Robot Entertainment
 | |
| Company type | Private (LLC) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Video game industry |
| Predecessor | Ensemble Studios |
| Founded | February 2009 |
| Headquarters | Plano, Texas, United States |
Key people | Tony Goodman, Patrick Hudson |
| Products | Age of Empires Online Orcs Must Die! Hero Academy |
Number of employees | 45 |
| Website | www |
Robot Entertainment is a video game publishing company created by the founders of the defunct Ensemble Studios, after being shut down by Microsoft.[1] Other members of the company founded Bonfire Studios. Robot Entertainment was responsible for maintaining and updating Halo Wars until February 28, 2010 when Microsoft Game Studios assumed control of the game servers and updates. Also, in January 2011, Microsoft Game Studios took over updates and servers for Age of Empires: III.
History
On 10 July 2010, the company announced that they are working on two games; the first of which will be published by Microsoft Game Studios, and will be an RTS game, similar to the Age of Empires series.[citation needed]
On 17 August 2010, the company announced the new game, Age of Empires Online. The game will feature a new stylized, 'cartoon' look, but Robot promised that it would still offer gameplay depth for fans of the franchise and would not alienate fans of the series. On 24 February 2011 it was announced that Gas Powered Games would be taking over the development on Age of Empires Online. Robot Entertainment President Patrick Hudson stated that handing over the development was expected, saying, "The plan was always to move to [an] original IP as soon as we had the ability to focus on our core business goal."[2]
On 24 February 2011, the company announced the new game Orcs Must Die!. The game "challenges players to defend fortresses under siege. With a wide variety of traps and weapons to choose from, Orcs Must Die! dares players to find the best ways to hack, launch, flatten, gibletize, and incinerate an endless army of filthy orcs and their vile allies. Orcs Must Die! features a vibrant look, addictive gameplay, and a blatant disregard for the welfare of orcs." The game is going to be published by Robot Entertainment as well as being self-developed by them.[3]
On 17 November 2011, the company announced the new game Hero Academy. The game will be "...a head-to-head tactics game for iOS devices. Blending classic tactics gaming with the quick action of modern casual titles." Hero Academy features multiplayer combat that "is asynchronous, so a player may battle friends across multiple simultaneous games, whenever they have a few moments of free time. Push notifications alert you to your turn – select your moves from a range of options, like advancing across the playing field, attacking, defending, or adding powerful items to the fray." It is the company's first game developed for mobile devices.[4]
Games
| Title | Genre | Release Date |
|---|---|---|
| Age of Empires Online[5] | Real-time strategy | 2011 |
| Orcs Must Die![6] | Tower defense | 2011 |
| Hero Academy[7][8] | Mobile game | 2012 |
| Orcs Must Die! 2 | Tower defense | 2012 |
References
- ^ "Official Website". Robot Entertainment. 2009-02-15. Retrieved 2009-02-13.
- ^ "Age of Empires Online swaps devs". PC Gamer. 2011-02-24. Retrieved 2011-03-27.
- ^ "Robot Entertainment Unveils Orcs Must Die!". Robot Entertainment. 2011-02-24. Retrieved 2011-03-04.
- ^ "Robot Entertainment Announces Hero Academy".
- ^ "Age of Empires Online". Robot Entertainment. Retrieved 2010-08-17.
- ^ "Ex-Age Of Empires Devs Working On A New Unknown Game". Robot Entertainment. Retrieved 2010-07-06.
- ^ http://www.robotentertainment.com/games/heroacademy
- ^ http://www.robotentertainment.com/blog/detail/Robot-Entertainment-Announces-Hero-Academy