Big Huge Games is a
video game developerA video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...
located in Timonium,
MarylandMaryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. The company was founded in February 2000 by four veteran game industry developers: Tim Train, David Inscore, Jason Coleman and Brian Reynolds (lead designer of
Alpha CentauriSid Meier's Alpha Centauri is the critically acclaimed science fiction 4X turn-based strategy video game sequel to the Civilization series. Sid Meier, designer of Civilization, and Brian Reynolds, designer of Civilization II, developed Alpha Centauri after they left MicroProse to join the newly...
, et al.). Their first game,
Rise of NationsRise of Nations is a real-time strategy computer game, developed by Big Huge Games and published by Microsoft on May 20, 2003. The development of the game was led by veteran Brian Reynolds, of Civilization II and Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri. Concepts taken from turn-based strategy games have been...
, was a critical and commercial hit.
History and events
Although Brian Reynolds was a founding member of
Firaxis GamesFiraxis Games is a computer game developer. It was founded in 1996 by Sid Meier, Jeff Briggs, and Brian Reynolds upon leaving MicroProse. The company focuses on strategy games and is based in Sparks, Maryland in the United States....
, he and the others left Firaxis to found a new company based on their desire to apply the complexity and concepts of the
turn-based strategyA turn-based strategy game is a strategy game where players take turns when playing...
genre to the
real-time strategyReal-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
genre.
In February 2007, Big Huge Games announced that
Ken RolstonKen Rolston is an American computer game and board game designer best known for his work with West End Games and the hit computer game series The Elder Scrolls...
, the lead designer behind
The Elder Scrolls IV: OblivionThe Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is a single-player action role-playing video game developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks and the Take-Two Interactive subsidiary 2K Games...
and
The Elder Scrolls III: MorrowindThe Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, often simply referred to as Morrowind, is a single-player computer role-playing game developed by Bethesda Game Studios, and published by Bethesda Softworks and Ubisoft. It is the third installment in The Elder Scrolls series of games, following The Elder Scrolls...
, had come out of retirement to join the company as Lead Designer on an untitled role playing game (RPG). Later that May it was announced that
THQTHQ Inc. is an American developer and publisher of video games. Founded in 1989 in the United States, the company develops products for video game consoles, handheld game systems, as well as for personal computers and wireless devices...
would publish the title in 2009. This marked the first title from Big Huge Games that is not distributed by
MicrosoftMicrosoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
.
On January 15, 2008,
THQTHQ Inc. is an American developer and publisher of video games. Founded in 1989 in the United States, the company develops products for video game consoles, handheld game systems, as well as for personal computers and wireless devices...
acquired the developer.
On July 30, 2008,
Grant KirkhopeGrant Kirkhope is a British video game music composer, known for writing the soundtracks for numerous games by Rare, such as Banjo-Kazooie, Perfect Dark and Donkey Kong 64.-Biography:...
joined the Big Huge Games team as an Audio Director. He had previously worked for Rare, composing for the
Banjo-Kazooie and
Perfect DarkPerfect Dark is a science fiction video game franchise created and developed by Rare. The series debuted with the Nintendo 64 video game Perfect Dark in 2000, which received strong acclaim from critics and players, leading to the franchise's expansion. In 2002, Rare was acquired by Microsoft Game...
games (among others).
On March 18, 2009, THQ announced that due to declining economic conditions, it would close Big Huge Games unless an outside buyer could be found in the next 60 days.
On May 27, 2009, 38 Studios announced that they were acquiring Big Huge Games and retaining 70 employees out of approximately 120 who were at THQ.
Big Huge Games is currently developing a single player role playing game titled "
Kingdoms of Amalur: ReckoningKingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is an upcoming single-player role-playing video game for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. Ken Rolston, the lead designer of The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, acts as the game's executive designer. Additionally, noted...
", and is to be released in early 2012 by
Electronic ArtsElectronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
(EA) and 38 Studios for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. The game is set in fantasy worlds created with input from R A Salvatore and Todd MacFarlane.
Game titles
Release
Date |
Title |
Genre |
Notes |
| 2003 |
Rise of NationsRise of Nations is a real-time strategy computer game, developed by Big Huge Games and published by Microsoft on May 20, 2003. The development of the game was led by veteran Brian Reynolds, of Civilization II and Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri. Concepts taken from turn-based strategy games have been...
|
Real-time strategy Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
|
|
| 2004 |
Rise of Nations: Thrones and PatriotsRise of Nations: Thrones and Patriots is the official expansion pack to the real-time strategy computer game Rise of Nations. The game is the second in a series of Rise of Nations games by Big Huge Games. Thrones and Patriots had its premiere release for Microsoft Windows on April 27, 2004 in North...
|
Real-time strategy |
Expansion pack An expansion pack, expansion set, or supplement is an addition to an existing role-playing game, tabletop game or video game. These add-ons usually add new game areas, weapons, objects, and/or an extended storyline to a complete and already released game...
|
| 2006 |
Rise of Nations: Rise of LegendsRise of Nations: Rise of Legends is a real-time strategy game for the PC made by Big Huge Games, and published by Microsoft. It is a spin off of the popular game Rise of Nations, released in May 2003. However, rather than being a historical game, it is based in a fantasy world, where technology and...
|
Real-time strategy |
|
| 2007 |
CatanCatan is the Xbox Live Arcade version of Klaus Teuber's The Settlers of Catan, developed by Big Huge Games in collaboration with Teuber. It was released on May 2, 2007 for 800 Microsoft Points...
|
German-style board game German-style board games, frequently referred to in gaming circles as Euro Games or Euro-style, are a broad class of tabletop games that generally have simple rules, short to medium playing times, indirect player interaction and abstract physical components...
|
Xbox Live ArcadeXbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
|
| 2007 |
Age of Empires III: The Asian DynastiesAge of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties is the second official expansion pack for real-time strategy video game Age of Empires III developed through a collaboration between Ensemble Studios and Big Huge Games, and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed...
|
Real-time strategy |
Expansion pack |
| 2012 (Projected) |
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is an upcoming single-player role-playing video game for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. Ken Rolston, the lead designer of The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, acts as the game's executive designer. Additionally, noted...
|
Single player action RPG |
|
Unfinished titles
At the time of their move from THQ to 38 Studios, Big Huge Games was working on two large game projects, which are now presumed to be canceled.
- Ascendant, 2009 (Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, PS3The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
)
- God: The Game Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
game
Game engine
Big Huge Games made use of their internally developed
game engineA game engine is a system designed for the creation and development of video games. There are many game engines that are designed to work on video game consoles and personal computers...
, the
Big Huge Engine, in both
Rise of Nations and
Catan. The engine features support for a variety of applications and technologies, including physics,
artificial intelligenceArtificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
, animation, and others.
External links
- Big Huge Games profile on MobyGames
-Platforms not yet included:- Further reading :* Rusel DeMaria, Johnny L. Wilson, High Score!: The Illustrated History of Electronic Games, McGraw-Hill/Osborne Media; 2 edition , ISBN 0-07-223172-6...