Ensemble Studios
From Halopedia, the Halo wiki
Ensemble Studios was a Microsoft-owned company that has developed several computer games, including the famous Age of Empires series. The company was founded in 1995 in Dallas by Tony Goodman, his brother, Rick Goodman, Bruce Shelley, and Brian Sullivan. After 2 years, it released its first game, Age of Empires. In May 2001, Microsoft acquired the company. The company employed about 100 people, including Bruce Shelley, Graeme Devine and Sandy Petersen.
The company cooperated with Bungie to create one of the three new Halo game projects; Halo Wars. Ensemble designed the entire game, with Bungie played a minor supporting role to ensure that the story fit in properly with the Halo universe.
On September 10, 2008, Ensemble Studios announced that it will be closing a short while after Halo Wars is finished. Dave Pottinger, Lead Designer of Halo Wars, issued a response assuring that the quality of the game should not be affected. Pottinger's response can be found on the home page of Halo Wars. Post-release support for the game is being provided by Robot Entertainment, where roughly half of Ensemble's crew went after the close.
| Name | Release Date | Genre |
|---|---|---|
| Age of Empires | 1997 | RTS (Real-time strategy) |
| Age of Empires: The Rise of Rome | 1998 | Expansion pack |
| Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings | 1999 | RTS |
| Age of Empires II: The Conquerors | 2000 | Expansion pack |
| Age of Mythology | 2002 | RTS |
| Age of Mythology: The Titans | 2003 | Expansion pack |
| Age of Empires III | 2005 | RTS |
| Age of Empires III: The WarChiefs | 2006 | Expansion pack |
| Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties | 2007 | Expansion pack |
| Halo Wars | 2009 | RTS |
| Untitled Halo MMO | Canceled |
MMORPG |
Known employees
Sources
- ^ Co-developed with Big Huge Games.
