Firesprite
Type | Subsidiary |
---|---|
Industry | Video games |
Founded | 2012 |
Headquarters | , |
Key people |
|
Services | Video game development |
Number of employees | 250+ (2021)[1] |
Parent | Sony Interactive Entertainment (2021–present) |
Website | Official website |
Firesprite is a video game developer formed by former members of the Studio Liverpool based in Liverpool, UK.[2][3][4]
History[]
Firesprite was founded by Graeme Ankers as Managing Director, Lee Carus as Art Director, Chris Roberts as Technical Director, Stuart Tilley as Game Director, and Stuart Lovegrove as Programming Director. The studio is staffed by some developers that were part of the original Studio Liverpool when it was still called Psygnosis and the five people in the studio's core leadership team have worked on games for every PlayStation console. Psygnosis was most well known for the Wipeout series.
In 2013, the team helped develop one of the launch titles for the PlayStation 4, an augmented reality game, The Playroom. Run Sackboy! Run! followed on mobile devices in 2014. Again in collaboration with SIE Japan Studio, and one of the launch titles for Playstation VR, The Playroom VR was created "by the same team that brought you The Playroom on PS4" and released in 2016.[5]
Following up in May 2019 it was announced that an update would be released soon for The Persistence. Launching as a free update for owners of the game, the Complete Edition will bring The Persistence to flat-screen TVs for the first time.[6]
In March 2021, the company announced a partnership with Cloud Imperium Games to work on "Theaters of War" (working title), a large scale Combined arms multiplayer game mode in development for their game Star Citizen.[7] Their partnership started in early 2019 after Cloud Imperium outlined their vision for the game mode.[7]
In September 2021, Sony Interactive Entertainment announced that it had acquired the studio.[1]
Leading staff[]
Directors/Co-Founders are Graeme Ankers, Lee Carus, Chris Roberts, Stuart Tilley, and Stuart Lovegrove.[2] Chris Roberts of Firesprite has no relationship to Chris Roberts (video game developer), the Founder and Chairman of their newest development partner, Cloud Imperium Games.
Development history[]
Title | Year | Platforms | Note(s) |
---|---|---|---|
The Playroom | 2013 | PlayStation 4 with PlayStation Camera | Additional work |
Run Sackboy! Run! | 2014 | PlayStation Vita, Android, iOS | |
The Playroom VR | 2016 | PlayStation 4 with PlayStation VR | Additional work |
Air Force Special Ops: Nightfall | 2017 | ||
The Persistence VR | 2018 | ||
The Persistence | 2020 | PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Windows | Enhanced edition released for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and Microsoft Windows in 2021 |
Star Citizen | TBA | Microsoft Windows | Theaters of War mode, co-developed with CIG |
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Why PlayStation is buying Firesprite, one of the UK's fastest growing studios". Gamesindustry.biz. 8 September 2021. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Hing, David. "SCE Liverpool devs form Firesprite". bit-gamer. bit-tech. Retrieved 6 December 2013.
- ^ Yin-Poole, Wesley (6 December 2013). "From the ashes of WipEout dev Studio Liverpool rises Firesprite". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Retrieved 6 December 2013.
- ^ http://uk.ign.com/articles/2013/12/05/firesprite-sonys-studio-liverpool-lives-again
- ^ https://blog.eu.playstation.com/2016/09/30/25-fun-facts-about-the-playroom-vr-warning-contains-bird-poop/
- ^ "The Persistence: Complete Edition". playstation.com. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Cloud Imperium Games and Firesprite Unveil Development Partnership for Star Citizen Multiplayer Mode". Firesprite. 18 March 2021. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
External links[]
- 2012 establishments in England
- British companies established in 2012
- Video game companies established in 2012
- Video game companies of the United Kingdom
- Video game development companies
- Sony Interactive Entertainment game studios
- 2021 mergers and acquisitions
- Companies based in Liverpool
- British subsidiaries of foreign companies