Our Vision

In Norse mythology, the fertility goddess Iðunn guards the golden apples that keep the gods young—a symbol of renewal, vitality, and the culture’s ability to survive. In Western mythology, there is another apple: the Apple of Eden—the fruit that led to the fall, but also to awareness and a new beginning.

At Ctrl Studio, we see the value in both. While the Apple of Eden represents the price of curiosity, Iðunn’s apple represents the ability to renew the old. A central part of our mindset is that we do not want to be stuck retelling old stories, but rather creating new stories at the intersection of familiar waters and fresh ideas. This is where we choose to stand. In the tension between heritage and invention, between roots and risk.

Gastahav: The Shadow from Ringholt is our first step in realizing the dream of giving the Nordic cultural heritage new forms, new voices, and new life. A Nordic adventure about people, nature, and change, it serves as a reminder that culture is not a museum, but a living landscape, always in motion. After three years of world-building, deep dives into literature and history, The Shadow from Ringholt fell into our hands like one of Iðunn’s apples—something familiar and dear, with a youthful flame.

With such mythology on our shoulders, a closeness to nature naturally becomes a focus for the game we produce. At the same time, some questions arise. What truly is human nature, and can we change if we strive to? Whatever the answer, there exists a place where old and new meet, where Iðunn and Eden share each their half of an alluring apple. That place now exists in Gastahav.