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Seattle Studio Led by Big Fish Games Founder Reports $1.1 Million Raised for Mutant Forge, Now Rift Wars

Seattle’s Reflection Games reported $1.1 million sold in a securities offering for its mobile game, covered as Mutant Forge and now presented as Rift Wars.
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Seattle-based Reflection Games reported selling $1.1 million in securities in May 2025—not the full $4 million offering amount—for its mobile strategy game formerly known as Mutant Forge. The game is now presented as Rift Wars on the studio’s website and in the App Store. Reflection Games is led by Paul Thelen, founder and former chairman of Big Fish Games.

How much did Reflection Games raise?

GeekWire reported on May 13, 2025, that Reflection Games raised $1.1 million. The company’s SEC Form D clarifies the distinction between money sold and the size of the offering: it records $1.1 million sold toward a $4 million total offering, with $2.9 million remaining to be sold. The filing gives May 9, 2025, as the date of first sale and lists three investors. The SEC Form D is the primary record for those figures; an offering’s target size is not the same as the amount already sold.

The filing identifies Reflection Games, Inc. as a Delaware corporation incorporated in 2021, with its principal place of business in Seattle, Washington. It lists Paul Thelen as an executive officer, director and promoter. The SEC filing itself cautions that the commission has not necessarily reviewed the information or determined that it is accurate and complete.

Who founded Big Fish Games and leads Reflection Games?

Paul Thelen founded Big Fish Games and was its chairman before leading Reflection Games, according to GeekWire’s May 2025 report. That article also identifies Reflection COO Patrick Wylie, senior backend engineer Christopher Warwick and game design director Michael Tapley as Big Fish veterans.

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Why is Mutant Forge now called Rift Wars?

The game was covered as Mutant Forge in GeekWire’s March 2024 and May 2025 stories. Reflection Games’ current website calls Rift Wars its debut mobile strategy game, and the former Mutant Forge domain redirects to the Rift Wars site. The available sources establish the current branding but do not say exactly when or why the name changed. Reflection Games describes the title on its site as “Our debut mobile strategy game, Rift Wars, is a testament to this agile and collaborative spirit.”

The current App Store listing presents Rift Wars as a PvP strategy game with fresh drafts, unit merging, heroes and competitive leagues. The listing also says the game includes in-app purchases. The studio’s official website and the former Mutant Forge domain reflect the newer Rift Wars branding.

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What changed between the Mutant Forge playtest and the current game?

GeekWire’s March 2024 account described Mutant Forge as a free-to-play mobile strategy battler in iOS and Android playtesting. At that stage, it featured disposable monster units with different strengths and weaknesses, recharge timers, and mission rewards that players could use to improve units or create new ones. The article said a single-player campaign and PvP modes were planned. Those details describe the game during that earlier stage of development, not necessarily the current build.

By May 2025, GeekWire reported that the game had soft-launched out of beta the previous September. Its account described both CPU-controlled and human opponents, as well as a second content season, “Season of Hearts,” which began in February 2025. These milestones provide a development timeline; they should not be confused with a current feature-by-feature specification.

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What the funding and game details establish

  • Funding: The SEC filing records $1.1 million sold in an offering with a $4 million total amount—not $4 million already raised.
  • Studio: Reflection Games is a Seattle company incorporated in 2021 and led by Big Fish Games founder Paul Thelen.
  • Game name: The title was reported as Mutant Forge in 2024 and 2025 coverage; it is currently presented as Rift Wars.
  • Current positioning: The App Store describes a mobile PvP strategy game with in-app purchases; store details can vary by territory and change over time.

Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.

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