Dishonored Creator Harvey Smith Launches Black Pony Immersive to Bring Back Single-Player Immersive Sims

Former Arkane Veterans Unite for Black Pony Immersive, a New Studio Making Player-Driven First-Person RPGs

Instead, Black Pony Immersive says it wants to make the type of games Smith and his team have spent much of their careers creating: single-player, narrative-driven, first-person action RPGs built around player choice, exploration and emergent gameplay.

The studio has already been working quietly for roughly a year.

Its first game has not yet been announced.

But the people behind the company make this one of the more interesting new studio formations in gaming this year.

Who Is Behind Black Pony Immersive?

Black Pony Immersive is being led by Harvey Smith and Ben Horne.

Smith serves as CEO and creative director.

His career includes some of the most influential immersive-sim projects in gaming history. He worked as lead designer on the original Deus Ex and later served as co-creative director on Dishonored and creative director on Dishonored 2.

Horne joins him as COO and executive producer.

The two developers previously worked together at Arkane Austin for more than eight years.

Their new company is therefore not simply a startup created around an idea.

It is an attempt to bring an experienced group of developers back together.

The Team Includes More Arkane Veterans

The studio's roster is particularly interesting.

Black Pony Immersive includes developers with experience at several major studios, including Arkane, Insomniac, Epic, Avalanche and Volition.

One of the most notable names is Ricardo Bare, another longtime Arkane developer and a creative partner of Smith.

Bare's previous work includes Deus Ex, Dishonored and Prey.

That gives Black Pony a team with substantial experience designing games where systems interact with one another rather than simply moving players from one scripted sequence to another.

For fans of immersive sims, that background is arguably more important than the size of the studio.

What Is an Immersive Sim?

For players unfamiliar with the term, an immersive sim is generally a game built around interconnected systems that allow players to solve problems in multiple ways.

Rather than giving players one predetermined solution, the game provides tools and mechanics that can interact with each other.

Deus Ex, Dishonored and Prey are well-known examples.

A mission might be approached through direct combat.

Another player might use stealth.

Someone else might manipulate the environment, exploit an enemy weakness or discover an unexpected route.

The goal is to make the player's decisions matter.

Black Pony Wants to Make Single-Player Games

The studio has been unusually clear about the type of projects it wants to create.

Black Pony Immersive is focused on single-player, narrative-rich first-person action RPGs.

The developers want players to explore detailed worlds and solve problems creatively rather than simply follow a linear sequence of objectives.

This is important because much of the modern AAA market has shifted toward enormous open worlds, multiplayer experiences and live-service games.

Black Pony is taking a different route.

Its philosophy is closer to the design principles that made Arkane's most celebrated games distinctive.

The First Game Is Still Secret

Despite the excitement surrounding the studio, there is one major detail that remains unknown.

Black Pony Immersive has not revealed its first game.

There is no official title.

There is no confirmed platform.

There is no release window.

There is no trailer.

That means players should not assume that a new Dishonored game is secretly being developed.

Smith's new studio is clearly inspired by the same design philosophy, but there has been no announcement of an official Dishonored project.

For now, the safest description is simply a new immersive-sim project from experienced developers.

The Studio Has Already Been Working for a Year

Although Black Pony Immersive was only recently announced publicly, the company isn't brand new.

Smith and Horne started building the studio in August 2025.

The team has been operating quietly for roughly a year while working on its new project.

The company currently has around 26 full-time developers.

That is relatively small compared with the teams behind many modern AAA games.

But the studio believes its smaller structure can actually become an advantage.

A Smaller Team Could Mean More Creative Freedom

Black Pony is deliberately avoiding the idea that a game studio needs to become enormous to make ambitious games.

The company is using a smaller core team and plans to work with external developers and contractors when necessary.

This approach allows the central creative group to remain relatively compact.

It also reduces the need to maintain a huge permanent workforce throughout the entire development cycle.

For an immersive sim, that could be particularly valuable.

These games often depend heavily on close collaboration between designers, programmers, level designers and writers.

A smaller team can potentially make those creative conversations easier.

Black Pony Has a Publishing Partner

The studio has also confirmed that it has secured support from an unnamed publishing partner.

However, the publisher has not yet been publicly identified.

That means Black Pony has financial backing for its first project while retaining an independent structure.

The developers have emphasized that they are not operating with an enormous budget.

Instead, the studio is attempting to build a sustainable development model around a relatively small team.

That could become increasingly important as the games industry continues to struggle with expensive AAA development.

Why Harvey Smith Is Returning to the Genre

Smith's return is particularly notable because immersive sims have become increasingly difficult to find.

Games such as Dishonored, Prey and Deus Ex developed passionate audiences, but publishers have often struggled to justify the expense of making similarly complex games.

An immersive sim can require a huge amount of development work because individual systems need to interact consistently.

If a player can burn, poison, hack, sneak past or manipulate an object, the game needs to account for those possibilities.

That complexity is one reason the genre has remained relatively niche.

Black Pony is betting that there is still an audience for it.

Black Pony Is Betting on Player Creativity

The studio's philosophy is based heavily around player creativity.

Smith has described his favorite gaming experiences as moments when players approach problems in unexpected ways and become deeply involved in the worlds developers create.

That suggests Black Pony's first game will prioritize experimentation.

The goal isn't necessarily to make players feel powerful from the beginning.

Instead, the studio wants players to discover how its systems work and then use that knowledge to create their own solutions.

That is one of the defining characteristics of the immersive-sim genre.

The Timing Is Interesting for the Genre

Black Pony's announcement arrives during an unusual period for immersive sims.

Several of the genre's most influential developers have moved away from traditional AAA studio structures.

Arkane Austin was closed by Microsoft in 2024.

Other immersive-sim veterans have moved toward independent development.

At the same time, veteran designer Warren Spector, another major figure associated with Deus Ex, recently announced his retirement.

Against that backdrop, Smith launching a new studio dedicated specifically to immersive sims feels significant.

It represents a new generation of developers attempting to preserve a style of game that has struggled within the mainstream market.

This Is Not a Dishonored 3 Announcement

One point deserves special attention.

The Black Pony announcement does not confirm Dishonored 3.

Smith's history with the franchise makes it easy for fans to connect the two.

But Black Pony is an independent studio.

There has been no announcement that it owns or controls the Dishonored IP.

The studio's own description is focused on making new first-person action RPGs and immersive sims.

Therefore, players should view Black Pony's project as a spiritual continuation of that design philosophy rather than a new Dishonored game.

What Players Can Expect From the Studio

Based on the information released so far, Black Pony's first game is expected to emphasize several principles:

Single-player gameplay
First-person perspective
Narrative-driven design
Action-RPG systems
Exploration
Player choice
Emergent gameplay
Interconnected game systems
Creative problem-solving
Detailed environments

The studio has deliberately avoided revealing specific story or gameplay details.

That means there is still plenty of room for surprises.

Why This Could Be Important for Gaming

Black Pony Immersive is interesting not because it has already announced a blockbuster.

It hasn't.

The significance comes from what the studio represents.

At a time when many publishers are prioritizing enormous franchises and live-service games, a group of experienced developers is deliberately choosing to focus on a smaller, single-player project.

If the experiment succeeds, it could demonstrate that immersive sims still have commercial potential.

More importantly, it could encourage other developers and publishers to take similar risks.

Fans Should Not Expect the Game Soon

Because the studio has been operating for only about a year and has just revealed itself publicly, players should not expect a release anytime soon.

The team still needs to complete development, secure production milestones and eventually reveal the project publicly.

The studio has not provided a release date.

That is actually a good thing.

Rather than rushing to show an unfinished game, Black Pony appears to be concentrating on development first.

For a complex immersive sim, that extra time could be valuable.

What Makes This Studio Different?

The strongest advantage Black Pony has is experience.

The team isn't learning how to make immersive sims from scratch.

Its developers have already worked on some of the genre's most respected titles.

That doesn't guarantee success.

Development teams can still encounter technical problems, budget pressure and production difficulties.

But having people who understand how interconnected game systems work gives the studio a strong foundation.

The Next Big Reveal Will Be the Game Itself

For now, the biggest unanswered question is simple:

What is Black Pony Immersive actually making?

The studio has provided enough information to establish its creative direction but not enough to reveal the game's identity.

That means its eventual first trailer could become a significant gaming-news event.

If the project truly delivers the freedom associated with Deus Ex and Dishonored, it could immediately attract attention from players who have been waiting years for another major immersive sim.

Conclusion

Harvey Smith is back with a new studio, and he is bringing immersive sims with him.

Black Pony Immersive has been officially unveiled as an independent development studio focused on single-player, narrative-driven, first-person action RPGs with emergent systems and player freedom.

The 26-person team includes veterans from Arkane, Insomniac, Epic, Avalanche and Volition, while Ricardo Bare reunites with Smith as part of the new venture.

The studio has also secured an unnamed publishing partner.

Its first game remains completely under wraps.

There is no release date, no platform announcement and no trailer yet.

But for fans of Deus Ex, Dishonored and Prey, the announcement itself is meaningful.

Black Pony Immersive isn't promising another live-service game.

It is betting on something increasingly rare: a carefully designed single-player game where players are trusted to experiment, explore and create their own solutions.

Whether that gamble succeeds will take years to discover.

But for the immersive-sim genre, having Harvey Smith and a team of experienced Arkane veterans building something new is certainly worth watching.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Black Pony Immersive?

Black Pony Immersive is a new independent game studio led by Harvey Smith and Ben Horne, focused on single-player immersive-sim and first-person action RPG experiences.