Matthew Griffin (game designer)

Matthew Griffin
Griffin at PAX Australia 2024
Born
Matthew Alexander Griffin

(1979-03-27) March 27, 1979
United States
Alma materCSU Sacramento
Cosumnes River College
Occupations
Years active1998-present

Matthew Alexander "Leth" Griffin (born March 27, 1979) is an American video game designer, marketer, and former teacher. He is best known for co-founding the indie studio Yeti Trunk, his work on Risk of Rain (2013), and for being a marketing contractor for indie games such as Hollow Knight and Crowsworn.

Early life and education

Matthew Alexander Griffin[1] was born in the United States[2] on March 27, 1979.[3][4]

Growing up in a small town in central California, he initially self-taught himself how to program with a game creation system and QBasic at a young age, later taking programming classes with C++ after graduating high school.[5] He obtained a bachelor's degree in philosophy and minor in mathematics from CSU Sacramento with honors, and a two-year associate's degree in programming from Cosumnes River College.[1][6][7]

Career

In the early 2000s, Griffin created games using Game Maker, but struggled to find "a competent, hard-working and honest artist to work alongside".[7] Pixel artist Jason Gordy teamed up with Griffin in 2004 to work on Wanderlust: The Online Adventure, a "6-player co-op rpg with real-time combat and a MMO-lite character skill advancement system", which was cancelled in 2006 due to a lack of direction.[7] Griffin and Gordy formed Team Wanderlust in 2006,[7][8] later renamed to Yeti Trunk.[8] The team worked on a new game titled, Wanderlust: Rebirth,[7][9] a game set to "closer resemble their vision for the Wanderlust universe"; It released on June 14, 2011.[10][8] They released three more games over the next few years: Gubs (2012),[8] Puck Bang (2013),[8] and Wanderlust Adventures (2015).[9][11] The company Chucklefish published Yeti Trunk's Wanderlust Adventures.[9][11] Following this, Griffin helped work on games Chucklefish partnered with, such as Risk of Rain (2013),[12][13] and Witchmarsh (TBA).[14] For Risk of Rain, he worked on adding online multiplayer to the game.[12][13] Prior to working in the gaming industry full-time, Griffin was a mathematics educator, and previously worked in sales and customer service.[1][6][7]

In June 2015, Chucklefish brought on Griffin as their publishing manager.[6][14] At Chucklefish, he helped publish and market Interstellia (2015)[6][15] and Stardew Valley (2016).[6][15] He also led the localization for Stardew Valley.[6] Griffin later left Chucklefish,[15] and in July 2016, Australian independent developer Team Cherry brought him on as their marketing and publishing manager for their then-upcoming Kickstarter-backed title, Hollow Knight (2017).[16][17] He also led the localization of the game,[2][5] playtested it,[16] and voice acted some characters.[16] He continued his partnership with Team Cherry for their next game, Hollow Knight: Silksong (2025),[18] where he managed marketing and publishing,[18] helped playtest the game,[5] and voice acted.[5] He also gave updates on the game's development over the years,[18][19][20][21] and revealed information about it,[22][23][24] as Team Cherry themselves stayed mostly silent during development.[25][26] In mid 2021, Canadian independent developer Mongoose Rodeo brought on Griffin to manage marketing and publishing for their upcoming Kickstarter-backed game Crowsworn (TBA).[6][27] In 2026, he formally announced that he is marketing for NEO TITAN (TBA).[28]

Public reception

Griffin (right) and other Risk of Rain developers accepting an award at the 2014 Independent Games Festival.

Writing for Operation Rainfall, Tyler Lubben praised the 4 player co-op in Griffin's Wanderlust: Rebirth, and called the game's gameplay "quite satsifying".[11] Andrew Barker of RPGFan gave the game a 60/100, writing "unfortunately, this frustrating and boring game falls far short of its SNES inspirations", due to issues like the "monotonous combat", "uninspired" soundtrack, and lack of leveling-up.[29] His then-upcoming Wanderlust Adventures was praised by Rock Paper Shotgun writers Emily Gera and Adam Smith, with Gera praising the "mind-boggling number of settings to explore",[30] and Smith stating that it "looks absolutely smashing."[9] Griffin's multiplayer addition to Risk of Rain was praised by Quintin Smith of Eurogamer, with him calling it "robust".[31] Polygon's Philip Kollar called it "fun", but criticized it for being "laggy [and requiring] an archaic process of opening a port on your router to make it work."[32]

Griffin's work on Silksong has received slightly mixed reception. Imogen Beckhelling, writing for Rock Paper Shotgun, praised his Discord riddles in 2020 that revealed Silksong characters, calling it "a nice way to keep fans entertained until bigger news comes out."[33] IGN reported that in 2021, Griffin deconfirmed any possible Silksong appearances at E3 of that year, which was praised for its transparency.[34] TheGamer reported on reactions to Griffin indirectly deconfirming a theorized ARG via a YouTuber, with some called it "unprofessional".[35] PC Gamer writer Harvey Randall was mixed on Griffin confirming a pre-Holiday 2025 release in Discord, stating "[Team Cherry is] under no obligation to do things the traditional way... but... maybe if you want your game to be successful, this isn't a very good way to make your dreams come true?"[21] TheGamer's Sam Woods was more positive, stating "was Silksong launching on the same day as the Xbox Ally X? ... it wasn't clear. Thankfully, Griffin clarified things ... at least ... fans [now] have a little something to cling onto, [now] knowing the game will release in the next few months."[36] The book Level Up 2026: An AFK Book by Dynamo Limited ranked Griffin’s statement that Silksong was “real, progressing, and will release” at No. 2 in its list of the top 30 greatest gaming moments of 2025.[37]

In May 2026, Griffin made gaming news headlines after he responded to a satirical tweet that claimed Silksong's upcoming Sea of Sorrow downloadable content (DLC) would be releasing that month according to "reliable sources" with a monocole emoji. Some news outlets and fans speculated that this response could have been teasing a DLC release in May, but this did not occur.[38][39][40]

Personal life

Griffin currently lives in Texas.[41] He is married,[42] and has a daughter.[43]

Ludography

Year Title
2011 Wanderlust: Rebirth
2012 Gubs
2013 Puck Bang
Risk of Rain
2015 Wanderlust Adventures
TBA
 Witchmarsh

Cancelled games

Title
Wanderlust: The Online Adventure

References

  1. 1 2 3 Resume file linked in "Wanderlust: Rebirth Official Website". Archived from the original on 30 May 2012.
  2. 1 2 Mythreel (September 18, 2020). "Leth Interview on Live from the Abyss". Archived from the original on December 4, 2025. Retrieved October 2, 2025 – via YouTube.
  3. ↑ Griffin, Matthew [@griffinmatta] (March 27, 2014). "It's birthday… It's birthday TIME! *sang to "Business Time" by @fotc" (Tweet). Retrieved November 24, 2025 – via Twitter.
  4. ↑ Griffin, Matthew (March 27, 2021). "42". Discord. Retrieved May 3, 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 BlueSR (August 19, 2023). "Interviewing Matthew "@Leth" Griffin from Team Cherry and Mongoose Rodeo! | Talking Hollow Knight, Crowsworn and Silksong". Retrieved October 2, 2025 – via Twitch.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 The Indie Gamer (May 7, 2021). "Interview with Leth from Team Cherry & Mongoose Rodeo – Hollow Knight Silksong & Crowsworn". Retrieved October 4, 2025 – via YouTube.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Love, Jason (February 2, 2012). "Indie-Ana Co-Op and the Team Wanderlust Interview". Co-Optimus. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "About YetiTrunk". YetiTrunk. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Adam Smith (June 20, 2014). "Rebirth Reborn: Wanderlust Adventures". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved October 3, 2025.
  10. ↑ Martinez, Daniel (April 15, 2023). "13 Best Chucklefish Games, Ranked". TheGamer. Retrieved November 23, 2025.
  11. 1 2 3 Tyler Lubben (January 24, 2014). "PUBLISHER SPOTLIGHT: Chucklefish Games". Operation Rainfall. Retrieved October 3, 2025.
  12. 1 2 Hopoo Games (July 13, 2013). "Risk of Rain: Online Co-op!". Hopoo Games. Archived from the original on June 23, 2017. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  13. 1 2 Jason Love (July 13, 2013). "Sci-fi Rogue-Like Risk of Rain to Get Online Co-Op". Co-Optimus. Retrieved October 3, 2025.
  14. 1 2 Chucklefish (June 26, 2015). "Say hello to Matt!". Chucklefish. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  15. 1 2 3 Relyea (September 18, 2024). "Unfiltered Gaming Conversation with Matthew Griffin (Leth)". Retrieved October 3, 2025 – via YouTube.
  16. 1 2 3 Shacknews (September 22, 2017). "Hollow Knight: Team Cherry Interview at TGS 2017". Retrieved November 1, 2025 – via YouTube.
  17. ↑ Team Cherry (July 5, 2016). "NEW ADDITION TO THE TEAM, AND RELEASE UPDATE". Team Cherry. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  18. 1 2 3 Howard, Jessica (May 10, 2023). "Hollow Knight: Silksong Has Been Delayed". GameSpot. Archived from the original on September 20, 2023. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  19. ↑ Cryer, Hirun (February 14, 2024). "Five years after it was announced, Hollow Knight: Silksong devs assure rabid fans they are "still hard at work on the game"". GamesRadar+. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  20. ↑ Nightingale, Ed (January 20, 2025). "Hollow Knight: Silksong is 'real, progressing and will release', says Team Cherry". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on February 5, 2025. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  21. 1 2 Randall, Harvey (June 9, 2025). "Of course, Team Cherry didn't deign to tell anyone that Hollow Knight: Silksong is arriving before Christmas in a weekend of showcases—but via a random Discord message". PC Gamer. Retrieved October 31, 2025.
  22. ↑ Cryer, Hirun (June 16, 2020). "A New Hollow Knight: Silksong Character Was Revealed Through a Discord Riddle — "Huntress."". VG247. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  23. ↑ Denzer, TJ (April 8, 2025). "Hollow Knight: Silksong is still coming to the original Switch". Shacknews. Retrieved October 3, 2025.
  24. ↑ Naidu, Yashodhan (September 5, 2025). "Hollow Knight: Silksong – Team Cherry Teases This New Feature in the Upcoming Game". IGN. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  25. ↑ Randall, Harvey (August 21, 2025). "Why did Team Cherry's devs stay so quiet about Hollow Knight: Silksong? 'All we could really say is, we're still working on it', so they stopped doing that". PC Gamer. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  26. ↑ Schreier, Jason (August 21, 2025). "Why 'Silksong' Took Seven Years to Make". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on August 25, 2025. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  27. ↑ meakaya (July 31, 2022). "Crowsworn : entre Hollow Knight et Bloodborne, la prochaine pépite des jeux indés ?". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  28. ↑ Griffin, Matthew [@griffinmatta] (April 30, 2026). "Hey everyone, I'm excited to announce that I am working with @idozandphops on their new game!" (Tweet). Retrieved May 30, 2026 – via X (formerly Twitter).
  29. ↑ Barker, Andrew (August 22, 2012). "Wanderlust: Rebirth Review". RPGFan. Retrieved December 14, 2025.
  30. ↑ Gera, Emily (July 27, 2015). "Boss Fight: Peek At Wanderlust Adventures' Enemies". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved October 31, 2025.
  31. ↑ Smith, Quintin (December 12, 2013). "Risk of Rain review". Eurogamer. Retrieved October 31, 2025.
  32. ↑ Kollar, Philip (December 24, 2013). "Risk of Rain review: rising tide". Polygon. Retrieved October 31, 2025.
  33. ↑ Beckhelling, Imogen (June 16, 2020). "Hollow Knight: Silksong has revealed a new NPC and I'm bursting with excitement all over again". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved October 31, 2025.
  34. ↑ Yin-Poole, Wesley (May 18, 2021). "Don't Expect Hollow Knight: Silksong News at E3 2021". IGN. Retrieved October 31, 2025.
  35. ↑ Robertson, Joshua (January 18, 2025). "Hollow Knight Fans Want Team Cherry Statement After Silksong ARG Gets Debunked". TheGamer. Retrieved October 31, 2025.
  36. ↑ Woods, Sam (June 9, 2025). "Hollow Knight: Silksong Release Window Confirmed For "Before Holiday"". TheGamer. Retrieved November 23, 2025.
  37. ↑ Dynamo Limited (2025). Level Up 2026: An AFK Book. Scholastic Incorporated. p. 15. ISBN 978-1546179443.
  38. ↑ Haider, Ali (May 3, 2026). "Hollow Knight Silksong DLC News Teased by Team Cherry". TwistedVoxel. Retrieved May 24, 2026.
  39. ↑ Robertson, Joshua (May 4, 2026). "Hollow Knight Silksong DLC Seemingly Teased For May Release". TheGamer. Retrieved May 24, 2026.
  40. ↑ McGlynn, Anthony (May 5, 2026). "Hollow Knight: Silksong fans are convinced Sea of Sorrow DLC is launching soon as a single emoji from Team Cherry's marketing lead spurs a Silkposting renaissance". GamesRadar+. Retrieved May 24, 2026.
  41. ↑ Team Cherry. "Hollow Knight: Silksong Info Sheet". Google Docs. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  42. ↑ Griffin, Matthew (April 2024). "I told my wife about this "hitman narrative" and now she is trying to deepfake my face on the video game". Discord. Retrieved March 15, 2026.
  43. ↑ Griffin, Matthew [@griffinmatta] (January 15, 2020). "My daughter finished another scratchboard piece for school... I think I might end up making a game with her some day XD" (Tweet). Retrieved June 21, 2026 – via Twitter.
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