Firefly Studios
Encyclopedia
Firefly Studios is a computer game
developer
that has offices in London
, England
and Canton, Connecticut
, with a QA department in Aberdeen
, Scotland
. The Company was formed in August 1999 by Simon Bradbury, Eric Ouellette and David Lester who had worked together on numerous titles such as the highly successful Caesar and Lords of the Realm series. Upon forming, Firefly released a mission statement that set out their vision for their company:
"FireFly Studios goal is to create compelling new worlds for people to play in. We aim to provide a richer environment for the player by continually increasing the level of visual and coded detail in our game worlds. Our expertise is in creating strategy based sim games and we will continue to evolve the genre by combining detailed visuals, in depth game play, compelling characters and an easy learning curve. If we have done our job well, players will be able to see the world they have built come to life and take on a personality of its own".
The company has focused on historic real-time strategy
titles for the PC and Macintosh systems, and is best known for its Stronghold series of games. Stronghold 3
was officially announced on May 14, 2010 by SouthPeak Interactive
for a Spring 2011 release. It has been confirmed that the game is using the Vision Game Engine as its development platform.
managed to maintain the high standards of the original.
The company has however struggled to recreate the popularity of its original Stronghold and Stronghold: Crusader titles; Stronghold 2
and Stronghold Legends
both reviewed poorly with metascores of 63% and 57% respectively, and the last of the series, Stronghold: Crusader Extreme
, has received the worst reviews to date, receiving average 40% scores. Their latest title Stronghold 3 has again have negative reviews on multiple gaming sites and by fans for errors in the game (i.e. Hard to build walls, no kingmaker, etc.). Although many errors with this game, Firefly Studios is saying they will try to patch this game every week.
A brief collaboration with Firaxis Games
produced CivCity: Rome
, which again reviewed poorly, and was in fact the last Firefly title published by Take-Two Interactive
.
, being developed for the PC and Xbox 360 systems, has been in development for several years. Originally being published by Gamecock Media Group
until they were bought out by SouthPeak Interactive in October 2008, this spurred a legal squabble on the subject of ownership of the game. Dungeon Hero is currently without a publisher despite SouthPeak publishing every other Gamecock title due for release. Firefly Studios have announced that the title is 'on hold', and with the last of several planned release dates having passed, it has further fuelled speculation that this title is now a vaporware
title.
The latest title, Stronghold Kingdoms
, is Firefly's first foray into the MMO
genre and was launched as an open beta in November 2010.
Firefly has also previously stated in 2008 that they would be working on Stronghold 3 then Crusader 2 due to the high demand by fans but only after the completion of Dungeon Hero. In 2009 when asked if they had any other unannounced game in development other than Dungeon Hero and Stronghold Kingdoms, the answer was that they still had one more game in development. In Firefly's second newsletter, they stated that they had "something very big in the pipeline" which will be revealed in 2010.
Stronghold 3
was officially announced on May 14, 2010 by SouthPeak Interactive for a October 2011 release.
Personal computer game
A PC game, also known as a computer game, is a video game played on a personal computer, rather than on a video game console or arcade machine...
developer
Video game developer
A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...
that has offices in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Canton, Connecticut
Canton, Connecticut
Canton is a rural town, incorporated in 1806, in Hartford County, Connecticut. The population was 8,840 at the 2000 census, and has grown to 10,292 as of the 2010 census. It is bordered by Granby on the north, Simsbury on the east, Avon and Burlington on the south, New Hartford on the west, and...
, with a QA department in Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. The Company was formed in August 1999 by Simon Bradbury, Eric Ouellette and David Lester who had worked together on numerous titles such as the highly successful Caesar and Lords of the Realm series. Upon forming, Firefly released a mission statement that set out their vision for their company:
"FireFly Studios goal is to create compelling new worlds for people to play in. We aim to provide a richer environment for the player by continually increasing the level of visual and coded detail in our game worlds. Our expertise is in creating strategy based sim games and we will continue to evolve the genre by combining detailed visuals, in depth game play, compelling characters and an easy learning curve. If we have done our job well, players will be able to see the world they have built come to life and take on a personality of its own".
The company has focused on historic real-time strategy
Real-time strategy
Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
titles for the PC and Macintosh systems, and is best known for its Stronghold series of games. Stronghold 3
Stronghold 3
Stronghold 3 is a 2011 real-time strategy computer game developed by Firefly Studios and published by SouthPeak Games. The game is the seventh in the series after several spin-offs, a remake and an MMORTS. It is the sequel to Stronghold, released in 2001, and Stronghold 2 released in 2005...
was officially announced on May 14, 2010 by SouthPeak Interactive
SouthPeak Interactive
SouthPeak Games is a video game publisher of titles in Europe and North America.-History:SouthPeak Games, which was originally a subsidiary of SAS Institute, has been publishing games since 1996 and has worked with multiple development studios, including EAI Interactive, Psyonix Studios and...
for a Spring 2011 release. It has been confirmed that the game is using the Vision Game Engine as its development platform.
History
Firefly's first title, Stronghold was wildly successful both critically and commercially, and the sequel Stronghold: CrusaderStronghold: Crusader
Stronghold: Crusader is the successor to Firefly Studios's 2001 game Stronghold. Crusader has much in common with the original Stronghold, but differs from its predecessor in the fact that the game is no longer set in a pseudo-Europe, instead being set in the Middle East during the Crusades...
managed to maintain the high standards of the original.
The company has however struggled to recreate the popularity of its original Stronghold and Stronghold: Crusader titles; Stronghold 2
Stronghold 2
Stronghold 2 is a real time strategy computer game released in April 2005 in which the player develops a stronghold in the middle ages. It is the sequel to Stronghold, released in 2001, also by Firefly Studios....
and Stronghold Legends
Stronghold legends
Stronghold Legends is a castle-based real-time strategy game by Firefly Studios. It follows in the series of Stronghold and Stronghold 2.-Gameplay:...
both reviewed poorly with metascores of 63% and 57% respectively, and the last of the series, Stronghold: Crusader Extreme
Stronghold: Crusader Extreme
-Reception:The game's new features for the original Stronghold Crusader, including new characters, campaigns, and other features, were generally well-received by the public, but game critics criticized the game for difficulty, lack of new audio, and not having graphical quality up to par for a game...
, has received the worst reviews to date, receiving average 40% scores. Their latest title Stronghold 3 has again have negative reviews on multiple gaming sites and by fans for errors in the game (i.e. Hard to build walls, no kingmaker, etc.). Although many errors with this game, Firefly Studios is saying they will try to patch this game every week.
A brief collaboration with Firaxis Games
Firaxis Games
Firaxis Games is a computer game developer. It was founded in 1996 by Sid Meier, Jeff Briggs, and Brian Reynolds upon leaving MicroProse. The company focuses on strategy games and is based in Sparks, Maryland in the United States....
produced CivCity: Rome
CivCity: Rome
CivCity: Rome is a city building strategy game by Firefly Studios and Firaxis. As a collaboration between Firefly Studios and Firaxis Games, the game invites players to shift focus from building a multi-city empire and zoom-in on the great cities of the Roman Empire, culminating in Rome itself...
, which again reviewed poorly, and was in fact the last Firefly title published by Take-Two Interactive
Take-Two Interactive
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. is a major American publisher, developer, and distributor of video games and video game peripherals. Take-Two wholly owns 2K Games and Rockstar Games. The company's headquarters are in New York City, with international headquarters in Windsor, United Kingdom...
.
Future
The highly publicised title, Dungeon HeroDungeon Hero
Dungeon Hero was to have been a hack-and-slash role-playing video game developed by Firefly Studios and published by Gamecock Media Group. It had been in development for several years and had been scheduled to be released in 2009 for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360...
, being developed for the PC and Xbox 360 systems, has been in development for several years. Originally being published by Gamecock Media Group
Gamecock Media Group
Gamecock Media Group was a video game publisher based in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 2007 by video game industry veterans Mike Wilson, Harry Miller, and Rick Stults, original founders of Gathering of Developers. They used a more hands-off approach and allowed developers creative freedom with...
until they were bought out by SouthPeak Interactive in October 2008, this spurred a legal squabble on the subject of ownership of the game. Dungeon Hero is currently without a publisher despite SouthPeak publishing every other Gamecock title due for release. Firefly Studios have announced that the title is 'on hold', and with the last of several planned release dates having passed, it has further fuelled speculation that this title is now a vaporware
Vaporware
Vaporware is a term in the computer industry that describes a product, typically computer hardware or software, that is announced to the general public but is never actually released nor officially canceled. Vaporware is also a term sometimes used to describe events that are announced or predicted,...
title.
The latest title, Stronghold Kingdoms
Stronghold Kingdoms
Stronghold Kingdoms is a massively multi-player online real time strategy game with a Medieval castle building theme. It was developed by Firefly Studios and based upon their commercially successful and popular Stronghold series of games. Firefly Studios started development of Stronghold...
, is Firefly's first foray into the MMO
Massively multiplayer online game
A massively multiplayer online game is a multiplayer video game which is capable of supporting hundreds or thousands of players simultaneously. By necessity, they are played on the Internet, and usually feature at least one persistent world. They are, however, not necessarily games played on...
genre and was launched as an open beta in November 2010.
Firefly has also previously stated in 2008 that they would be working on Stronghold 3 then Crusader 2 due to the high demand by fans but only after the completion of Dungeon Hero. In 2009 when asked if they had any other unannounced game in development other than Dungeon Hero and Stronghold Kingdoms, the answer was that they still had one more game in development. In Firefly's second newsletter, they stated that they had "something very big in the pipeline" which will be revealed in 2010.
Stronghold 3
Stronghold 3
Stronghold 3 is a 2011 real-time strategy computer game developed by Firefly Studios and published by SouthPeak Games. The game is the seventh in the series after several spin-offs, a remake and an MMORTS. It is the sequel to Stronghold, released in 2001, and Stronghold 2 released in 2005...
was officially announced on May 14, 2010 by SouthPeak Interactive for a October 2011 release.
Games
- Stronghold (2001)
- Stronghold: CrusaderStronghold: CrusaderStronghold: Crusader is the successor to Firefly Studios's 2001 game Stronghold. Crusader has much in common with the original Stronghold, but differs from its predecessor in the fact that the game is no longer set in a pseudo-Europe, instead being set in the Middle East during the Crusades...
(2002) - Space Colony (2003)
- Stronghold 2Stronghold 2Stronghold 2 is a real time strategy computer game released in April 2005 in which the player develops a stronghold in the middle ages. It is the sequel to Stronghold, released in 2001, also by Firefly Studios....
(2005) - CivCity: RomeCivCity: RomeCivCity: Rome is a city building strategy game by Firefly Studios and Firaxis. As a collaboration between Firefly Studios and Firaxis Games, the game invites players to shift focus from building a multi-city empire and zoom-in on the great cities of the Roman Empire, culminating in Rome itself...
(2006) - Stronghold LegendsStronghold legendsStronghold Legends is a castle-based real-time strategy game by Firefly Studios. It follows in the series of Stronghold and Stronghold 2.-Gameplay:...
(2006) - Stronghold: Crusader ExtremeStronghold: Crusader Extreme-Reception:The game's new features for the original Stronghold Crusader, including new characters, campaigns, and other features, were generally well-received by the public, but game critics criticized the game for difficulty, lack of new audio, and not having graphical quality up to par for a game...
(2008) - Stronghold KingdomsStronghold KingdomsStronghold Kingdoms is a massively multi-player online real time strategy game with a Medieval castle building theme. It was developed by Firefly Studios and based upon their commercially successful and popular Stronghold series of games. Firefly Studios started development of Stronghold...
(2011) - Stronghold 3Stronghold 3Stronghold 3 is a 2011 real-time strategy computer game developed by Firefly Studios and published by SouthPeak Games. The game is the seventh in the series after several spin-offs, a remake and an MMORTS. It is the sequel to Stronghold, released in 2001, and Stronghold 2 released in 2005...
(2011) - Dungeon HeroDungeon HeroDungeon Hero was to have been a hack-and-slash role-playing video game developed by Firefly Studios and published by Gamecock Media Group. It had been in development for several years and had been scheduled to be released in 2009 for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360...
(TBA) - Stronghold: Crusader 2 (TBA)
External links
- Firefly Studios Official Homepage
- Firefly Studios profile on MobyGamesMobyGames-Platforms not yet included:- Further reading :* Rusel DeMaria, Johnny L. Wilson, High Score!: The Illustrated History of Electronic Games, McGraw-Hill/Osborne Media; 2 edition , ISBN 0-07-223172-6...