Ensemble Studios
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There is more information available on this subject at Ensemble Studios on the English Wikipedia. |
| Ensemble Studios | |
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Date founded: |
1995 |
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Date dissolved: |
2009 |
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Parent company: |
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Headquarters: |
Dallas, Texas, USA (Former) |
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Website: |
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Halo titles developed: |
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Ensemble Studios was a game studio known for the Age of Empires series and the developers of Halo Wars, the first real-time strategy game set in the Halo universe. The studio was disbanded in 2009, following the release of Halo Wars. A majority of studio's former employees moved to Robot Entertainment.
History[edit]
Origin and acquisition by Microsoft[edit]
The studio founded in 1995 in Dallas by Tony Goodman, his brother, Rick Goodman, Bruce Shelley, and Brian Sullivan. The studio released its first game, Age of Empires, after two years of operation. The game was well received by the gaming community at the time, establishing a venerable reputation for Ensemble as a leading real-time strategy developer.
In May 2001, the studio was acquired by Microsoft.[1] Under Microsoft till 2007, Ensemble developed their last Age of Empires title and Age of Mythology, a spin-off from the series.
Developing Halo Wars and closure[edit]
In 2007, Ensemble spent 12–18 months prototyping their Age of Mythology engine to experiment with the concept of a real-time strategy mechanics on a console.[2][3] The studio concluded the experimentation with the concept of a centralized user interface system and settled for micromanagement and base-building and restricted resource gathering and management to bases. These game mechanics were presented to Microsoft shortly after.[2] Microsoft, being risk-averse at the time, pressured Ensemble to rebrand their formerly original game as a Halo title.[4] Microsoft doubted that a real-time strategy game on a console could achieve adequate sales otherwise. This decision by Microsoft created a breakdown in relationship between Ensemble Studios and Bungie Studios.[4][Note 1] Regardless, the studio cooperated with Bungie Studios to develop Halo Wars.
On September 10, 2008, Ensemble Studios announced that it would be closing a short while after Halo Wars was released. Dave Pottinger, Lead Designer of Halo Wars, issued a response assuring that the quality of the game should not be affected. Post-release support for the game is being provided by Robot Entertainment, where a majority of Ensemble's employees went after the close.
List of games[edit]
Released[edit]
| Name | Release Date | Genre |
|---|---|---|
| Age of Empires | 1997 | Real-time strategy |
| Age of Empires: The Rise of Rome | 1998 | Expansion pack |
| Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings | 1999 | Real-time strategy |
| Age of Empires II: The Conquerors | 2000 | Expansion pack |
| Age of Mythology | 2002 | Real-time strategy |
| Age of Mythology: The Titans | 2003 | Expansion pack |
| Age of Empires III | 2005 | Real-time strategy |
| Age of Empires III: The WarChiefs | 2006 | Expansion pack |
| Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties | 2007 | Expansion pack |
| Halo Wars | 2009 | Real-time strategy |
Unreleased[edit]
| Name | Release Date | Genre |
|---|---|---|
| Titan (codename)[5] | Cancelled | MMORPG |
| Phoenix (codename) | Cancelled; turned into Halo Wars[5] | Real-time strategy |
| Halo Wars sequel | DLC expansions and sequel ideas; pitched but never developed | Real-time strategy |
| Sorcerer; Nova | Cancelled[5] | Dungeon crawler |
| Unnamed "pirate-themed take on Diablo" | Cancelled[5] | Dungeon crawler |
| Wrench | Cancelled[5] | Unknown |
| Bam | Cancelled[5] | Action-adventure |
| Agent | Cancelled[5] | Unknown |
Known employees[edit]
Notes[edit]
- ^ Ensemble Studios desired to use their novel game mechanics for an original title. This was denied by Microsoft, who suggested that the game would sell better as a Halo title. Bungie was discontent with Microsoft's decision of forcing the Halo intellectual property to be in a different genre. This led to their buy-out in 2007.
Sources[edit]
- ^ Gamespot: Microsoft to acquire Ensemble Studios
- ^ a b Gamasutra: Q&A: How Ensemble Gets Halo Fans To Appreciate Halo Wars
- ^ Worthplaying: "Halo Wars" (X360) Developer Interview Part 1
- ^ a b GameIndustry: Halo Wars: Bungie saw it as "whoring out franchise" says Ensemble founder
- ^ a b c d e f g Game Developer, Ensemble Studios: The Last Tour (Retrieved on Sep 21, 2021) [archive]
