The company, organized in early 2007 by former Naughty Dog veterans Jason Hughes and Andrew Gilmour, joins the ranks of studios initially focused on digital distribution. Steel Penny Games president Jason Hughes described their strategy as "the modern equivalent of the garage method for an independent to gain a foothold in the industry-a unique opportunity WiiWare presents that we appreciate." At Naughty Dog, Hughes was a senior graphics tools engineer, and Gilmour was a senior background artist.
The team at Steel Penny Games have spent the past year building a proprietary engine geared toward the Wii platform's capabilities, and creating a new intellectual property to span a series of games. Hughes elaborated, "I am impressed with the egalitarian approach Nintendo has taken toward WiiWare developers. It allows the risk burden to shift back onto the creative developers."