Nicalis

Nicalis, Inc.

Company type	Private
Industry	Video games
Founded	2007 (2007)
Founder	Tyrone Rodriguez
Headquarters	Santa Ana, California , United States
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Tyrone Rodriguez (CEO)
Products	Video games (development and publishing)
Website	nicalis.com

Nicalis, Inc. is a United States-based developer and publisher of video games, with its main office located in Santa Ana, California. Established in 2007 by Tyrone Rodriguez, who has a background as both a game designer and journalist, the firm focuses on creating and distributing indie games, including both original creations and adaptations of existing games. In 2017, Nicalis broadened its international presence by acquiring the subsidiaries SuperVillain Studios and Cowboy Color.

Games

Nicalis has been responsible for developing and publishing numerous titles, beginning with Dance Dance Revolution: Mobius (2008) and Cave Story (2010). In 2011, the company revealed plans to port VVVVVV to the Nintendo 3DS through the Nintendo eShop. That year also saw Nicalis contributing NightSky and Cave Story+ to Humble Indie Bundle 4, increasing its market reach. The planned WiiWare release of La-Mulana was cancelled in 2012 due to a shrinking user base. By January 2017, Nicalis had strategically positioned several titles for launch on the Nintendo Switch, enhancing its business through diversification across platforms.

Games developed and published

Release Year	Title	Platform(s)	Co-developer(s)	Notes
2010	Cave Story	Nintendo 3DS, DSiWare, WiiWare	Studio Pixel	Ports
2011	VVVVVV	Nintendo 3DS	Terry Cavanagh	Port
	NightSky	Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, Nintendo 3DS, iOS	Nifflas
	Cave Story 3D	Nintendo 3DS	Studio Pixel	3D remake
	Cave Story+	Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux	Studio Pixel	Enhanced port
2014	1001 Spikes	Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, PlayStation 4, PS Vita, Nintendo 3DS, Wii U, Xbox One	8-bit Fanatics
	Grinsia	Nintendo 3DS, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X
	The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth	Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, PlayStation 4, PS Vita, Xbox One, Nintendo 3DS, Wii U, Nintendo Switch		Designed by Edmund McMillen Remake of The Binding of Isaac
2015	Castle in the Darkness	Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X	Matt Kap
	VVVVVV	PlayStation 4, PS Vita	Terry Cavanagh	Port
2016	The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth	Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One		First paid expansion to The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth
2017 ' | Cave Story+	Nintendo Switch	Studio Pixel
Knight Terrors	Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Nintendo Switch	FreakZone Games
Tiny Barbarian DX	Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, Nintendo Switch	StarQuail Games
VVVVVV	Nintendo Switch	Terry Cavanagh	Port
The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth+	Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One		Paid expansion to The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth Physical edition for Nintendo Switch Requires Afterbirth for access to Afterbirth+ content
2019 ' | Crystal Crisis	Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows		Crossover puzzle game
2021 ' | The Binding of Isaac: Repentance	Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X and Series S		Paid expansion for The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth Physical editions available for PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch Requires expansions Afterbirth, and Afterbirth+ for Repentance content
2022 ' | Cramped Room of Death	Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch	Hafiz Mohd Rozlan	Released on Epic Games Store, Steam, and GOG.com
TBA ' | '90s Super GP	PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Windows	Pelikan13	Retro-inspired racing game influenced by titles such as Daytona USA. Current development status unknown.

Published Games

Release Year	Game Title	Supported Platform(s)	Developer(s)	Co-publisher(s)	Additional Information
2006	Toribash	Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, WiiWare	Nabi Studios
2013	Ikachan	Nintendo 3DS	Studio Pixel	Studio Pixel	Ported version
2016	Dimensional Intersection	Microsoft Windows	DNV
	Creepy Castle	Microsoft Windows	Dopterra
2017	Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap	PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch	Lizardcube	DotEmu	Remake of Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap Physical and ported release
	Ittle Dew 2+	Nintendo Switch	Ludosity		Enhanced port and sequel to Ittle Dew 2 Physical edition
	The End Is Nigh	Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4	Edmund McMillen, Tyler Glaiel		Ports released
2018	Runner3	Nintendo Switch	Choice Provisions	Choice Provisions	Physical edition released
	Ikaruga	Nintendo Switch	Treasure		Ported with physical release
	Code of Princess EX	Nintendo Switch	Studio Saizensen		Enhanced port and physical edition
	Blade Strangers	PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Windows	Studio Saizensen		Fighting game crossover
	Save Me Mr Tako	Nintendo Switch	Deneos Games		Publishing agreement concluded November 2020
2019	RemiLore	Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One	Pixellore Inc., REMIMORY
	Redout	Nintendo Switch	34BigThings	34BigThings	Ported version
2020	"Monkey Barrels"	"Nintendo Switch"	"Good-Feel"		North America physical release only
2021	"Spectacular Sparky"	"Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch"	"FreakZone Games"			"-	"Critadel"	"Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch"	"Pixelian Studio"
	"2022"	"The Legend of Bum-bo"	"Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Series S"	"Edmund McMillen, James Interactive"		Available on Epic Games Store and GOG.com Serves as a prequel to The Binding of Isaac

Awards

At the 2010 Nintendo Power Awards, Cave Story earned nominations for both Game of the Year and WiiWare Game of the Year. Its Nintendo 3DS adaptation was nominated for Best Adventure Game in 2011. Additionally, during the 2011 Independent Games Festival, Cave Story was recognized as a finalist for "Excellence In Visual Art," while both Cave Story and NightSky received honorable mentions for "Excellence In Audio."

Management Controversy

In September 2019, an investigative piece by Kotaku editor Jason Schreier, based on interviews with anonymous Nicalis staff and outside developers, brought to light concerns regarding CEO Tyrone Rodriguez’s leadership approach. The article detailed allegations of controlling conduct, staff exploitation, and a harmful workplace atmosphere. It also reported instances where developers experienced ghosting—losing communication after signing publishing contracts—which negatively affected their sales and project schedules. In response, Nicalis condemned abusive work environments and discrimination, while Rodriguez issued a public apology acknowledging his "indefensible and unacceptable" remarks.

Following these revelations, developer Edmund McMillen declared he would halt future collaborations with Nicalis; however, ongoing projects such as The Binding of Isaac: Repentance continued unaffected. McMillen later resumed working with the company in 2021, citing improvements in Rodriguez’s behavior. Nicalis maintained its role in publishing his games, including the console launch of The Legend of Bum-bo in 2022.

External links

• Official website