| Type | Subsidiary of Catalis S.E.[1] |
|---|---|
| Industry | Video game industry |
| Founded | 1998 |
| Headquarters | Shalford, Surrey, United Kingdom |
| Products | Video games |
| Owner(s) | Catalis S.E. |
| Parent | Catalis S.E. |
| Website | Kuju Entertainment |
Kuju Entertainment is an English computer and video game corporation consisting of three studios, two of which are located in the UK: Zoë Mode (Brighton), Headstrong Games (London), and one in the Czech Republic: Vatra games (Brno). Each studio concentrates on a specific theme or genre.
Historically Headstrong Games has focused on "Character Action" games with releases on the Wii with House of the Dead: Overkill and Battalion Wars 2. More recently it has released the Art Academy series of titles on the Nintendo DS.
Vatra Games is the newest development group within the Kuju family of studios and is located in the Czech Republic. The focus is on action titles for the Xbox® 360, PLAYSTATION®3 and PC. Vatra is currently working on Silent Hill: Downpour and one unannounced title.
Zoë Mode makes music and party videogames, including the SingStar and Disney Sing It franchises but has also released games such as Chime (video game) and Crush (video game). Zoe Mode is currently hard at work on the next title in the Zumba fitness series.
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Kuju Entertainment was formed after a management buyout of Simis from Eidos Interactive. They have collaborated with the majority of top tier publishers and continue to develop for all the major platforms. Kuju helped develop EyeToy: Play 2 and EyeToy: Play 3 for the PlayStation 2, the multiplayer mode in Call of Duty: Finest Hour, Battalion Wars for the Nintendo GameCube, and Battalion Wars 2 for the Wii, as well as the multiplayer component of Dark Messiah of Might and Magic for PC. Kuju also developed the 2006 remake of Sensible Soccer.
In 2007 Kuju Entertainment developed Rail Simulator for PC (a spiritual successor to Microsoft Train Simulator), and EyeToy Play Sports for the PS2. A PSP title, Traxion, was cancelled in January 2007.[2]
On 15 December 2006, it was announced that a bid had been made for Kuju Entertainment by the German investment group Catalis. The offer was 0.25 GBP for each Kuju share, with a total value of approximately £4.375 million (6.53 million euro). Kuju's board of directors has unanimously recommended the offer to shareholders.[3]
On 1 March 2007, Kuju's Brighton development studio underwent a rebranding from Wide Games 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.[4]
On 22 May 2007 it was announced that Kuju would be working on a much expanded sequel to Geometry Wars, called Geometry Wars: Galaxies, for the Wii and Nintendo DS.[5]
On 25 June 2007, it was announced that Kuju has re-branded its Sheffield studio as Chemistry and will be specialising in developing games based on the Unreal Engine 3.[6]
On 1 January 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.[7]
On 29 July 2008, Kuju announced a name change for its studio in London. Named Headstrong Games, it was initially focused on Wii titles, releasing The House of the Dead: Overkill for Sega and Aragorn's Quest for WB. Recent releases include the million selling Nintendo DS title, Art Academy.
On 21 October 2008, Kuju announced the acquisition of Matahari Studios in Manila, Philippines. The developer has been rebranded as Kuju Manila and will primarily support the projects of Kuju's other seven studios.[8]
On 07 April 2010, Kuju announces that Nigel Robbins takes over the CEO role as Jonathan Newth and Ian Baverstock step down to become non-exec directors. [9]