Jake Solomon, who was the creative director behind the XCOM games and Marvel’s Midnight Suns, has formed Midsummer Studios and will be working on life sim games.

According to the studio announcement, Midsummer Studios will be based out of Maryland and is working to “revitalize the Life Sim genre, empowering players to create and share meaningful stories through play.“

Solomon worked at Firaxis Games for 23 years before leaving in early 2023, with his last project being Marvel’s Midnight Sun. Prior to the launch of the Marvel strategy game, we had an opportunity to interview him about the development of the title.

Joining Solomon in co-founding the company is Will Miller, who was also formerly of Firaxis Games, contributing to various games including Sid Meier’s Civilization and Marvel’s Midnight Suns. Nelsie Birch, a financial and operations management veteran, will be serving as COO/CFO in the company.

As mentioned, alongside the studio announcement, it also teased its debut project, which is an unannounced next-gen Life Sim that will emphasize player-driven narratives.

“ The best stories in games are written by the players,” said Jake Solomon, CEO and Creative Director of Midsummer Studios. “At Midsummer, we’re making a life sim focused on the drama of modern life, where our players will write meaningful stories just by playing, and then share those stories with the world.”

Grant Rodiek, who has an 18-year career with Maxis Studios as a Producer and Director on various The Sims installments and expansions, is also joining Midsummer.

The new studio has launched with $6 million raised from major investors, with Transcend Fund leading the round, joined by Tirta Ventures, Betaworks Ventures, 1 Up Ventures, F4 Fund, Krafton, and Day Zero Productions.

“Leading the Seed for Midsummer was a natural fit for Transcend,” said Shanti Bergel, Founding Partner at Transcend.

“As a Producer on The Sims myself nearly twenty years ago, I am well acquainted with the power that meaningful player-driven stories can unlock. I also have an abiding respect for how hard it is to deliver the alchemy of community, systems design, gameplay, and user generated content necessary to do so.”

“The Midsummer founders are industry veterans with the rare experience and design artistry required to deliver against this massive opportunity. I am delighted to join the board and support their journey to redefine the LifeSim category.”