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Big Huge Games in sizable peril

By Brendan Sinclair, GameSpotPosted Mar 18, 2009 9:50 am PT

THQ confirms plans to sell or close Rise of Nations dev, spins off Heavy Iron and Incinerator Studios into independent businesses.

THQ has revealed the final phase of its massive business realignment. The publisher confirmed that it will thin its internal ranks by another three studios one way or another.

Hopefully Big Huge winds up in better shape than these guys from Rise of Legends.

As reported by Crispy Gamer and confirmed by GameSpot, THQ informed developers at Maryland-based Big Huge Games that it will close down the studio if a buyer isn't found in the near future. If that happens, employees at the studio will be given 60 days' notice. Additionally, THQ is spinning off two of its California studios--Los Angeles-based Heavy Iron and Carlsbad-based Incinerator--as independent companies.

"These actions were unfortunate but were necessitated by the difficult economic environment," the company said in a statement. These moves should bring to completion plans THQ announced in February to cut nearly one-quarter of its worldwide work force, some 600 people.

"With the completion of these actions, we will have achieved all of the actions contemplated within the previously announced cost reductions," a representative told GameSpot.

Big Huge Games was founded in 2000 by a quartet of PC strategy-game developers whose credits included Alpha Centauri, Civilization, Civilization II, and Gettysburg. The developer is best known for its work on Rise of Nations and the fantasy follow-up Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends. More recently, the studio was responsible for the Xbox Live Arcade game Catan, and has been developing an untitled role-playing game with Ken Rolston, lead designer on The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. THQ acquired the company in January 2008.

Although Big Huge Games was acquired by THQ after it had a proven track record, Heavy Iron and Incinerator were the publisher's own creations. THQ founded Heavy Iron in 1999 and set the company to work creating games based on its licensed properties. The studio has created games based on SpongeBob SquarePants, Scooby-Doo, and numerous Pixar films, including The Incredibles, Ratatouille, and Wall-E. Established in 2006, Incinerator produced the Wii version of Cars.

113 Comments

  • september_basic

    Posted Nov 28, 2009 6:39 pm PT

    Big Huge Games is not worth the millions of dollars they require. To be honest, Big Huge Games is strongly derivative and their best work is just a minor addition to RTS style games, drawing from game-play already existing in boardgames and other computer games.

    We owe nothing to THQ though. They're even more derivative than Big Huge Games. It would make more sense for BHG to split from THQ. I think THQ firing BHG is probably like the guy in the study group who gets a D trying to kick out the guy who gets a C. Even though it's not really graded on a curve.

    In essence, we are watching the mediocre big publishers panic and get rid of people who are only slightly less mediocre.

  • arc_salvo

    Posted Mar 24, 2009 4:39 am PT

    Big Huge Hames in "Sizeable Peril". Huh. Don't they mean "Big Huge Games in -BIG HUGE- Peril?"

    That's what I would've have written as the title to this article if I was in charge. But then again, I have absolutely no taste or imagination.

    In any case, I sure hope someone buys them out or THQ changes its mind. I really like Big Huge Games's games, and I'm really interested in seeing what kind of RPG they could make with the lead designer of Oblivion.

  • zyxomma100

    Posted Mar 22, 2009 6:01 pm PT

    This is sad. Rise of Nations is a great RTS, and I don't believe there's been a better one created since its launch.

    As for Heavy Iron, I wish them the best of luck. I played Spongebob Squarepants: Battle for Bikini Bottom for some reason and it was a surprisingly fun platformer.

  • norabbitnofun

    Posted Mar 21, 2009 9:56 am PT

    I agree with stanleyCG1_2. And it happened with a company I worked for too, many times - bought a fine-doing company and either took apart its activity or stopped it after some kind of financial analysis. This really, really is one of the bad sides of our capitalistic economy.

  • zgreenwell

    Posted Mar 20, 2009 5:36 am PT

    THQ could have had them release the Catan expansions everyone was expecting, but never got.

  • stanleyCG1_2

    Posted Mar 20, 2009 4:54 am PT

    So basically they were doing fine untill THQ got involved. lol

  • Crazy_Guns

    Posted Mar 20, 2009 2:01 am PT

    Rise of Nations is one of the best RTS games I've ever played! Was so much fun lining up archers or musketeers and having huge battles that way. I wish only the best for them in the future.

  • strayfies

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 6:53 pm PT

    I hadn't heard of their work since Rise of Legends, that's probably also indicative of what they should not be doing. That and RoN were great, I wish they'd get behind more solid original titles like those. Might be what saves them, by the sound of it.

  • Roken1

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 4:29 pm PT

    This was going to happen sooner or later. Everyone knows that THQ bought out Big Huge Games because it wanted less competitors in the RTS genre. Now the economy is giving THQ the perfect excuse to shut BHG down completely.

  • AcolyteV1

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 2:25 pm PT

    I agree with Avenger1324 completely; they bought the company one year ago, only to drop it in the name of the economic meltdown (and the huge amount of bandwagon corporate politics that's coming with it). Really disappointing and annoying. You'd really hope the company would have a little more foresight.

  • thibbledorfP

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 2:23 pm PT

    Heavy Iron and Incinerator make those crappy movie-based games that are never above mediocre, at best. BHG' list is impressive, and includes some great strategy titles. Publishers either don't realize the massive interest there is in great strategy titles, or consumers need to stop purchasing crap games and get exposed to quality ones more. I mean not all the games listed under BHG were great, but most were. Rise of nations? Employees who worked on Alpha Centauri and Civ 2? Yes please.

  • tidyspidey

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 11:37 am PT

    Hmm.... I agree that the title of the news thread could have been a bit more tasteful, though you read far worse in tabloids every single day... that doesn't mean others have to join in though, I suppose.

    It's always sad to hear about those being made redundant as I've been through it... lets hope that if the worst happens, it turns out to be a positive change and those individuals can move on to even better things

  • baystatethrashr

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 11:24 am PT

    rise of nations is a great game that needs a sequal badly

  • digitalheadbutt

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 11:18 am PT

    I agree with lilmp, a bunch folks losing their jobs in this effed up economy is no very funny. Hopefully they gte picked up so those guys don't add to teh already soaring unemployment rate.

    James

  • Blue78

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 10:29 am PT

    @lilmp89

    It's a play on words and it's true. Are you saying they aren't in sizable peril? If you're going to find something to whine about, find something that actually matters.

  • lilmp89

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 10:14 am PT

    Humerous article titles are not amusing concerning quite serious issues...
    Best of luck to BHG

  • Mandalore_15

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 10:05 am PT

    Can't say I'm gonna shed any tears over Heavy Iron and Incinerator. You'd think that with cool names like that they wouldn't be spewing out the kind of crap listed in this article.

  • halomonkey1_3_5

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 10:04 am PT

    this sucks...i wish they would just let them make another RTS...

  • FlakeyCrust

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 10:01 am PT

    I just hope Red Faction: Guerrilla is killer.

  • Gamesterpheonix

    Posted Mar 19, 2009 9:58 am PT

    Is it just me or are all the RTS developers getting the Axe? Thank god for Blizzard. At least they will give us good games. Poor everybody else.

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