Avalanche Studios and Xbox Game Studios announces Contraband, a co-op smuggler’s paradise

STOCKHOLM – June 13, 2021 – Today Avalanche Studios, a creative division within Avalanche Studios Group, and Xbox Game Studios announced Contraband, a co-op smuggler’s paradise exclusive to Xbox Series S|X consoles and coming to Xbox Game Pass, Steam, and Windows 10 PC.

Watch the Announcement Teaser

In Contraband, players will take on the roles of smugglers exploring the fictional Southeast Asian world of 1970s Bayan. Contraband is brought to life by the latest iteration of Avalanche Studios Group’s Apex Engine and built to take full advantage of Xbox Series X and the console’s unique capabilities.

“Contraband is our most ambitious game yet and working closely together with Xbox Games Studios has been a great experience,” said Omar Shakir, Game Director at Avalanche Studios. “We can’t wait to share more about the game and the world of Bayan.”

“We’re incredibly excited to work together with a partner such as Xbox Game Studios and look forward to laying the foundation for a long-standing partnership,” said Pim Holfve, CEO at Avalanche Studios Group. “With Contraband, we’re taking everything we’ve learned from 18 years of being in the forefront of open world games as well as bringing the knowledge from running successful live game services focusing on our player communities.”

“We are excited to partner with the talented team at Avalanche Studios for Contraband,” said Peter Wyse, GM of Publishing at Xbox Game Studios. “Experiencing the emergent, open-world craziness of an Avalanche Studios game together with your friends is something we can’t wait to bring to players.”

For more information, please visit the Contraband homepage, join the Contraband Discord server, and follow @Contrabandgame on Twitter.

About Avalanche Studios

Avalanche Studios is a creative division within Avalanche Studios Group and a leading developer of AAA open world games. Established in 2003, Avalanche Studios is the original creator of the award-winning Just Cause franchise (Square Enix), and developer of Mad Max (published by Warner Bros. Interactive), Rage 2 (published by Bethesda Softworks) and Contraband (Xbox Game Studios). Avalanche Studios develops games using the proprietary Apex engine, enabling vast open worlds with endless creative possibilities. Learn more at www.avalanchestudios.se/divisions/avalanche-studios