Typhoon Studios
Stadia Games and Entertainment (2019–2021) | |
| Website | typhoonstudios |
|---|---|
Typhoon Studios Inc. was a Canadian
Stadia Games and Entertainment (SG&E). After releasing its first game, Journey to the Savage Planet
, in 2020, Typhoon Studios was shut down alongside SG&E in February 2021.
History
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment (WBIE), among others.[1] They felt as though it only made sense to start a company if the founding team was composed of a creative director, a production person, and a technical director.[3] Hutchinson stated that the company sought to occupy a near-extinct middle market of "mid-sized games" (such as Firewatch and Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice) between indie games and big-budget AAA games.[3][4] He specifically cited a lack of budget to create a game like those in the Call of Duty series.[5] Hutchinson announced Typhoon Studios' formation in April 2017.[2]
Early on, the company received funding from the Chinese
art director Erick Bilodeau, who had worked with the founders at WBIE. The first office was established in a motion capture studio for which the company did not have to pay rent, fit with IKEA desks and second-hand furniture from Craigslist. After occupying another temporary office in a basement, the studio received sufficient funding to move into its first proper office.[6] By September 2018, Typhoon Studios had signed a long-term partnership with 505 Games, which would see the publisher release Typhoon Studios' debut game. The studio had 20 employees at this time and grew to 25 by December of that year.[4][7] During The Game Awards in December 2018, the company announced its debut game as Journey to the Savage Planet.[8]
On December 19, 2019,
Windows, and Xbox One in January 2020, followed by a Nintendo Switch port in May of that year.[11][12] A Stadia version was released on February 1, 2021.[13] On the same day, Google announced the closure of SG&E and its studios, with the former Typhoon Studios team leaving the company.[14] Several of the former staffers—including Hutchinson, Schneider, Bilodeau, Yannick Simard, and Marc-Antoine Lussier—founded the studio Raccoon Logic in August 2021 with initial funding from Tencent and other investors. They negotiated with Google to maintain control of the Journey intellectual property, including the work Typhoon Studios had completed on a planned sequel.[15]
References
- ^ a b c Roettgers, Janko (December 19, 2019). "Google Buys Typhoon Studios for Its Stadia Cloud Gaming Service". Variety. Archived from the original on December 5, 2020. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- ^ GamesIndustry.biz. Archivedfrom the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- ^ PC Games Insider. Archivedfrom the original on September 25, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- ^ a b Chan, Stephanie (September 5, 2018). "Far Cry 4 creative director's new Typhoon Studios is 'definitely not doing a battle royale game'". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on January 28, 2019. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
- PC Games Insider. Archivedfrom the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- PC Games Insider. Archivedfrom the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- PC Games Insider. Archivedfrom the original on August 4, 2020. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- ^ Fogel, Stefanie (December 6, 2018). "Typhoon Studios Reveals First Project 'Journey To The Savage Planet'". Variety. Archived from the original on September 28, 2019. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
- ^ a b c Takahashi, Dean (December 19, 2019). "Google buys triple-A game dev Typhoon Studio to beef up Stadia". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on December 27, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- ^ GamesIndustry.biz. Archivedfrom the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- ^ Wilson, Tony (January 31, 2020). "Top New Video Game Releases On Switch, PS4, Xbox One, And PC This Week — January 26 – February 1, 2020". GameSpot. Archived from the original on October 1, 2020. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- ^ Sheridan, Connor (May 21, 2020). "Journey to the Savage Planet Switch version is out now". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on May 21, 2020. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- 9to5Google. Archivedfrom the original on February 1, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- ^ Robinson, Andy (February 1, 2021). "Google has closed its Stadia game development teams". Video Games Chronicle. Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
- ^ Robinson, Andy (August 11, 2021). "Savage Planet studio Typhoon has reformed and kept the IP after Stadia closure". Video Games Chronicle. Archived from the original on August 11, 2021. Retrieved August 11, 2021.