but Kepler did not control the daily operations of the studios, allowing them to remain independent. Initially, Kepler was co-owned only by the seven founding studios. In 2022, it received $120 million in funding from the Chinese gaming company NetEase, which became a minority shareholder. Kepler’s revenue reached $50 million in 2022, driven by the release of Sifu and Scorn.
In 2023, Kepler launched Kepler Ghost, a white-label publishing service that helps game developers with marketing and publishing. Eternights from Studio Sai was the first game to use this service. The Gentlebros, creators of the Cat Quest series, became the eighth studio to join Kepler’s ownership structure. In March 2023, Kepler announced a partnership with Sandfall Interactive for the game Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which was released in April 2025. Kepler also partnered with Ironwood Studios for the publishing and release of Pacific Drive.
In 2025, Tactical Adventures, the studio behind Solasta: Crown of the Magister, became the ninth independent studio to join Kepler’s ownership group.
Alexis Garavayan says Kepler is very selective. It reviews about 1,400 game projects each year and signs only two or three. He claims Kepler stands out by funding games with modest budgets but high-quality visuals and creative ideas. Unlike most publishers, Kepler does not control the development of games it supports. François Meurisse, co-founder and COO of Sandfall Interactive, said the promise of creative freedom was a key reason Clair Obscur: Expedition 33’s team chose to work with Kepler instead of other publishers.