Devlog #2: Meet the Hilltop Studios team

Hi everyone, thanks so much for the continued support for Curse of Resthaven. It’s been an amazing two weeks since the announcement, and we’re thrilled to see so many of you getting excited about the game.

This week, we wanted to introduce the team behind it.

Hilltop Studios is primarily based in Toronto, Canada, with one of our key team members working out of Mexico. The Curse of Resthaven team is a mix of folks who worked on our first game, Lil’ Guardsman, along with some new faces helping bring the island of Resthaven to life.

Background I co-founded Lienzo Studios, where I worked as Lead Programmer and Game Designer on three multi-platform games: Hunter’s Legacy, Mulaka, and Aztech: Forgotten Gods. I first joined Hilltop Studios to help with a research project for Nike, designing and programming a motion-controlled minigame collection. After that, I stayed on to help finish Lil’ Guardsman, which was a blast to work on, especially implementing and playtesting all the hilarious dialogue and wacky gameplay.

I’m also the sole non-Toronto member of the team, based in Chihuahua, Mexico. The game dev scene here in Mexico is full of passionate small studios doing their best to make an impact despite limited funding opportunities. Working with Hilltop has given me the chance to keep growing, working alongside an amazing, talented team.

Favorite Horror Movies: Sinister, The Exorcism of Emily Rose Books: Carrie, It, Coraline Games: Silent Hill 2, Dead Space

All-Time Fave Games Metroid Prime, Cloudbuilt, Portal 2

Fun fact I play volleyball and Super Smash Bros Ultimate weekly with a group of good friends!

Background I was a writer and game designer on Lil Guardsman, and I've worked with Hilltop Studios for the past four years. Before working at Hilltop, I was Lord Chancellor at Medieval Times. (Editor's note: this is not a joke!)

Favourite HorrorMovies

Not many, because horror movies do their job remarkably well on me. I'm a sucker for the classics, so I’ll say Psycho . But if you consider multiple murders taking place at a dreary old mansion on a stormy night horror-esque, then I’d say Clue .

Games

Again, they do their job on me. I get very scared, very easily. But I really enjoyed My Big Sister by Ratalaika Games.

All-Time Fave Games Big fan of The Legend of Zelda, loved Blue Prince, but the game that started it all was Red Hook’s Revenge (ImagiSoft Dos PC 1993)

Favourite Animal The common (and gorgeous) mallard duck.

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Background This is my first time on a game project, as I previously worked in animation (Vida The Vet, Dot, Taqqut Studios). I'm a long-time massive fan of both horror and the 18th Century. I particularly love horror that is also weird.

Favourite Horror Movies: Lake Mungo, 28 Days Later, Hereditary, Riaru Onigokko, 10 Cloverfield Lane, Sinners Games: Look Outside, Little Nightmares, The Last Of Us, Resident Evil 8, The Quarry Books: Higurashi, Oryx and Crake, and I also grew up with Darren Shan books.

All-Time Fave Games Look Outside, Little Nightmares, Last of Us, The Witcher 3, Baldur’s Gate 3, Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Fun fact Me and Clayton are partners of ten years and live together. I used to work as a dog groomer, bather, walker and carer. I love all animals, except chimps – they scare me.

Blood Type B negative

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Background The bulk of my professional experience is in animation, working as an animator on Looney Tunes cartoons, and as a background artist on Rick & Morty, Charlotte (2021), Carol and the End of the World, and other shows. I also illustrated a children’s book series called The Nguyen Kids.

I like to dabble in all sorts of visual media: illustration, photography, animation, graphic design, and even the occasional video editing. This is my first game project, so I’m hard at work learning Unity shaders and other tech art too.

Favourite Horror

Movies

Annihilation,Pan’s Labyrinth,Perfect Blue,Get Out,Shaun of the Dead, Coraline Games: I like horror games that incorporate beauty and whimsy, and aren’t wholly immersed in bleakness, discomfort, and scares. I like games like Little Nightmares 1 & 2, Scarlet Hollow, Resident Evil 4 , and Half Life Alyx (if that counts).

Books

I’m not a big horror reader but I’m currently reading through Uzumaki .

All-Time Fave Games Final Fantasy 10, Persona 5, Okami, Yakuza 0, Kingdom Hearts (Yes, I like 1 more than 2! There are literally dozens of us!)

Weaknesses Heights, spiders, and water (at least until I learn to swim).

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Background Before working in games, my background was in music. I worked across Canada as a musical director, conductor, and composer. I’ve always been a huge gamer, and when the pandemic brought the performing arts to a halt, we decided to pitch Lil’ Guardsman –and Hilltop Studios was born. On that project I co-created the game, led the writing team, and composed the music.

These days I’m also composing for a few other titles, but most of my focus is on Curse of Resthaven. We’re full steam ahead on the game, while also starting to cook up ideas for where the studio might go next.

Favourite HorrorMovies

The Shining jumps to mind first, which feels pretty appropriate for the kind of game we’re making. The Silence of the Lambs is also firmly in my all-time top five. I’m a big fan of Guillermo del Toro’s work, and Pan’s Labyrinth in particular has been on my mind a lot while we’ve been working on this game.

Books

Silvia Moreno-Garcia is one of my favourite authors, and her novel Mexican Gothic has been a tonal touchstone for our game. The remote setting, the creeping dread… it’s so good. Her book Silver Nitrate dives into some really fun occult territory, and The Daughter of Doctor Moreau also feels oddly relevant to some of the expeditions in our game. She’s fantastic. Highly recommend.

All-Time Fave Games Planescape: Torment, Grim Fandango, Witcher 3

Least Favourite Musical Cats

Our small but mighty team is doing some amazing work. More people will touch the game as we go, but at its heart it’s mainly the five of us building this strange little world together.

Thanks for being in the tent with us -- we can’t wait to share more soon!

• Scott Christian and the Hilltop Studios team