ASHEVILLE - 3D Dojo Studios, an independent game development company headquartered in Asheville, NC is on a mission to reimagine an inclusive and equitable gaming industry by creating access to opportunity for Black and Brown creatives to thrive and be represented in video games. On June 24th, the studio debuted their first original title DA PAPER BOY on the distribution platform Steam, where it is now available to wishlist.

Upon submission, DA PAPER BOY was selected by Valve Software to be featured in this fall’s Steam Next Fest starting October 9, a triumph for the bootstrapped production. In its three short years in operation and led by its founder Leroy Jones, 3D Dojo Studios has built a thriving online community of over 500+ game developers from around the world collaborating to upskill and build their career in the industry. The online community, 3D Dojo, has incubated this talent, empowering participants to build games and work on other digital projects for clients.

The studio's debut title transports players to a richly detailed neighborhood where they aim to keep teen pranksters Deon, Brittney, and Tyler from being caught by O.G. Granny and The Neighborhood Watch while wreaking havoc delivering papers. Players are tasked with reviving the defunct paper delivery route by navigating the captivating suburban town equipped with delivery gauntlets and modern bicycles. They’ll deliver papers across the map while avoiding obstacles, boosting through town, and jumping ramps similar to Crazy Taxi gameplay.

“I mean what’s not to be proud of," commented Jones. "I built a community organically that is now home to over 500 developers, which I’ve turned into a game studio. Now I’m the owner of a studio in an industry where only 5% of developers are Black and debuting our game with zero capital raised. Not too bad for someone who grew up in Miami where you’re constantly told you’ll never amount to anything, but drugs, jail, or death. Guess I proved them wrong.”