![]() In May, 2014, 38 Studios, struggling to stay afloat, laid off the staff. When THQ went under, 38 Studios picked the team up. Sometimes Epic’s shifts were so sudden they led to what could only be called bad business decisions.įounded in 2000 by Brian Reynolds, Tim Train, David Inscore and Jason Coleman, THQ acquired Big Huge Games in 2008. Epic was awarded $9 million in a decision that was later upheld by a federal appeals court. In 2014, Silicon Knights lost its case and Epic won a counterclaim alleging breach of agreement, infringement of copyright and misappropriation of trade secrets. In 2007 Too Human developer Silicon Knights sued Epic, accusing the company of using money it earned by selling licenses to their Unreal Engine 3 game engine to fund the development of Gears of War, rather than improve the game engine for other developers. Epic also partnered up with EA, Midway and others during the era that it had success publishing with Microsoft. In its early days, Epic tried its hand as a publisher, putting out games developed by Safari Software, for instance. While the company’s telling of its history neatly matches that philosophy, it does leave out some of Epic’s experiments and failures over its 25 years. Each era has a specific focus, a key partner company and an approach to development. "I mean, I don't know if you've heard this part of the story, but Tim has this concept of Epic 1.0, Epic, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0," says Paul Meegan, Epic’s president.Įach iteration of Epic marks a new era for the company, the thinking goes and our cover illustration shows. He estimates that Epic Games should have already died three times, but a willingness to evolve and the constant support of the Unreal Engine has saved the company repeatedly.Īs Sweeney tells it, the ongoing metamorphosis of Epic Games is one driven by business acumen and attention to finance, but listen to anyone else and you’ll hear it’s Sweeney’s foresight that powers the motion of the North Carolina studio. Surviving for this long, says Tim Sweeney, requires change. But this latest era of Epic isn’t the first time the company has evolved. well, everything.Įpic Games has changed - in ways the company believes will mark the emergence of a new sort of game industry. Nearly four years after the move to 4.0, the company is ready to explain how the Epic of Gears of War and Bulletstorm is becoming the Epic of. And then there is everything else, from the company’s work with NASA to its recent deal involving using the engine to design elements of Walt Disney theme parks. There is the company’s push into television and movies, a move powered by that same development engine, which Epic says can now create lifelike models in real time for 3D and virtual reality needs. There is Epic’s now free up-front development engine, which they say is incredibly profitable. There is the necessity of virtual reality, technology that many at Epic say will be an integral part of the company’s future. At least, that’s the plan.īut now there is much more to Epic than just game making. The most recent, still unfurling version of Epic Games now wants to be what Bleszinski calls a "multi-headed hydra of technology."įor gaming, this latest change brings Epic almost full circle, back to a place where it deals directly with the people who play its creations. It’s all led to what Sweeney calls the biggest change in the 25-year-old company’s history: Epic 4.0. Months later, Bleszinski and a slew of other important figures left to retire, to start over, to find better fits. The month before, Tencent purchased 40 percent of the company. 4, 2012, the wedding photo booth captured a quiet, personal moment in the midst of what became a massive metamorphosis for Epic. "That photo was right before the transition," Bleszinski says. And in between the two founders is Cliff Bleszinski, arm wrapped around new wife Lauren, bow tie shining under a stubbled chin. Tim Sweeney, employee number one and the other founder of Epic, leans slightly away from the camera, head almost imperceptibly tilted down, smiling. There’s Mark Rein, Epic Games’ co-founder and deal maker, leaning in from the left side, a genuinely happy look on his still boyish face. In it, four beaming faces, all wide-eyed and smiling, look directly into the camera. It might be the last hurrah of us while we still worked together." ![]() T our wedding, I got one of the last photos of the three of us together.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |