Secret Mode Expands: Inside the Indie Publisher’s Strategic Pivot to Internal Development

In a significant evolution of its operational model, indie publisher Secret Mode has officially launched a dedicated internal development division based in Sheffield. This strategic shift marks a move away from the publisher’s historical reliance on external outsourcing, aiming to streamline the production pipeline for its growing portfolio of titles.

While the new studio begins with a lean team of three, leadership has set an ambitious trajectory, with plans to scale to a workforce of approximately 20 employees within the next twelve months. By establishing a physical footprint in Sheffield—a city with deep-rooted history in the British gaming industry—Secret Mode intends to bridge the gap between high-level publishing and hands-on technical execution.

The Genesis of the Sheffield Studio

The decision to establish an internal development arm was not a long-gestating plan, but rather a rapid response to changing market conditions. The initiative was spearheaded by Dan Secker, who joined Secret Mode in November 2025 as the Vice President of Technology and Operations.

With 28 years of industry experience, Secker recognized a recurring fiscal and logistical bottleneck: the publisher was hemorrhaging capital on external development teams to support its live-service titles. "We’re spending large sums of money on external development teams," Secker explained. "My whole career is 28 years in development—we asked why we weren’t building our own team to support our own portfolio of products, creating our own dedicated pipelines to update content."

The Sheffield location was chosen not only for its rich talent pool but for its accessibility to academic institutions. The studio’s proximity to local universities, including the University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam, is a calculated move to foster a pipeline of fresh, enthusiastic talent.

Chronology: From Acquisition to In-House Support

The necessity for this new division was underscored by the success of two specific titles: Escape the Backrooms and Chained Together. Both games were acquired by Secret Mode in June 2024, and both have demonstrated significant commercial performance.

• June 2024: Secret Mode acquires Chained Together and Escape the Backrooms, identifying them as core pillars of their community-driven portfolio.
• November 2025: Dan Secker joins Secret Mode as VP of Technology and Operations, immediately identifying the need for internal development capabilities.
• Early 2026: The recruitment process begins for the Sheffield-based team, with a focus on technical specialists capable of supporting live-service updates and platform porting.
• Present Day: The studio is operational with a core team of three, with aggressive hiring targets set for the coming year.

The immediate mandate for the Sheffield team is to maintain player retention by delivering consistent, high-quality content updates for these two hits. Rather than focusing on long-cycle AAA development, the studio will focus on iterative improvements—new levels, cosmetic systems, and, crucially, multi-platform porting.

Supporting Data: Why "Live" Matters

The decision to pivot to internal development is supported by the unique nature of Secret Mode’s current catalog. Unlike single-player experiences that have a clear launch-to-sunset trajectory, Escape the Backrooms and Chained Together are fueled by active, vocal communities that demand constant content streams.

"They’re driven by the community, and players are screaming out for more content, more levels," Secker noted. The goal is to provide a "full-service" model where the publisher can respond to community feedback in weeks rather than months.

From a financial perspective, the internal studio acts as a hedge against the rising costs of mid-tier and indie publishing. In a saturated market, the ability to rapidly port Chained Together from Steam to Xbox, PlayStation 5, and potentially the next-generation Switch is a distinct competitive advantage that Secker believes is best handled by an in-house team rather than an external contractor.

Official Perspectives: The Philosophy of "Immediate Impact"

For Jake Habgood, who serves as the Technical Development Director, the new studio is about more than just efficiency; it is about developer satisfaction. In an era where AAA projects often take half a decade to reach the public, the Sheffield studio offers a different value proposition.

"As a game developer, these days you can spend a huge amount of your career working on something that just never sees the light of day," Habgood stated. "The opportunity to come into a project that’s already got a huge audience and actually make a difference right away is really exciting."

This philosophy of "immediate impact" is central to the team’s recruitment strategy. They are targeting developers who are fatigued by the long, often anonymous development cycles of massive corporate studios and are instead drawn to the agility of the indie space.

Furthermore, the team is bucking the industry-wide trend toward remote work. Secret Mode Sheffield will require staff to be in the office four days a week. This policy, while controversial in some sectors, is defended by leadership as essential for collaborative problem-solving and organic mentorship.

"What we’ve lost over the years since COVID happened is that going into the office, you didn’t realize how much you learned just from going for a cup of tea and talking to somebody on a different team," Secker argued. Habgood echoed this sentiment, emphasizing that the ability to read a colleague’s body language and offer support before a problem becomes a "blocker" is an essential part of the "indie" spirit.

Implications for the Future of Secret Mode

The establishment of the Sheffield studio signals a shift in Secret Mode’s identity. The company, which originated as part of the Sumo Group, is clearly looking to differentiate itself from the co-development models that have dominated the UK scene.

While Secker is careful to state that the current goal is not the creation of original IP, he leaves the door ajar. "I’m not going to say that’s not going to happen," he admits, noting that once the studio proves its worth as a technical center of excellence, the conversation may shift toward internal incubation.

The "Technical Center of Excellence" Model

In five years, Secker envisions a fully matured development arm that provides technical standards across the entire publishing label. This includes:

1. Shared Technical Infrastructure: Developing a standardized toolset that can be deployed across all Secret Mode titles.
2. External Dev Support: Potentially using the Sheffield team to mentor or provide technical guidance to third-party developers working under the Secret Mode banner.
3. Academic Integration: By leveraging the connections of leaders like Habgood, the studio intends to maintain a mentorship program, acting as a bridge for graduates entering the industry.

Addressing the "Indie" Identity

By maintaining a small, focused team, Secret Mode hopes to avoid the "bloat" that often plagues larger publishers. The intent is to remain agile. The success of Nutmeg!—a project born from the Sumo Academy—serves as the blueprint for this culture. By hiring junior staff with high energy and minimal "corporate cynicism," Secret Mode hopes to infuse its established products with a sense of renewal.

Ultimately, the launch of the Sheffield studio is a bet on the longevity of live-service indie games. If Secret Mode can successfully marry the agility of a small team with the financial stability of a publisher, they may create a new blueprint for mid-tier success in an increasingly crowded global market. As Secker and Habgood begin their work in Sheffield, the industry will be watching to see if this "back to basics" approach to collaborative, in-person development can deliver the consistent results required to sustain long-term player engagement.