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Mythic Mosaic Entertainment forges forward with A World Unwritten

A local game-development company combines individualized storytelling with cutting-edge technology to create unforgettable interactive experiences.

Mythic Mosaic Entertainment has become a driving force in the gaming industry by creating innovative and immersive experiences. The Winnipeg-based game-development studio focuses on storytelling that allows players to virtually hop right into an AI-driven game.

Kyle Gray is the founder, CEO and technical director of the company, which launched in 2023. The team’s inaugural project, called A World Unwritten, gives players the freedom to decide what direction they’d like the story to take them — and then artificial intelligence builds the story around that idea.

“You create a world and a character inside that world — and then you live in that world through the character’s eyes. You can make any choice and have any conversations you want as the story evolves naturally around you,” Gray said.

“The AI builds the story and it also provides visual images, themes, characters and voiceovers for all the characters. It’s intended to be open-ended adventure-style themes, like Dungeons and Dragons or Choose-Your-Own Adventure books.”

Leading up to Mythic Mosaic, Gray has been involved in the technology industry for about 20 years — and perhaps it’s even in his blood since both of his parents work in the field.

“My mom’s a programmer so I picked some of it up when I was young,” he said. “They instilled a lot of creativity in me, so I’ve been always been interested in this type of thing.”

While Gray was studying computer science at the University of Manitoba, he became interested in a game that was being developed in the United States.

“I got involved enough in the community that they hired me on part-time as a programmer while I was going to university. My career just built from there,” he said.

“I went from part-time to full-time with them remotely. I was at the right place at the right time — I got a job in the industry and I kept on going.”

Over time, Gray wasn’t feeling fulfilled by working on projects that other people had designed. As a hobby programmer, he began to see the possibility of building on his own ideas.

“I wanted to do my own thing — and with AI coming to the forefront right now, it’s something I’m really interested in. There are unique aspects to AI that opened up a lot of avenues for storytelling and game development,” he said.

“So I felt like it was a good time to hop out and do something while everyone is still exploring AI and figuring out what path to take with it. It’s very exciting for me.”

Mythic Mosaic Entertainment marks his first foray into following his own aspirations.

“This is my dream project. I’ve broken away and started working on something that I’m excited about myself instead of just doing something that someone else is excited about,” Gray said.

“For me, it’s a field that is very satisfying and very rewarding. You get to imagine something that wouldn’t normally be possible to build in the real world and then you can see it come together in front of your eyes.”

Although Gray funded a portion of the project himself, the company also received support from the Canada Media Fund for the prototyping program. They recently wrapped up the prototyping phase and they’re about to move into production, so they plan to reach out to Canada Media Fund to apply for further funding for this next stage.

Currently, the company consists of a four-person Winnipeg-based team, and they’ll be looking to double their staff when they get to production.

“We’re going to be expanding over the next four or five months,” he said. “The plan is to keep expanding in Winnipeg.”

Looking back to their early days, Gray appreciates the insight they received from World Trade Centre Winnipeg, particularly regarding ideas for their revenue stream.

“We approached World Trade Centre Winnipeg to help with research in terms of revenue models and subscription models to try to determine the best path,” he said.

“They found research for us, worked through the revenue model with us and helped us solidify the best path forward. They helped us find resources, and it made a huge difference for us. At the very least, it gave us peace of mind to know that we weren’t doing the wrong thing.”

For other aspiring entrepreneurs, Gray offers some advice based on his own experience.

“It’s all a learning process, so enjoy it and dive in with the mindset that you’re going to make mistakes. You’re going to need to learn quite a bit as you go,” he said.

“You also need to learn that you can rely on other people. It’s impossible to know everything or to physically have the time to do everything yourself. Sometimes finding the right people is the hardest part, so take the time to do it right.”

As for the future of the local gaming industry, Gray shares an optimistic outlook.

“Winnipeg is actually a really interesting place for this kind of work. It’s a solid industry and there’s a lot of room for growth here,” he said. “I’m excited to see where Winnipeg and this industry go from here.”

To learn more about Mythic Mosaic, visit www.mythicmosaic.com.

To learn more about World Trade Centre Winnipeg, visit www.wtcwinnipeg.com.