Supergiant Games

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Supergiant Games, LLC
TypePrivate
IndustryVideo games
Founded2009; 12 years ago (2009)
Founders
  • Amir Rao
  • Gavin Simon
Headquarters
San Francisco, California
,
U.S.
Key people
Amir Rao (studio operations)
ProductsBastion
Transistor
Pyre
Hades
Number of employees
20 (2018[1])
Websitesupergiantgames.com

Supergiant Games, LLC is an American video game developer and publisher based in San Francisco. It was founded in 2009 by Amir Rao and Gavin Simon, and is known for the critically acclaimed games Bastion, Transistor, Pyre and Hades.

History[]

Amir Rao, co-founder of Supergiant Games, in 2012

Supergiant Games was formed by Amir Rao and Gavin Simon in 2009. Both had been working at the Los Angeles studio of Electronic Arts, involved with the Command & Conquer series.[2] In 2009 they agreed to quit their job, move into the same house, and begin to work on a new game together. At that time, they had also hired musician Darren Korb for audio and music work.[3][4] They also used a number of freelancer programmers and developers they could call on for help at various times during the development of this first game.[5][6][7]

Their first game, Bastion, received high critical praise, including being listed among several "Game of the Year" lists from game journalists.[8] It was first shown in mid-development at the 2010 Penny Arcade Expo as part of its "PAX 10" highlight ten upcoming independently developed games.[6] This attracted several publishers who wanted to help distribute the game, but Supergiant Games found that Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment shared the same vision they had for the game. Supergiant selected them as their publishing partner, enabling them not only to distribute the game to Xbox Live Arcade but as a premiere title during the 2011 "Summer of Arcade" promotion.[9]

In March 2013, Supergiant Games announced their next title, Transistor, released on May 20, 2014. A promotion video was released March 19.[10] The game features a female protagonist, Red, in a cyberpunk-like city, who has acquired a powerful weapon that she is nearly killed for possessing.[11] The game features a similar isometric viewpoint to Bastion.[12] Transistor was similarly met with critical acclaim.[13]

In April 2016, Supergiant Games announced their third game Pyre, released on July 25, 2017, for Microsoft Windows, Linux and PlayStation 4. It was described as a party-based role playing game.[14] In a break from their previous games, Pyre does not use an isometric viewpoint; the player's party travels across a 2D overworld, and combat takes place on a separate arena. The combat system is also very different, being described as "fantasy basketball".[15] Pyre was again regarded fondly by critics and was named Game Informer's best indie game for that year.[citation needed]

Supergiant's next game, Hades, was revealed at The Game Awards 2018 and released on September 17, 2020, following an early access release from December 2018. Hades is an action roguelike game based on Greek mythology, where the player character Zagreus uses a combination of weapon, magic, and abilities to defeat enemies in procedurally-generated dungeons and escape from his father, Hades.[16] Hades was met with critical acclaim, selling over 1 million copies and reaching “universal acclaim” status on Metacritic;[17][18] with several awards won and was nominated for nine awards at The Game Awards 2020, winning two including Best Independent Game and Best Action. The game won the best game award at the 2021 Bafta Games Awards.[19]

Games developed[]

Year Title Platform(s)
2011 Bastion Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Nintendo Switch, Xbox 360, Xbox One, iOS
2014 Transistor Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Apple TV
2017 Pyre Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, PlayStation 4
2020 Hades Microsoft Windows, macOS, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5

References[]

  1. ^ Francis, Bryant (January 17, 2019). "Supergiant's fourth outing Hades introduces a more mature, organized dev process". Gamasutra. Retrieved January 17, 2019.
  2. ^ Wallace, Kimberley. "The Story Behind Supergiant Games' Bastion". Game Informer. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  3. ^ Jungreis, Max. "The cofounder of Supergiant, which created hit video game Hades, quit his job and moved in with his dad to make games. Here's how his team manages the workload in an industry struggling with burnout". Business Insider. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  4. ^ "The Holistic Master of Video Game Music: An Interview with Darren Korb". The Indie Game Website. March 9, 2018. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  5. ^ Caoili, Eric (March 12, 2010). "GDC: EA LA Vets Form Digital Download Dev Supergiant". Gamasutra. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b "From Command & Conquer to Bastion". Metro. September 3, 2010. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
  7. ^ Marie, Meagan (September 4, 2010). "SuperGiant's Bastion Is Beautiful". Game Informer. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
  8. ^ Anwer, Rizwan (January 3, 2012). "Bastion Sells 500,000 Copies And Wins Over 60 Awards". Wccftech. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  9. ^ Cullen, Johnny (July 19, 2011). "Supergiant: Warner "bought into" our "vision" of Bastion". VG247. Retrieved December 31, 2011.
  10. ^ Transistor – Reveal Trailer. YouTube. March 19, 2013.
  11. ^ "Transistor: The Giant Sword-Wielding Female Protagonist Game". The Mary Sue. May 17, 2014. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  12. ^ Nunneley, Stephany (March 19, 2013). "Transistor from Supergiant Games gets a reveal trailer". VG247. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
  13. ^ "Transistor Is Free on Epic Games Store Starting Today". Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  14. ^ Matulef, Jeffrey (April 19, 2016). "Bastion and Transistor dev announces RPG Pyre". Eurogamer. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
  15. ^ "Pyre is a mystical take on basketball from the team behind Transistor". TheVerge. Retrieved August 5, 2018.
  16. ^ Hasan, Maruf. "Hades has sold 1 million copies and that is no surprise". EIP Gaming. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  17. ^ Byford, Sam (December 6, 2018). "Hades is a new game from the makers of Pyre and Transistor, and it's out now in early access". The Verge. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  18. ^ Kerr, Chris. "Hades has sold over 1 million copies in under two years". www.gamasutra.com. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  19. ^ "Bafta Games Awards 2021: Hades takes Best Game". BBC News. March 25, 2021. Retrieved May 22, 2021.

External links[]

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