Asymmetric Publications is a

video game developer A video game developer is a broad term for a software developer specializing in video game development – the process and related disciplines of creating video games. A game developer can range from one person who undertakes all tasks to a large ...

and

publisher Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

. It made the

web-based A web application (or web app) is application software that is accessed using a web browser. Web applications are delivered on the World Wide Web to users with an active network connection. History In earlier computing models like client-serve ...

role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within ...

Kingdom of Loathing ''Kingdom of Loathing'' (abbreviated ''KoL'') is a browser-based multiplayer role-playing game designed and operated by Asymmetric Publications, including creator Zack "Jick" Johnson with a small team. The game was released in 2003, with ongoing ...

''. Asymmetric is run by Zack Johnson (who is known as Jick in-game). Employees of the company are known as the Asymmetric Team. As a result of the popularity of the game, Asymmetric currently supports Johnson and a few other individuals as full-time employees. In the past, Asymmetric Publications hosted various games and other attractions, including ''Infinity Plus One'', an online

fortune teller Fortune telling is the practice of predicting information about a person's life. Melton, J. Gordon. (2008). ''The Encyclopedia of Religious Phenomena''. Visible Ink Press. pp. 115-116. The scope of fortune telling is in principle identical w ...

, ''Bee On Drugs'', a

bee Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyly, monophyletic lineage within the ...

who rambles, and ''Krakrox the Barbarian'', a game noted as the precursor to ''Kingdom of Loathing''. A running gag was that the Asymmetric Publications' website was not updated for almost six years after the announcement of a "fun new game," ''

''. In late 2008, it began to be updated again. The employees of Asymmetric Publications formerly produced several weekly podcasts. One of them was related to Kingdom of Loathing, while the others were general shows about video games, pop culture, advice, and parenting. These latter podcasts were collected under an umbrella called the ''Hot Dog Network''. A second game, ''

Word Realms ''Word Realms'' (abbreviated ''WR'') is a single-player role-playing game designed by Asymmetric Publications, including lead designer Zack "Jick" Johnson and designer Kevin Simmons. The game was released in 2013. Gameplay ''Word Realms'' gamepl ...

'' was developed between 2008 and 2012, and was released on May 21, 2013. In 2016, a third game, ''

West of Loathing ''West of Loathing'' is a comedy adventure role-playing video game developed by Asymmetric Publications and released on August 10, 2017. The game takes place in the universe of Asymmetric's ''Kingdom of Loathing'', in a fantasy Western themed ...

'', was announced on

Steam Greenlight Steam is a video game digital distribution service and storefront by Valve. It was launched as a software client in September 2003 as a way for Valve to provide automatic updates for their games, and expanded to distributing and offering third ...

. It was released in August 2017. In 2019, Johnson was accused of "physical and emotional" abuse by his ex-wife, U.C. Santa Cruz professor A.M. Darke, towards her and ''West of Loathing'' designer Kevin Simmons. She also alleged that he had removed part of the game to avoid crediting her for its development. Johnson denied the allegations of physical abuse, although admitting to "emotional immaturity and anger and cruelty" in a written apology. He later added Darke to the game's credits, claiming she had only provided feedback to the game and did not work on it in a design capacity. An ex-girlfriend of Johnson's, Bonnie Mattson, also alleged similar abusive behavior during a 2005 relationship. In 2022, a fourth game, '' Shadows Over Loathing'', was released on Steam.

List of games

References

External links

Asymmetric.netThe Hot Dog Network PodcastsKrakrox the BarbarianKingdom of Loathing Homepage
Video game development companies Video game publishers {{videogame-company-stub