Reimagine the game
We are gamers on a mission. For us and the hundreds of millions of players who spend thousands of hours leveling their characters and skills, completing quests, and growing their influence in the game and economy, playing an MMORPG is more than just a leisure activity. It’s a lifestyle where you are part of something bigger than the game itself - you are part of a community.
With Ember Sword, we have taken the best pieces from all the games we have loved over the last two decades and created the experience our players have always wanted and deserved.
We want thrilling PvP and PvE experiences in a community-led sandbox world,exciting opportunities for peaceful foragers of goods, skilled crafters and smart traders, rewarding shared experiences, and a sprawling player-driven economy with true ownership of in-game cosmetics and land. This is Ember Sword.
Vision
Our vision
Bright Star Studios was created with the ambition of forging an entirely new path for the games industry. One without pay-to-win, with ultimate freedom for the players, and with massive games that play instantly across platforms.
Gaming is one of the few crafts that let you dive into a world where you can become a legend in anything you do and be anyone you want to be. We are passionate about building these experiences together with our community.
Our values
Player experience
We want to create amazing player experiences full of engaging PvE and PvP objectives and ultimate freedom for the community. Our games have no pay-to-win, provide massive amounts of content, and play instantly across platforms.
Ingenuity
We are never afraid of re-inventing the wheel if it means we can make it 10x better. We build our own tech and game engine from the ground up so we can provide perfect experiences for millions of players.
Accountability
We want to create an everlasting experience for the next generation of MMORPG players. To achieve that, we always keep ourselves accountable for what we do as a company. We’ll learn from our mistakes and celebrate the successes to continuously inch closer to our vision.
Value centric
We stick to our values and use them as the cornerstones that guide everything from our game design to how we engage with the community and treat our fellow colleagues. In everything we do, we strive to be the benchmark for future game companies.
Our team
Meet our team
Founder and CEO
The Founder and CEO of Bright Star Studios, Mark Laursen, is a true amalgam of forward-thinking business sense and professional player mentality. Coming from years of FPS and MMORPG professional gaming, as well as several founder level and management positions (FortemWorks, Starcade IO, IO Games LLC, PlayOn ApS, Donkey Crew to name a few), Mark possesses the perfect blend of experience required to shift what has become a stagnant industry. Under his leadership Bright Star Studios is not only poised to create the next breakout MMO with Ember Sword, but also to bring elevated accessibility and a community experience utilizing ground breaking game engine technology.
Co-founder and Chief Development Officer
It would be hard to find a word that better describes Joris than tech prodigy. When you’ve created an entire MMO at the age of 16, the obvious next step is changing and improving the genre itself. He is accomplishing this goal by utilizing pioneering technology to elevate and improve player experiences, co-founding Bright Star Studios, and creating Ember Sword on a proprietary engine. With Joris’ experience in creating tools used by hundreds of thousands of developers, his prolific creation of game assets (which includes owning one of the largest Unity Asset Store publishers), and creative vision for the future of MMOs, Ember Sword is set to change the way MMOs operate forever.
Chief Publishing Officer
A through-and-through industry veteran of 18 years, Mo brings the know-how needed to execute Bright Star’s vision through publishing. Coming from senior strategic positions in industry giants like Riot Games and Wargaming, as well as innovative projects like Lazha Games (which he co-founded), Mo sits at the intersection of creativity and getting things done. Mo’s massive amount of industry experience along with the passion he has for player experiences, solidifies Bright Stars promise to drive new innovation to the sector.
Vice President of Marketing
Amber is a creatively driven brand and marketing professional with experience in both B2C and B2B arenas including specific experience with community building around original content. She brings a wealth of global brand marketing and franchise building experience to Bright Star having worked with brands such as Disney (formally Fox Networks Group), National Geographic, Viacom (Paramount), Channel 5, MTV and Blackberry working on award-winning shows such as The Walking Dead, Deep State, Legion, Gotham, and Family Guy etc. Amber believes that it is time for the industry to evolve and her values align perfectly with Bright Star’s mission to elevate and innovate player experiences.
Vice President of Operations
Creating a brand new paradigm for MMOs takes a lot of people, and finding and organizing those with the vision to accomplish that is a very hard job. Luckily, Christophe brings with him a lot of experience in exactly that field, having built international publishing offices and game development studios for Riot Games over the past 6 years. With his help, Bright Star Studios will continue to grow and gather the most talented and devoted staff there is, all focused on one singular goal: for Ember Sword to change not only the MMO genre, but perhaps gaming as well.
"ULTIMATELY, EMBER SWORD IS MORE THAN JUST A GAME. IT'S A COMMUNITY, A WORLD, AN ECONOMY."
- Mark Laursen, Founder & CEO
Careers at Bright Star Studios
With Ember Sword, we’re building the next generation Free to Play MMORPG experience — a re-thinking of what an MMORPG can be. We believe in game design principles that cultivate a player-driven community, where you can form life-long relationships by embarking on epic adventures.
