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Windrose Crew was the second name of the independent video game studio behind Windrose. The studio was originally named Crosswind Crew, renamed to Windrose Crew in December 2025, and then renamed a second time to Kraken Express on April 14, 2026 coinciding with the Early Access launch. The studio is headquartered in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, with an office in Hong Kong.

This article covers the studio's Windrose Crew naming period (December 4, 2025 to April 14, 2026). For information on the current studio name, see the Kraken Express article. For the earliest studio history, see the Crosswind article.

First Rename (December 4, 2025)

The studio changed its name from Crosswind Crew to Windrose Crew during the PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted broadcast on December 4, 2025. The rename coincided with the game's rebrand from Crosswind to Windrose. The old "Crosswind" name had become associated with the scrapped MMO design, and the new "Windrose" identity reflected the PvE co-op survival direction adopted after the August 2025 pivot.

Key Personnel

Philip Molodkovets served as the studio's producer and primary public spokesperson under both the Crosswind Crew and Windrose Crew names. He conducted the Gamescom 2025 demo presentation and has given multiple interviews about the game's direction. Molodkovets previously wrote for Game Developer magazine about game design topics, including an article on balancing submarine gameplay in World of Warships (2020).

Publishing under Windrose Crew

During the Windrose Crew period, the game was published by Forward Gateway, a legal entity incorporated in the Republic of Uzbekistan that handled the Gamescom 2025 booth and press outreach. Forward Gateway no longer appears as publisher at the April 2026 Early Access launch, having been replaced by Kraken Express (self-publishing) alongside Pocketpair Publishing (Japan) as co-publisher.

IGN Fan Fest (February 25, 2026)

On February 25, 2026, Windrose premiered a "Raging Seas" trailer at IGN Fan Fest, previewing Early Access content including Tortuga, additional ships, weapons, armor, building pieces, and new enemies. The appearance marked the studio's growing presence in major gaming showcases alongside earlier appearances at Gamescom 2025 and the PC Gaming Show.

Steam Next Fest Demo

Under the Windrose Crew name, the studio released a free demo during Steam Next Fest in February 2026. The demo attracted over 22,000 peak concurrent players (a top 20 demo of all time on Steam) and accumulated over 5,400 reviews at 92 percent positive. The game surpassed 1 million wishlists on February 23, 2026 and reached 1.5 million wishlists before the April launch.

Studio Reception

Some press coverage noted the limited public information about the studio's background during the Windrose Crew period. The team was described as small compared to the scope of the game they were building. Despite these concerns, the demo achieved overwhelming community approval, with the studio describing the response as "humbling," posting: "We couldn't even have imagined this." They asked fans for patience with the release date, requesting that people "let us cook more" as they worked to deliver the best possible Early Access launch.

Second Rename (April 14, 2026)

Alongside the April 14, 2026 Early Access launch, the studio renamed itself to Kraken Express. The developers explained the rename simply: "It just sounds cooler, otherwise, that's still us." At the same time, Pocketpair Publishing joined as co-publisher. For the studio's current status, organizational details, and active work, see the Kraken Express article.