Ratbag Games: Difference between revisions
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Revision as of 22:08, 18 March 2006
Ratbag Games Pty Ltd was an Australian developer of computer games such as Powerslide, The Dukes of Hazzard: Return of the General Lee and World of Outlaws: Sprint Cars 2002.
About The Company
Ratbag was founded in 1993 by Richard Harrison and Greg Siegele. Known initially as Emergent Games, the company took 3 years to prototype their first title Powerslide. The company continued to be located in Adelaide, South Australia, but was then known as Midway Studios - Australia following its acquisition by Midway Games on August 4th, 2005. Employees at the studio were told on December 13th , 2005 that Ratbag was going to be closed by its parent company, and subsequently was two days later on the 15th, leaving the staff employed there without a job.
About The Games
Ratbag made a name for itself with its debut title Powerslide. The arcade racer, set in a post-apocalyptic future was one of the first PC titles to support 3D Acceleration, and met with critical if not commercial success. A slew of PC racing titles followed over the years, and before too long Ratbag found itself "typecast" as a simulation racing developer.
With the arrival of the PlayStation 2 in late 2000, Ratbag saw an opportunity to move into the lucrative console market. World of Outlaws: Sprint Cars 2002 was the first of several PlayStation 2 titles developed and released, with a handful of titles going unpublished, most notably the follow up to Powerslide, Powerslide: Slipstream.
The last title developed by Ratbag (prior to their acquisition) was The Dukes of Hazzard: Return of the General Lee for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. The "Adventure/Racing" title was the first Ratbag title to break from the simulation tradition set forth by previous titles and features simple "on-foot" gameplay in addition to various story-driven racing missions. The Dukes of Hazzard: Return of the General Lee garnered bad reviews.
Games Releases
- Powerslide PC
- Dirt Track Racing PC
- Dirt Track Racing: Sprint Cars PC
- Dirt Track Racing 2 PC
- Leadfoot PC
- Holden Dirt Track Racing Australia PC
- World of Outlaws: Sprint Cars 2002 PS2
- Saturday Night Speedway -PS2 & PC
- The Dukes of Hazzard: Return of the General Lee PS2 & Xbox
External links
- Ratbag Games website.
- Midway Games website.
- News Report Midway closes Ratbag