Daydream Software
Their first game was "Safecracker", a point and click adventure game published by DreamCatcher Interactive. The game had a tumultuous production, starting when GT Interactive bought initial publisher Warner Interactive Europe. Daydream Software went public in late 1996. The company's goal was to increase its economic and decision-making freedom, and to secure the ability to select a publisher at the end of each game's development rather than at the beginning. President Jans Phersson-Broburg argued that self-financing Daydream's future games with money from Swedish investors, instead of obtaining "funding linked to specific projects" from publishers, would offer the developer more stability, flexibility and room for growth. For Daydream's public launch, roughly 20 million kr worth of shares, or 45.5% of the company, were offered to investors in Sweden. The initial public offering was a success, and Daydream opened on the Stockholm Stock Exchange's Stockholm Börsinformation (SBI) list in January 1997. Daydream was eventually able to buy back the rights to "Safecracker".
Traitors Gate (video game)
"Traitors Gate" was conceived in November 1996, when designer Nigel Papworth of Swedish developer Daydream Software began to explore possibilities for the company's next title after "Safecracker". Coming across an article about the Tower of London in an issue of "National Geographic", Papworth realized that the structure contained "everything a good game needed", including a cleanly circumscribed playing area and an obvious gameplay objective. He and the team subsequently developed a game concept set inside an accurate reproduction of the Tower, with a plan to capture "the feel of the weathered stonework and mixed architectural styles with as near to photographic quality as time and technology would allow." Their goal was to make a game that was both entertaining and educational. The decision to cast the player as an American agent came early, as the country's alliance with Britain precluded violent gameplay approaches by the player and shifted the focus to stealth and puzzle-solving.