Lost Toys
Ball Breakers Battle Engine Aquila | |
Website | Official website |
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Lost Toys Ltd. was a British video game developer founded in March 1999 by Glenn Corpes, Jeremy Longley, and Darran Thomas, all of whom had previously worked for Bullfrog Productions.[4][1] Les Edgar helped by providing financial support. Lost Toys was the third Bullfrog break-off group, after Mucky Foot Productions and Lionhead Studios,[4] and was founded due to disillusionment after Electronic Arts purchased Bullfrog.
The company produced two games:
History
Thomas stated that Bullfrog's working culture changed considerably after Electronic Arts' takeover, and Corpes believed that is more efficient to develop games on one's own.[1] He also said that, with Mucky Foot Productions and Lionhead Studios running their own affairs the way Bullfrog used to, it was "quite embarrassing to still be working for the Borg".[1] Alex Trowers, a designer at Bullfrog who joined Lost Toys, said that the reason people were leaving Bullfrog was "because it was EA, not Bullfrog", and that Lost Toys intended to go back to developing games for its own sake rather than to keep shareholders satisfied.[1] Corpes also commented that Lost Toys was partially his take on what Bullfrog was, as opposed to Mucky Foot, which he said was Guy Simmons, Mike Diskett, and Fin McGechie's take, and Lionhead, which he said was Peter Molyneux's take.[3] Longley believed that small teams (Corpes said that they intended to have a maximum of 20 employees[4]) were valuable to the gaming industry and that they could work creatively like Bullfrog.[1] He also said that it was encouraging to see Mucky Foot and Lionhead break off from Bullfrog successfully.[4] Early on, Les Edgar provided financial support to the group.[1][5]
Lost Toys' first title, MoHo (known in North America as
Lost Toys's second title,
On 2 October 2003, Lost Toys closed, and all staff were made redundant.[19][20][21] Stunt Car Racer Pro was cancelled, and Crammond's business manager said it was "the best game he never sold".[22] According to Crammond, the game had reached a "working demo stage".[22]
References
- ^ ISSN 1350-1593.
- ^ a b c Justin Calvert (6 May 2003). "Lost Toys to work on Stunt Car Racer Pro". GameSpot. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ^ ISSN 0967-8220.
- ^ ISSN 1350-1593.
- ISSN 1350-1593.
- ^ Sam Bishop (28 August 2000). "Ball Breakers". IGN. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ISSN 1350-1593.
- ^ Yukiyoshi Ike Sato (26 April 2000). "Take Two to Publish Lost Toys". GameSpot. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ^ a b "Toys Lost on PS". IGN. 2 March 2000. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ^ "MoHo Review - Lost Toys' oddball action game reaches the PC - we check it out". Eurogamer. 26 December 2000. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ISSN 1058-918X. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ^ ISSN 1742-3155.
- ^ a b Tom Bramwell (20 April 2000). "MoHo". Eurogamer. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ISSN 1350-1593.
- ^ "Battle Engine Aquila". IGN. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ^ ISSN 1350-1593.
- ^ Rob Fahley (20 May 2003). "Lost Toys sign NV35 OEM deal for Battle Engine". GamesIndustry.biz. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ^ "Encore Signs Publishing Agreement with Lost Toys". GameZone. 20 August 2003. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ^ Andrew Burnes (2 October 2003). "Lost Toys Latest UK-Based Studio To Close". IGN. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ^ Rob Fahley (2 October 2003). "More UK development woe as Lost Toys shuts its doors". GamesIndustry.biz. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- Gamasutra. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- ^ ISSN 1742-3155.