Gathering of Developers
Encyclopedia
Gathering of Developers (aka God Games and Gathering) was a Texas-based PC and video games publishing company, founded in January 1998 with the mission to bridge the gap between publishers and independent game developers, allowing independent developers creative control over their projects, ownership of their IP, and participation in the publishing and marketing decisions. Fueled by past publishing experiences and frustrations, several experienced development companies bound together to form a relationship-based publisher. The company later became a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive
. Gathering's first wave of releases included Railroad Tycoon II
, Nocturne
, Darkstone, Age of Wonders
and Fly!
. The company later expanded to the console market.
Take Two acquired the company outright in May 2000, and attempted unsuccessfully to manage the Texas based group from its New York HQ. The founders and employees of G.O.D. were unhappy with the lack of freedom the company allowed for following through on its principles of fair treatment of developers and IP ownership. Founder Doug Myres died unexpectedly in May 2001, prompting the other partners to negotiate a separation with the company shortly thereafter.
Eventually Take-Two took over all operations and rebranded the label simply Gathering, and have since folded it into the label 2K Games
.
During the gaming trade event E3, Gathering was known for being extremely extravagant, offering free barbecue
, live music, and beer to the nearly 10,000 E3 attendees that would cross the street into their "Promised Lot" each day; they were also famous for their Catholic Schoolgirl 'booth babes'.
Take-Two Interactive
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. is a major American publisher, developer, and distributor of video games and video game peripherals. Take-Two wholly owns 2K Games and Rockstar Games. The company's headquarters are in New York City, with international headquarters in Windsor, United Kingdom...
. Gathering's first wave of releases included Railroad Tycoon II
Railroad Tycoon II
Railroad Tycoon II is a game for the PC, Macintosh, PlayStation and Dreamcast in the Railroad Tycoon series. The Dreamcast version is a Gold Edition with improved graphics and gameplay...
, Nocturne
Nocturne (PC game)
Nocturne is a video game released for Microsoft Windows by Terminal Reality in 1999. It is a survival horror game set in the late 1920s and early 1930s – the Prohibition and Great Depression era...
, Darkstone, Age of Wonders
Age of Wonders
Age of Wonders is a turn-based strategy PC-game often likened to Master of Magic. Originally titled World of Wonders, the game incorporated several role-playing video game elements that were dropped when simultaneous turns were implemented...
and Fly!
Fly!
Fly! is a flight simulator for PC and Apple Macintosh computers developed by Terminal Reality and published by Gathering of Developers. It included simulation of air traffic control features as well as aircraft's on-board systems, and was acclaimed for its highly detailed fully working interactive...
. The company later expanded to the console market.
Take Two acquired the company outright in May 2000, and attempted unsuccessfully to manage the Texas based group from its New York HQ. The founders and employees of G.O.D. were unhappy with the lack of freedom the company allowed for following through on its principles of fair treatment of developers and IP ownership. Founder Doug Myres died unexpectedly in May 2001, prompting the other partners to negotiate a separation with the company shortly thereafter.
Eventually Take-Two took over all operations and rebranded the label simply Gathering, and have since folded it into the label 2K Games
2K Games
2K is a global developer, marketer, distributor and publisher of interactive entertainment software games. 2K Games is a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive, which also owns Rockstar Games notable for the Grand Theft Auto series...
.
During the gaming trade event E3, Gathering was known for being extremely extravagant, offering free barbecue
Barbecue
Barbecue or barbeque , used chiefly in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia is a method and apparatus for cooking meat, poultry and occasionally fish with the heat and hot smoke of a fire, smoking wood, or hot coals of...
, live music, and beer to the nearly 10,000 E3 attendees that would cross the street into their "Promised Lot" each day; they were also famous for their Catholic Schoolgirl 'booth babes'.
Founding developers
- Ritual EntertainmentRitual EntertainmentRitual Entertainment was a computer game software developer established in 1996 by Robert Atkins, Mark Dochtermann, Jim Dosé, Richard 'Levelord' Gray, Michael Hadwin, Harry Miller and Tom Mustaine...
- Epic GamesEpic GamesEpic Games, Inc., also known as Epic and formerly Epic MegaGames, is an American video game development company based in Cary, North Carolina. Its most recent success has been the Gears of War series of games, although it is also known for its Unreal Engine technology. It is the parent company of...
- 3D Realms3D Realms3D Realms is a current video game publisher and former video game developer based in Garland, Texas, United States, established in 1987...
- PopTop SoftwarePopTop SoftwarePopTop Software was an American video game developer. It was known as the publisher of several strategy games including Railroad Tycoon II and the Caribbean island simulation Tropico . They are not to be confused with PopCap Games, which is a casual game developer.-History:PopTop Software was...
- Terminal RealityTerminal RealityTerminal Reality is a video game development and production company based in Lewisville, Texas. Founded in 1994 by ex-Microsoft employee Mark Randel and former Mallard Software general manager Brett Combs, Terminal Reality develops a variety of games including racing games , 3D action games , and...
- Edge of RealityEdge of RealityEdge of Reality is a video game developer founded in 1998 and based in Austin, Texas that has developed video games for the Nintendo 64, Nintendo GameCube, PlayStation 2 and Xbox games consoles. It also has games in development for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 games consoles. Edge of Reality is an...
Founding individuals
- Mike WilsonMike Wilson (CEO)Mike Wilson, aka Michael S. Wilson as a , has been a computer and video game executive since 1995, when he worked at DWANGO as VP of Development for 6 months before being hired by id Software to handle marketing and start up their own self-publishing....
- Harry A. Miller IV
- Rick Stults
- Doug Myres
- Jim Bloom
- Binu Philip
- J. Holt Foster, III
Notable games published
- Age of Wonders seriesAge of WondersAge of Wonders is a turn-based strategy PC-game often likened to Master of Magic. Originally titled World of Wonders, the game incorporated several role-playing video game elements that were dropped when simultaneous turns were implemented...
- Destruction Derby: ArenasDestruction Derby: ArenasDestruction Derby Arenas is a racing video game for the PlayStation 2. It was developed by Studio 33 and published by Gathering of Developers, and was released on April 1, 2004, being the sixth and final installment of the Destruction Derby series....
- Fly! seriesFly!Fly! is a flight simulator for PC and Apple Macintosh computers developed by Terminal Reality and published by Gathering of Developers. It included simulation of air traffic control features as well as aircraft's on-board systems, and was acclaimed for its highly detailed fully working interactive...
- Heavy Metal: F.A.K.K.²Heavy Metal: F.A.K.K.²Heavy Metal: F.A.K.K.² is a third-person shooter video game made by Ritual Entertainment in 2000. A sequel to the Heavy Metal 2000 animated movie, the game stars Julie in her quest to save her home planet of Eden from GITH, an ancient entity seeking to conquer the universe...
(outside USA) - Hidden & DangerousHidden & DangerousHidden & Dangerous is a WWII 1999 computer and video game developed by Illusion Softworks and published by Take-Two Interactive and TalonSoft for Windows, the Dreamcast, and the PlayStation. The PlayStation port of the game was developed by Tarantula Studios...
Deluxe - Hidden & Dangerous 2Hidden & Dangerous 2-Audio:Music from the game was provided by the Brno Philharmonic Orchestra based in Brno, Czech Republic.-Expansion:An expansion pack titled Sabre Squadron was released during October 19, 2004, in the US, introduced nine new single player missions, seven new multiplayer maps, and a now finished,...
- Jazz Jackrabbit 2Jazz Jackrabbit 2Jazz Jackrabbit 2 is a platform game produced by Epic MegaGames, now known as Epic Games. It was released in 1998 for PCs running Windows, and later for Macintosh computers. It is the sequel to Jazz Jackrabbit....
- KISS: Psycho Circus: The Nightmare ChildKISS: Psycho Circus: The Nightmare ChildKISS: Psycho Circus - The Nightmare Child is a first person shooter computer game developed by Third Law Interactive and published by Gathering of Developers for the PC in August 2000. It was also released later that year for the Dreamcast following a port by Tremor Entertainment...
- Mafia: The City of Lost HeavenMafia: The City of Lost HeavenMafia is a third-person shooter video game initially made for Microsoft Windows in . It was developed by Czech company Illusion Softworks and published by Gathering of Developers...
- Max PayneMax PayneMax Payne is a BAFTA Award–winning third-person shooter video game developed by Finnish developers Remedy Entertainment and published by Gathering of Developers in July 2001 for Microsoft Windows. Ports created later in the year for the PlayStation 2, Xbox and the GameBoy Advance were published by...
- NocturneNocturne (PC game)Nocturne is a video game released for Microsoft Windows by Terminal Reality in 1999. It is a survival horror game set in the late 1920s and early 1930s – the Prohibition and Great Depression era...
- Oni
- Railroad Tycoon IIRailroad Tycoon IIRailroad Tycoon II is a game for the PC, Macintosh, PlayStation and Dreamcast in the Railroad Tycoon series. The Dreamcast version is a Gold Edition with improved graphics and gameplay...
and IIIRailroad Tycoon 3Railroad Tycoon 3 is a computer game in the Railroad Tycoon series, released in 2003.-New features:The game interface is in full 3D, with free camera movement... - RuneRune (computer game)Rune is a third-person action computer game developed by Human Head Studios which was released in late 2000. The game is based on Norse mythology, showing the conflict between the gods Odin and Loki and the build up to Ragnarok, the end of the world...
- Darkstone (PC only)
- Serious SamSerious SamSerious Sam is the first game in the Serious Sam series. It is a first-person shooter created by the Croatian development house Croteam...
- Space Colony
- Stronghold
- Stronghold: CrusaderStronghold: CrusaderStronghold: Crusader is the successor to Firefly Studios's 2001 game Stronghold. Crusader has much in common with the original Stronghold, but differs from its predecessor in the fact that the game is no longer set in a pseudo-Europe, instead being set in the Middle East during the Crusades...
- The Blair Witch Project trilogyThe Blair Witch Project (video games)The Blair Witch video games are a trilogy of Survival Horror action-adventure games , based on the backstory of the movie The Blair Witch Project...
- TropicoTropicoTropico is a series of construction and management simulation computer games developed by PopTop Software and published by Gathering of Developers in April 2001...
- Tropico 2: Pirate CoveTropico 2: Pirate CoveTropico 2: Pirate Cove is the 2003 sequel to the computer game Tropico. Tropico 2 was developed by Frog City Software and published by Gathering of Developers for Windows and Mac OS X PCs.- Gameplay :...
- Vietcong
External links
- Games published by GoD (page at Take 2)
- Gathering of Developers profile on MobyGamesMobyGames-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...