Kuju Entertainment
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Kuju Entertainment | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Type | Public |
| Founded | 1998 |
| Headquarters | |
| Key people | Ian Baverstock: CEO |
| Industry | Video games |
| Website | Kuju Enterainment |
Kuju Entertainment is a British computer and video game corporation. Kuju Entertainment was formed after a management buyout of Simis from Eidos Interactive. They have collaborated with several companies on games for various platforms, including the Nintendo GameCube, Playstation 2, Wii, and the PC. Kuju helped develop EyeToy Play 2 and 3 for the PS2, the multiplayer mode in Call of Duty: Finest Hour, and Battalion Wars 2 for the Wii, as well as Dark Messiah of Might and Magic for PC. Kuju also developed the successful 2006 remake of Sensible Soccer.
Kuju Entertainment has seven studios, all but one located in the U.K.: Nik Nak (Guildford), doublesix (Guildford), Zoë Mode (Brighton), Kuju London, Chemistry (Sheffield) and Rail Simulator (Guildford) The seventh is located in San Francisco.
Kuju Entertainment is currently developing Rail Simulator for PC (a spiritual successor to Microsoft Train Simulator), and EyeToy Play Sports for the PS2. A PSP title, Traxion, has recently been canceled.
On 15 December 2006 it was announced a bid had been made for Kuju Entertainment by the German investment group Catalis. The offer was 25 pence cash for each Kuju share, with a total value of approximately GBP 4.375 million (6.53 million euro). Kuju's board of directors has unanimously recommended the offer to shareholders.[1]
On March 1, 2007, Kuju's Brighton development studio underwent a name change to Zoë Mode. Ed Daly, head of Zoë Mode, said: "We've created Zoë Mode; she is the personality that reflects our in-house philosophy of accessible, fun gaming for everyone." Zoë Mode does not represent one individual but represents the developers at the studio, the culture of the studio and the consumers, says Kuju. Kuju also said that Zoë Mode may undergo cosmetic changes but her character will remain the same.[2]
On 22 May 2007 it was announced that Kuju would be working on a much expanded sequel to Geometry Wars, for the Wii and Nintendo DS.[3]
On June 25 2007 it was announced that Kuju has rebranded its Sheffield studio as Chemistry and will be specialising in developing games based on the Unreal Engine 3 [4]
On January 1, 2008 Kuju announced the opening of its first US office in San Francisco run by John Kavanagh, erstwhile head of development at Domark and Eidos Interactive. [5]
