"Homeworld" was created over two years, and was the first game developed by Relic. Studio co-founders Alex Garden and Luke Moloney served as the director and lead programmer for the game, respectively. The initial concept for the game's story is credited to writer David J. Williams, while the script itself was written by Martin Cirulis and the background lore was written by author Arinn Dembo. The music of the game was written by composer Paul Ruskay as the first title from his Studio X Labs, with the exception of Samuel Barber's 1936 "Adagio for Strings", considered the defining theme of the game, and a licensed track from English rock band Yes, "Homeworld (The Ladder)".