2024 was undoubtedly one of the sweetest years for Shift Up — the South Korean developer behind the breakout hit that was Stellar Blade. Not only was it praised for its quality, but the launch of Stellar Blade also proved the studio’s ability to deliver enjoyable console games. Combine that with the success of other titles like Goddess of Victory: Nikke, the stock market debut of the studio was suitably stellar too, and the good news is that they haven’t forgotten about their employees.
As shared in a tweet on X/Twitter, at a New Year’s event, the studio got together for a celebration of all the hard work. Among the festivities, all 311 employees at Shift Up received a PlayStation 5 Pro alongside a 5 million KRW, which is equivalent to approximately US$3,400. Talk about motivation and incentive.
Having a brand new PlayStation 5 Pro to enjoy Stellar Blade in 4K and at buttery smooth framerates will certainly be exciting, but so is the cash incentive. Considering the difficulty of the job and the amount of effort and time invested in bringing a game to life, it is always nice to see studios celebrating their wins.
In terms of the future, Shift Up is still hard at work preparing Stellar Blade for a PC release, which is expected to launch sometime in 2025. At the same time, the team is also working on a brand-new project titled Project Witches. That is supposedly a cross-platform AAA urban sci-fi action RPG for PC, consoles, and mobile, and is set to launch in 2027.
