About Fieldcraft Games

How It Started

I’m Matt, though you might come to know me as Southers. My professional background is in finance, which has almost nothing to do with making games, but somewhere along the way I taught myself to program and things spiralled. During Covid I picked up modding for Hearts of Iron IV, mostly out of curiosity, and it completely changed the way I thought about games. I stopped just playing and started wanting to understand how they worked.

I’d always been the kind of person who read the patch notes and devlogs in detail before actually launching the game. Company of Heroes, Total War, anything Paradox made. That fascination with the craft behind games eventually turned into something I could actually do, and five years on the games are becoming real and people are now even playing them. Still feels a bit surreal honestly.

The Hard Part

My first real attempt was a commando-style game in Unreal Engine that I spent about two years on. It taught me an enormous amount, almost entirely by showing me what not to do. I burned out, not in a “I need a long weekend” sort of way either, but more that opening the editor made me feel physically sick because I’d replayed the same broken level for the fortieth time that week. I don’t think I believed in burnout until it actually hit me.

I ended up scrapping that project and starting something fresh. I took a couple of college courses, then started Field of Command, which has been through three complete rebuilds from scratch up to this point. Whilst that might sound like failure, each version has been a significant step forward from the last. The version that exists today is something I’m genuinely proud of.

Why I Make These Games

I think there’s a lot we can learn from history, and I don’t think we always tell it to ourselves particularly honestly. History is written by the victor after all! To me, this means the full picture often gets lost or tidied up. I want to tell the stories and really unpick them in depth. That’s part of why Field of Command is set in an alternate 1940 during Operation Sea Lion, where the German Army lands in Kent. It never took place, but it could have, and I want players to really feel like it did!

When I say “inspire curiosity, challenge perceptions,” it’s not really a slogan. It’s more like the filter I try to run every decision through.

How I Build

I’m a player first, and the things that make me close a game are loot boxes, gambling mechanics, and anything that feels like it’s designed to extract money rather than provide a good experience. So you won’t find any of that here. If I end up using early access, it’ll be because the game genuinely benefits from having players involved at that stage, not because I need to monetise something that isn’t ready.

The Discord community has honestly shaped these games more than I ever could have alone. Bug reports, balance ideas, feature suggestions, the occasional reality check. If you’re in there, you’re not just watching from the sidelines. You’re part of what’s being built.

Field of Command

Summer, 1940. German boots hit the beaches of Kent. Command the desperate British defence or spearhead the invasion across the fields, hedgerows, and suburbs of Southern England. No base building. Just your units, your wits, and the thunder of artillery.

Sovereign Tides

A top-down fantasy pirate game. Loot, stash, protect and liberate. Built solo in Godot with asset support from Synty Studios and music by AlkaKrab.