Starbreeze Studios
Encyclopedia
Starbreeze Studios is a video game development studio founded by members of the demo group Triton, based in Uppsala
, Sweden
.
, Sweden
. In November 2002, the parent company was renamed Starbreeze AB, of which Starbreeze Studios AB is a wholly owned subsidiary. Starbreeze is listed on the Swedish stock market list Aktietorget since 2000 where the company stock is still publicly traded. As of February 2011, Starbreeze employs around 120 people.
Starbreeze Studios´ founders include people who were formerly members of the PC demoscene
group Triton; Magnus Högdahl worked as CTO and was credited as Lead Engine Programmer. He ended his employment in July 2009. Along with Fredrik Ljungdahl, Jens Matthies, Jim Kjellin, Kjell Emanuelsson, Michael Wynne and Jerk Gustafsson, went on to found Machinegames, also located in Uppsala
.
The company was developing two new games, but one of them has been cancelled. The first, codenamed Project RedLime, is a "reinvention" of the Syndicate franchise published by Electronic Arts
. The second game based on Robert Ludlum's Jason Bourne
series, was also going to be published by EA
, but the project was shelved.
Uppsala
- Economy :Today Uppsala is well established in medical research and recognized for its leading position in biotechnology.*Abbott Medical Optics *GE Healthcare*Pfizer *Phadia, an offshoot of Pharmacia*Fresenius*Q-Med...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
.
History
The company was founded in 1998, under the name O3 Games. In 2000, O3 Games merged with the smaller company Starbreeze Studios which was then based in HärnösandHärnösand
Härnösand is a locality and the seat of Härnösand Municipality in Västernorrland County, Sweden with 18,003 inhabitants in 2005. It is called "the gate to the High Coast" because of the world heritage landscape rises just some miles north of Härnösand...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. In November 2002, the parent company was renamed Starbreeze AB, of which Starbreeze Studios AB is a wholly owned subsidiary. Starbreeze is listed on the Swedish stock market list Aktietorget since 2000 where the company stock is still publicly traded. As of February 2011, Starbreeze employs around 120 people.
Starbreeze Studios´ founders include people who were formerly members of the PC demoscene
Demoscene
The demoscene is a computer art subculture that specializes in producing demos, which are non-interactive audio-visual presentations that run in real-time on a computer...
group Triton; Magnus Högdahl worked as CTO and was credited as Lead Engine Programmer. He ended his employment in July 2009. Along with Fredrik Ljungdahl, Jens Matthies, Jim Kjellin, Kjell Emanuelsson, Michael Wynne and Jerk Gustafsson, went on to found Machinegames, also located in Uppsala
Uppsala
- Economy :Today Uppsala is well established in medical research and recognized for its leading position in biotechnology.*Abbott Medical Optics *GE Healthcare*Pfizer *Phadia, an offshoot of Pharmacia*Fresenius*Q-Med...
.
The company was developing two new games, but one of them has been cancelled. The first, codenamed Project RedLime, is a "reinvention" of the Syndicate franchise published by Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic 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...
. The second game based on Robert Ludlum's Jason Bourne
Jason Bourne
Jason Charles Bourne is a fictional character and the main protagonist in the novels of Robert Ludlum and subsequent film adaptations. He first appeared in the novel The Bourne Identity...
series, was also going to be published by EA
Electronic Arts
Electronic 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...
, but the project was shelved.
Titles
- 2000 – The OutforceThe OutforceThe Outforce is a traditional top-down RTS game played across a battlefield in space.-External links:*...
(Microsoft Windows) - 2002 – Enclave (Microsoft Windows, Xbox)
- 2003 – Knights of the Temple (Nintendo GameCube, Microsoft Windows, Xbox, PlayStation 2) (Released only in Europe)
- 2004 – The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher BayThe Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher BayThe Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay is a first-person action/stealth video game developed by Starbreeze Studios and published by Vivendi Games. Released for the Xbox and Windows in 2004, the game is a tie-in prequel to the futuristic science fiction film The Chronicles of Riddick...
(Xbox, Microsoft Windows) - 2007 – The DarknessThe Darkness (video game)The Darkness is a first-person shooter video game, developed by Starbreeze Studios and published by 2K Games for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. It was released on June 25, 2007 in North America and on June 20, 2007 in Europe. The video game is based on the comic book of the same title...
(Xbox 360, PlayStation 3) - 2009 – The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark AthenaThe Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark AthenaThe Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena is a science fiction first-person action game for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Mac OS X. The game is a sequel to The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay, which has been remade and has been included along with the Assault...
(Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360) - 2012 – SyndicateSyndicate (2012 video game)Syndicate is an upcoming video game by Starbreeze Studios set for release in February 2012 for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 platforms...
(Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)
External links
- Starbreeze Studios website
- Starbreeze Studios at 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...
- Starbreeze company details on Aktietorget
- Interview with Johan Kristiansson, Starbreeze CEO, on GamesIndustry.biz