Former Piranha Bytes Members Form Brainlag Games and Announce Rootbound
Four former Piranha Bytes employees have founded a new studio in Essen: Brainlag Games. Their first project is Rootbound, an action adventure with a living backpack. We spoke with Creative Director Amadeus Weidmann.
Maki Dieffenbach, André Hotz, Markus Kloß, and Amadeus Weidmann - the founders of Brainlag Games shortly after the company was founded.Brainlag Games
Four former core members of Piranha Bytes have founded Brainlag Games in Essen: Maki Dieffenbach, André Hotz, Markus Kloß, and Amadeus Weidmann have over 50 years of combined experience working on the Gothic, Risen and Elex series - and now they are developing their first own game called Rootbound. The team at Brainlag Games received a Press Start Stipend (Gründungsstipendium Games) and funding until Q2 2026. The studio has also received funding from the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW.
Four former core members of Piranha Bytes have founded Brainlag Games in Essen: Maki Dieffenbach, André Hotz, Markus Kloß, and Amadeus Weidmann have over 50 years of combined experience working on the Gothic, Risen and Elex series - and now they are developing their first own game called Rootbound. The team at Brainlag Games received a Press Start Stipend (Gründungsstipendium Games) and funding until Q2 2026. The studio has also received funding from the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW.
