Company:SIE Bend Studio

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Short description: American video game developer
SIE Bend Studio
TypeSubsidiary
IndustryVideo games
Founded1993
FoundersMarc Blank
Michael Berlyn
Headquarters
Bend, Oregon
,
United States
Key people
Christopher Reese
John Garvin
Gerald Harrison
ProductsSyphon Filter series
Number of employees
~133-136[1]
ParentSony Interactive Entertainment

SIE Bend Studio (formerly Blank, Berlyn and Co. and Eidetic) is an American first-party video game developer founded in Bend, Oregon in 1993. They were acquired by Sony Computer Entertainment in 2000 and are best known for developing the Syphon Filter series and Days Gone.

Company overview

Former logo of Eidetic, now known as SIE Bend Studio

Infocom founders Marc Blank and Michael Berlyn, formed "Blank, Berlyn and Co." in 1993.[2] Blank, Berlyn and Co. originally developed games and productivity apps for the Apple Newton but soon expanded to pursue the PC and console games market. During the expansion the company changed its name to "Eidetic" and Christopher Reese was recruited.[2]

Eidetic's first console game was Bubsy 3D, released in 1996 for the PlayStation. The game was Eidetic's first experience developing a 3D game and the studio found it difficult transitioning to 3D development.[2] Eidetic had eight employees when developing Bubsy 3D. The game was a critical and commercial flop.[2]

In late 1997, a producer from Sony's 989 Studios approached Eidetic with a one-page synopsis for an action espionage thriller that would be a response to the successful GoldenEye 007.[3] The synopsis was entitled "Syphon Filter" which had no meaning and it contained no story and characters, but included ideas for the setting and gameplay mechanics. Sony trusted Eidetic with the project despite Bubsy 3D's poor reception because the team had experience with developing for the PlayStation and an engine that could run the game.[2] For the development of Syphon Filter, Eidetic recruited five more employees.

The development of Syphon Filter was difficult because Eidetic had no experience making a stealth action game.[3] Moreover, co-founder Michael Berlyn was so morally offended by the game that he left the company during its development.[4] Due to missing deadlines and making changes to the game's structure, story and mechanics, Syphon Filter was almost cancelled several times. Writer and director John Garvin joined Eidetic after the first prototype of Syphon Filter was created. Despite the difficulties, 989 Studios producer Connie Booth had great faith in the project.[3] Syphon Filter was released on February 17, 1999, and sold over one million units in its first year after release, surpassing the expectations of Sony and Eidetic.[3] The studio was purchased by Sony Computer Entertainment in 2000 after the release of Syphon Filter 2 and went on to develop four more games in the Syphon Filter series under the new name of Bend Studio.[2]

In 2007 after the release of Syphon Filter, Bend Studio wanted to develop games for a different franchise and decided to develop a Resistance game for the PlayStation Portable due to similarities between Resistance and Syphon Filter. Bend made a demo for the game and showed it to Sony Worldwide Studios producers and original Resistance developer Insomniac Games and were approved to begin development of Resistance.[2]

After the release of Resistance: Retribution in 2009, Bend dedicated nine employees to a new project entitled Uncharted for the PlayStation Vita. When Bend first visited Naughty Dog to discuss the project, several of their ideas for the game were rejected. Eventually Naughty Dog was impressed with Bend's vision for the game and it was approved. Bend worked closely with Naughty Dog on the game and were allowed to use all assets from Uncharted and Uncharted 2.[2] Golden Abyss was released as a launch title for the PlayStation Vita in Japan on December 17, 2011, and in the United States on February 14, 2012.

The company released Days Gone for the PlayStation 4 on April 26, 2019,[5] the company's first console game since 2004.

Games developed

Year Game Platform(s)
1996 Bubsy 3D PlayStation
1999 Syphon Filter
2000 Syphon Filter 2
2001 Syphon Filter 3
2004 Syphon Filter PlayStation 2
2006 Syphon Filter PlayStation Portable, PlayStation 2
2007 Syphon Filter
2009 Resistance PlayStation Portable
2011 Uncharted PlayStation Vita
2012 Uncharted
2019 Days Gone PlayStation 4

References

  1. ↑ O'Connor, James (March 6, 2019). ""We insist that they are not zombies" – we talk to Bend Studios about PS4 zombie game, Days Gone". VG247. https://www.vg247.com/2019/03/06/days-gone-freakers-zombies/. Retrieved March 8, 2019. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Moriarty, Colin (September 8, 2011). "From Syphon Filter to Uncharted Sony Bend's Story". IGN. Ziff Davis. https://ign.com/articles/2011/09/08/from-syphon-filter-to-uncharted-sony-bends-story?page=1. Retrieved March 1, 2016. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Shuman, Sid (October 25, 2012). "Behind the Classics: Syphon Filter". PlayStation Blog. http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/10/25/behind-the-classics-syphon-filter/. Retrieved March 1, 2016. 
  4. ↑ "News - Playing Catch-Up: Bubsy's Michael Berlyn". October 3, 2005. http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=6716. Retrieved March 4, 2020. 
  5. ↑ https://www.gamesradar.com/uk/days-gone-review/
Short description: Group of video game developers owned by Sony Interactive Entertainment
SIE Worldwide Studios
FormerlySCE Worldwide Studios (2005–2016)
TypeDivision
IndustryVideo games
FoundedSeptember 14, 2005; 20 years ago (2005-09-14)
Key people
Hermen Hulst (president)
Number of employees
2,700+[1] (2011)
ParentSony Interactive Entertainment
SubsidiariesSee § Studios
Websiteplaystation.com/en-us/corporate/playstation-studios/

Sony Interactive Entertainment Worldwide Studios (SIE Worldwide Studios) is a group of video game developers founded in September 2005 by Sony Interactive Entertainment.[2]

It is a single internal entity overseeing all wholly owned development studios within SIE. It is responsible for the creative and strategic direction of development and production of all computer entertainment software by all SIE–owned studios, all of which is typically produced exclusively for the PlayStation family of consoles.

With the launch of the PlayStation 5 in 2020, Worldwide Studios brands all releases be it internal or externally developed under the "PlayStation Studios" label.[3]

History

SCE Worldwide Studios (SCE Worldwide Studios) was established on September 14, 2005, with Phil Harrison being appointed as president.[4] On May 16, 2008, Shuhei Yoshida became president.[5] In April 2016, Sony's Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) and Sony Network Entertainment International (SNEI) divisions merged, creating SIE Worldwide Studios.[5] Hermen Hulst succeeded Shuhei Yoshida as president of SIE Worldwide Studios on November 7, 2019, with Yoshida being delegated to lead Sony's indie development.[6]

Studios

Name Location Founded Acquired
Bend Studio Bend, Oregon 1993[7] 2000[7]
Guerrilla Games Amsterdam 2000[7] 2005[7]
Housemarque Helsinki 2021[8]
Insomniac Games Burbank, California 1994[7] 2019[9]
London Studio London 2002[7] —
Malaysia Studio Kuala Lumpur 2020[10] —
Media Molecule Guildford 2006[7] 2010[7]
Naughty Dog Santa Monica, California 1984[7] 2001[7]
Nixxes Software Utrecht 1999[11] 2021[12]
Pixelopus San Mateo, California 2014[7] —
Polyphony Digital Tokyo 1998[7] —
San Diego Studio San Diego 2001[7] —
San Mateo Studio San Mateo, California 1998[13] —
Santa Monica Studio Los Angeles 1999[7] —
Sucker Punch Productions Bellevue, Washington 1997[7] 2011[7]
Team Asobi Tokyo 2021[14][lower-alpha 1] —
XDev Liverpool 2000[7] —
  1. ↑ Team Asobi was first established in 2012 as an internal team of Japan Studio, and was spun off as its own independent studio in 2021.

Former

Name Location Founded Acquired Divested Fate
Bigbig Studios Leamington Spa 2001[15] 2007[16] 2012[15] Closed[15]
Evolution Studios Runcorn 1999[16] 2007[16] 2016[17] Closed[17]
Guerrilla Cambridge Cambridge 1997[18] — 2017[18] Closed[18]
Incognito Entertainment Salt Lake City 1999[19] 2002[19] 2009[20] Closed[20]
Japan Studio Tokyo 1993[7] — 2021[21] Reorganized within SIE, primarily to Team Asobi[14]
Manchester Studio Manchester 2015[7] — 2020[22] Closed[22]
Studio Liverpool Liverpool 1984[16] 1993[16] 2012[23] Closed[23]
Zipper Interactive Redmond, Washington 1995[24] 2006[16] 2012[24] Closed[24]

Other divisions

ICE Team

Naughty Dog is home to the ICE Team, one of Sony's Worldwide Studios central technology groups. The term ICE originally stands for Initiative for a Common Engine which describes the original purpose of the group.[25] The ICE Team focuses on creating core graphics technologies for Sony's worldwide first party published titles, including low-level game engine components, graphics processing pipelines, supporting tools, and graphics profiling and debugging tools. The ICE Team also supports third party developers with a suite of engine components, and a graphics analysis, profiling, and debugging tool for the RSX. Both enable developers to get better performance out of PlayStation hardware.[26][27]

XDev

XDev Europe, established in 2000 and based in Liverpool, England,[7] collaborates with independent development studios across Europe and other PAL territories to publish content to PlayStation platforms all over the world. XDev has helped to create and publish, titles such as the LittleBigPlanet, Buzz!, MotorStorm and Invizimals series, Super Stardust HD, Heavenly Sword, Heavy Rain, Beyond, Tearaway and Resogun. Partners include independent developers such as Quantic Dream, Magenta Software, Climax Studios, Novarama, Supermassive Games and Sumo Digital, as well as SCE subsidiaries such as Media Molecule and Guerrilla Games. In addition to funding projects, XDev offer full production, project management and game design support. Titles are also supported with community management, online production and dedicated outsourcing management facilities. XDev work directly with Marketing and PR teams in all Sony territories to promote and publish games worldwide.[28][29]

References

  1. ↑ "Sony Computer Entertainment Acquires Sucker Punch Productions, Developer of Top Selling Infamous Franchise". August 2, 2011. https://www.sie.com/en/corporate/release/2011/110802.html. 
  2. ↑ "SCE Establishes SCE Worldwide Studios" (PDF) (Press release). Sony Computer Entertainment. September 14, 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 5, 2005. Retrieved September 14, 2005.
  3. ↑ Dring, Christopher (May 12, 2020). "PlayStation Studios brand will launch alongside PS5". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2020-05-12-sony-unveils-playstation-studios-brand-to-launch-alongside-ps5. 
  4. ↑ "SCE Establishes SCE Worldwide Studios" (PDF) (Press release). Sony Computer Entertainment. September 14, 2005. Retrieved 2005-09-14.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Bitsummit". http://bitsummit.org/2015/?page_id=3388. 
  6. ↑ "Sony appoints Guerrilla Games' Hermen Hulst new head of PlayStation worldwide studios". https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2019/11/07/sony-appoints-guerrilla-games-hermen-hulst-new-head-playstation-worldwide-studios/. 
  7. ↑ 7.00 7.01 7.02 7.03 7.04 7.05 7.06 7.07 7.08 7.09 7.10 7.11 7.12 7.13 7.14 7.15 7.16 7.17 7.18 7.19 Barker, Sammy (August 28, 2019). "Guide: All Sony First-Party Studios and What They're Working On". http://www.pushsquare.com/news/2019/08/guide_all_sony_first-party_studios_and_what_theyre_working_on. 
  8. ↑ Leedham, Robert (June 29, 2021). "Why PlayStation bought Returnal developer Housemarque: the inside story". https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/culture/article/housemarque-sony-playstation-acquisition. 
  9. ↑ "Quarterly Securities Report For the three months ended December 31, 2019". p. 39. https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/IR/library/Sony_Quarterly_Securities_Report_2019Q3.pdf. 
  10. ↑ "PlayStation to open development studio in Malaysia". November 8, 2019. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2019-11-08-playstation-to-open-malaysian-development-studio. 
  11. ↑ "About us". July 1, 2021. https://www.nixxes.com/about-us/. Retrieved July 1, 2021. 
  12. ↑ Makuch, Eddie (July 1, 2021). "Sony Buys Another Game Studio, Avengers And Rise Of The Tomb Raider's Nixxes Software". GameSpot. https://www.gamespot.com/articles/sony-buys-another-game-studio-avengers-and-rise-of-the-tomb-raiders-nixxes-software/1100-6493477/. Retrieved July 1, 2021. 
  13. ↑ Varela, Ramón (January 16, 2020). "PlayStation: Todos sus estudios y los juegos en desarrollo" (in es). https://vandal.elespanol.com/reportaje/playstation-todos-sus-estudios-y-los-juegos-en-desarrollo. 
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 LeBlanc, Wesley (June 2, 2021). "Team Asobi Officially Announced as a PlayStation Studio, Reveals New Logo". https://www.ign.com/articles/team-asobi-official-playstation-studios-dev-new-logo. 
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Yoon, Andrew (January 10, 2012). "Sony shuts down Little Deviants, Pursuit Force dev". https://www.shacknews.com/article/71918/sony-shuts-down-little-deviants-pursuit-force-dev. 
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 16.5 MCV Staff (August 2, 2011). "IN DETAIL: Sony's sixteen first-party studios". https://www.mcvuk.com/in-detail-sonys-sixteen-first-party-studios/. 
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Brightman, James (March 22, 2016). "Sony confirms closure of Evolution Studios". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2016-03-22-sony-confirms-closure-of-evolution-studio. 
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 Frank, Allegra (January 12, 2017). "Sony shuts down 20-year-old studio in European restructuring". https://www.polygon.com/2017/1/12/14251842/guerrilla-cambridge-closed. 
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Cifaldi, Frank (May 13, 2011). "How Moving To Austin Energized Starhawk". https://gamasutra.com/view/feature/134746/how_moving_to_austin_energized_.php. 
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Plunkett, Luke (January 16, 2012). "Every Game Studio That's Closed Down Since 2006". https://kotaku.com/every-game-studio-thats-closed-down-since-2006-5876693. 
  21. ↑ Robinson, Andy; Calvin, Alex (February 25, 2021). "Sources: PlayStation is winding down Sony Japan Studio". Video Games Chronicle. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/sources-playstation-is-winding-down-sony-japan-studio/. Retrieved June 30, 2021. 
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Dring, Christopher (February 4, 2020). "PlayStation to close Manchester VR studio". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2020-02-04-playstation-to-close-manchester-vr-studio. 
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 Yin-Poole, Wesley (July 21, 2015). "WipEout: The rise and fall of Sony Studio Liverpool". https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-03-22-wipeout-the-rise-and-fall-of-sony-studio-liverpool. 
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 Moriarty, Colin (March 31, 2012). "Confirmed: Sony Closes Zipper Interactive". https://www.ign.com/articles/2012/03/30/confirmed-sony-closes-zipper-interactive. 
  25. ↑ Mark Cerny's "Road to the PS4" @ Gamelab 2013 . YouTube (June 27, 2013). Retrieved on July 16, 2013.
  26. ↑ Naughty Dog Careers . Naughtydog.com. Retrieved on July 16, 2013.
  27. ↑ Sony’s Secret Super Development Team . PS3 Attitude (June 5, 2009). Retrieved on July 16, 2013.
  28. ↑ Sony XDev Europe . Official Site
  29. ↑ Worldwide Studios/XDev . XDev on Worldwidestudios.net






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