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SKYBOUND GAMES TAKES ON PUBLISHING OF ZOMBIE SURVIVAL FPS SKER RITUAL: “Skybound Entertainment – the creator-first, multiplatform entertainment studio behind globally recognized franchises including Invincible™, The Walking Dead™, Impact Winter™ and Stillwater™ is now publishing Sker Ritual through Skybound Games, in partnership with 5th Planet Games. The zombie-survival first-person shooter from award-winning development studio Wales Interactive is the spiritual successor to the survival horror game Maid of Sker.
Sker Ritual was first released in 2024 and has since gained a significant global audience and notable acclaim, most recently receiving multiple nominations for the 2026 MCV Awards to be held in London later this month. Under the new publishing agreement, Skybound Games and 5th Planet Games have assumed all global publishing responsibilities across Digital and Physical channels.
“When the opportunity arose to take on publishing Sker Ritual it felt like a natural fit for Skybound Games and our strategic partners, 5th Planet Games,” said David Alpert, CEO and co-founder of Skybound Entertainment. “We share Wales Interactive’s passion for the horror genre and are looking forward to supporting the continued success of Sker Ritual around the world, while providing the infrastructure to help both the audience and the game grow.”
In Sker Ritual, players battle waves of vicious horrors, alone or in up to four-player co-op, as they attempt to survive the onslaught of the Quiet Ones. To defeat the evil on Sker Island, they’ll need to shoot through hordes of enemies, collect Celtic God powers and upgrade an arsenal of Steampunk weapons. Since Sker Ritual’s initial launch, Wales Interactive has released over a dozen DLC packs to a dedicated and growing player base.
“Skybound has a deep understanding of horror fans and overall expertise in the genre with The Walking Dead, Universal Monsters and other horror IP,” said Dr David Banner, MBE, CEO and co-founder of Wales Interactive. “Partnering with Skybound and 5th Planet Games allows us to tap into not only that knowledge, but their collective global reach as well, while our team can focus on what we do best – creating games and working to expand the Sker universe for our dedicated player community.”
Publishing support from Skybound and 5th Planet Games will focus on catalog optimization, promotions, store sales and bundled offerings, among other activities, while Wales Interactive will continue to develop the game and oversee the growth of the Sker franchise overall. Additional details of the partnership will be revealed in the coming weeks.
More information about Sker Ritual can be found at: https://www.walesinteractive.com/skerritual“
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Bill Moseley & Lynn Lowry Join Practical-Effects Horror Film ‘Kayla’s Going-Away Party’: “Horror icons Bill Moseley (The Devil’s Rejects) and Lynn Lowry (Shivers) have joined the independent horror film Kayla’s Going-Away Party, alongside special effects veteran Marcus Koch (Jakob’s Wife). Moseley will star in and executive produce the project, describing the script as “weird and wonderful.”
Lowry added: “I have seldom read such a unique and surprising script as Kayla’s Going-Away Party. As I was reading the script I was thinking of how the horror fans are going to absolutely love this film. I cannot wait to bring my character to life.”
Logline:
After a suburban housewife suffers a psychotic episode during her farewell party and her guests vanish without a trace, a movie-obsessed detective must unravel a crime with no evidence—and a suspect who remembers nothing.
Set against a backdrop of decaying Americana and unraveling paranoia, the film blends the hallucinatory tension of Italian giallo thrillers with practical effects in the tradition of early Cronenberg body horror. Tonally, the project has been described as The Invitation meets Cronenberg.
Moseley stars as lead investigator Detective Sammy O’Brien, while Lowry portrays Ruthie Benson, a flirtatious and eccentric neighbor attending the ill-fated gathering. Joining them are Ilirida Memedovski (The Book of Birdie) as Kayla Shepherd and Conner Stumm (Buddy) as rookie cop Milo.
Production is set to begin next spring in Sandwich, IL. The film will emphasize practical effects and puppetry developed by Koch and his longtime creative partner, Jessie Seitz (Monster Girls), rather than relying heavily on CGI.
“Body horror is one of my favorite subgenres, and it’s rare that I get to work on a project like this,” said Koch.
The film marks writer-director Al M. Hemphill’s second feature following The Red Frame. Hemphill’s previous work received Best Feature Film nominations at the Shortcut 100 International Film Festival and the East Village New York Film Festival, while producer Richard Burgin’s Fang earned Lowry a Best Actress win at the Buffalo Dreams Fantastic Film Festival alongside multiple festival nominations.
Cú Chulainn Cinéma, founded by producer John Joseph Dunn and later expanded through partnerships with producers Burgin and Hemphill, is producing the film. The company is currently in early discussions regarding distribution and festival partnerships ahead of production, with a targeted release planned for late 2027.
“This is one of those projects you read, and immediately you start saying no to every other opportunity that comes your way,” said John Joseph Dunn.
While Dunn emphasized the project’s immediate appeal, Hemphill described the film’s evolution from traditional slasher into something far more surreal.
“My initial goal with this project was to do the impossible: create an original slasher,” said Hemphill. “What began as a straightforward concept evolved into something surreal, psychological, and deeply personal. I’m thrilled to be collaborating with such an incredibly talented team and with artists who have helped define modern horror.”
Moseley and Lowry previously shared the screen in Cynthia.
About Cú Chulainn Cinéma:
Cú Chulainn Cinéma focuses on bold independent filmmaking, original genre storytelling, and emotionally driven films from across the cinematic spectrum.”
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Award-Winning Authors Jessica Maison and Matt Harry Launch “Monster v Monster” Podcast: “Award-winning authors Jessica Maison and Matt Harry have teamed for MONSTER V. MONSTER, a new weekly podcast that launches on Tuesday, June 2.
The show is half monster-centric conversation, half actual play podcast. Every Tuesday, Jessi and Matt will welcome a guest, discuss their creative monsters of the week, then pit two monsters against each other and role-play the encounter to see which one will reign supreme.
“My fascination with monsters and folklore has always driven a great deal of my creative work. I’m thrilled to have a chance to expand and share that love on MVM by creating spooky, funny, and entertaining stories with so many talented monster-lovin’ folks,” said Jessica Maison (Mary Shelley’s School for Monsters, Plastic Girl). Maison was recently nominated for a Nebula Award and also explores monsters in her Substack publication, Monster of the Week.
“The world’s had to deal with plenty of real-life monsters recently, so we thought it would be fun to focus on some fictional monsters for once,” said Matt Harry (Sorcery for Beginners, Ash Land). “Listeners will get to see another side of guests as they answer important questions like what breed of dog is Cerberus, and whether Bigfoot or Swamp Ape would win an arm wrestling contest. No encounter is the same, and each one offers plenty of history and humor.” Harry was selected for the 2024 Orchard Audio Lab, and is repped by Jonathan Shikora at Lichter, Grossman, Nichols, Feldman, Rogal, Shikora, and Clark.
Guests on the show include Josh Pruett (Last Kids on Earth, Dr. Who), Ray Utarnachitt (Legends of Tomorrow, Stranger Things: Tales from ‘85), Clay Adams (Blazing Blade of Frankenstein, Red X-Mas), Megan Haskell (The Sanyare Chronicles), Charlie Stickney (White Ash, The Game), Carla Wyzgala (Skull Maskerade, The Hidden Door) and many, many more.
Monster V. Monster is produced by Wicked Tree Press and Codex Arcanum Press. The show is available on all podcast platforms, and the newsletter is hosted on Substack. Listeners will escape each week into a world of magic, might, and monsters. The first episode is now available wherever listeners get their podcasts.
Access the show’s links to all platforms at https://monstervmonster.com/.
For the latest Monster V. Monster episodes and announcements, follow MVM on social media: Instagram, Substack and/or YouTube.”
