High Voltage Software

High Voltage Software
Independent video game developer
Industry Video games
Founded 1993
Founder Kerry Ganofsky, CEO
Headquarters Hoffman Estates, Illinois, United States
Owner Kerry Ganofsky, CEO
Number of employees
 95+
Subsidiaries Red Eye Studios
Website Official website

High Voltage Software (HVS) is an independent game development company established in 1993, located in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. Red Eye Studios, a motion capture facility, is a wholly owned subsidiary of HVS. High Voltage Software is known for the creation of the major self-funded Wii titles The Conduit and Animales de la Muerte,[1][2] and previously for Tempest 2000 and Star Trek: Starfleet Academy for Sega's late-1990s video game consoles.

The company frequently works with a number of different publishers as each project ends, typically producing completely new and unrelated products back to back. Inside Drive, Hunter and The Conduit are their only products to have seen sequels.[3]

In 2008 interviews, High Voltage leadership expressed interest in improving the quality of contemporary third-party Wii games. Chief Creative Officer Eric Nofsinger commented on the state of graphics on Wii, "Most of the games on the Wii look like crap. We want to change that, so we've invested heavily in our Wii tech over the past year." Founder Kerry Ganofsky was quoted as stating "We believe that third-party developers need to step up to the plate and deliver. The Wii platform is capable of a lot more than what consumers have seen so far. We're hoping to raise a new bar."[4] According to Chief Creative Officer Eric Nofsinger, "Our [High Voltage Software's] goal is to be the most technically innovative Wii developer on the planet."[5][6]

Quantum3 engine

Quantum3 is a Wii-specific game engine developed by HVS.[7] The engine itself had been used in several previous titles made by the developer, but was heavily upgraded for higher performance on the Wii.[8] This engine allows for "full 16-TEV stage material pipeline using up to eight texture sources and a host of innovative blend operations," and "allows the developer to create graphic effects normally seen on other consoles with vertex and pixel shaders." These effects include bump-mapping, reflection and refraction, light and shadow maps and projections, specular and Fresnel effects, emissive and iridescent materials, advanced alpha blends, gloss and detail mapping, motion blur, interactive water with complex surface effects, and animated textures, among other things.[5] The Quantum3 engine also includes advanced artificial intelligence, allowing for NPCs and enemies in a game using the engine to possess "human-like behavior."

Games developed

YearTitlePublisherPlatform(s)Genre(s)Rating
2015 Mortal Kombat X Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment X360, PS3, PC, Fighting game N/A
2015 Saints Row: Gat out of Hell (with Volition) Deep Silver Xbox One, PS4 Action-adventure 72.50%
2015 Saints Row IV: Re-Elected (with Volition) Deep Silver Xbox One, PS4 Action-adventure 72.50%
2014 The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Activision 3DS Action-adventure N/A
2013 Ben 10: Omniverse 2 D3 Publisher Wii U, Wii, PS3, Xbox 360, 3DS Fighting Game N/A
2013 Injustice: Gods Among Us Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment PC, PlayStation 4 Fighting game 80%[9]
2013 Saints Row IV: Enter the Dominatrix (with Volition) Deep Silver Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4, PS3, PC open world 68%
2013 Mortal Kombat Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment PC Fighting game 82%[10]
2013 Zoombies: Animales de la Muerte High Voltage Software iOS Shoot 'em up 79.67%[11]
2013 Le Vamp High Voltage Software iOS Platformer/Endless running game 71.98%[12]
2012 Victorious: Taking the Lead D3 Publisher Wii Adventure/Exploration N/A[13]
2012 Nickelodeon Dance 2 2K Play Wii, Xbox 360 Dance 40%[14]
2012 Toy Story Mania! MicroProse, Disney Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 Party 31%[15]
2012 Zone of the Enders HD Collection Konami Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 Action, Third-person shooter 77.27%[16]
2012 Kinect Star Wars LucasArts / Microsoft Studios Xbox 360 Action 53.32%[17]
2012 Country Dance All-Stars GameMill Publishing Xbox 360 Dancing game N/A[18]
2011 Country Dance 2 GameMill Publishing Wii Dancing game 60%[19]
2011 Country Dance GameMill Publishing Wii Dancing game N/A[20]
2011 Nicktoons MLB 2K Play Wii, Xbox 360 Baseball game 65%[21]
2011 Captain America: Super Soldier Sega Wii, Nintendo 3DS Action 58%[22]
2011 Conduit 2 Sega Wii First-person shooter 66%[23]
2010[24] Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (video game) Red Wagon Games Wii, Nintendo DS Adventure 15%[25]
2010[24] Tournament of Legends Sega Wii Versus fighting 49%[26]
2010 Iron Man 2[27] Sega Wii, PSP Action-Adventure 51%[28]
2009 The Conduit Sega Wii First-person shooter 72%[29]
2009 Evasive Space Akinai Games WiiWare Shoot 'em up 58%[30]
2009 High Voltage Hot Rod Show HVS WiiWare Racing 69%[31]
2008 Gyrostarr HVS WiiWare Shooter 71%[32]
2008 V.I.P. Casino: Blackjack HVS WiiWare Casino game 49%[33]
2008 Go, Diego, Go!: Safari Rescue 2K Play PlayStation 2, Wii Adventure 72%[34]
2007 America's Army: True Soldiers (with Red Storm Entertainment) Ubisoft Xbox 360 FPS 44%[35]
2007 Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 Ubisoft PSP Shooter 63%[36]
2007 Ben 10: Protector of Earth D3 Publisher PlayStation 2, Wii, PSP Action-adventure 58%[37]
2007 Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law Capcom PlayStation 2, Wii, PSP Visual novel 62%[38]
2006 Family Guy Video Game! 2K Games, Fox Interactive PlayStation 2, Xbox, PSP Adventure 50%[39]
2006 Blitz: Overtime Midway Games PSP Sports 61%[40]
2006 The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy Midway Games GameCube, PlayStation 2, GBA, Wii Fighting 60%[41]
2005 Codename: Kids Next Door – Operation: V.I.D.E.O.G.A.M.E. Global Star Software GameCube, Xbox, PlayStation 2 Platform 53%[42]
2005 Call of Duty 2: Big Red One (Content Port) Activision GameCube FPS 79%[43]
2005 50 Cent: Bulletproof G Unit Edition Vivendi Games PSP Action 54%[44]
2005 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Global Star Software PlayStation 2, Xbox, PC, GBA, GameCube Action-adventure 39%[45]
2005 Zathura 2K Games PlayStation 2, Xbox Action-adventure 45%[46]
2004 Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude Sierra Entertainment PlayStation 2, PC, Xbox Adventure 61%[47]
2004 Duel Masters Atari PlayStation 2 Collectible card game 65%[48]
2003 The Haunted Mansion TDK Mediactive PlayStation 2, Xbox, Nintendo GameCube Action-adventure 69%[49]
2003 NBA Inside Drive 2004 Microsoft Sports 75%[50]
2003 Hunter: The Reckoning: Redeemer Interplay Xbox Action, Hack and slash 73%[51]
2003 Hunter: The Reckoning: Wayward Interplay PlayStation 2 Action, Hack and slash 68%[52]
2002 Hunter: The Reckoning Interplay Xbox, GameCube Action, Hack and slash 72%[53]
2002 Disney's Stitch: Experiment 626 Disney Interactive PlayStation 2 Action 63%[54]
2002 NBA Inside Drive 2002 Microsoft Xbox Sports 78%[55]
2002 Monster Jam: Maximum Destruction Ubisoft PC Vehicular combat N/A[56]
2002 Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance (Content Port) Interplay GameCube Role-playing video game 79%[57]
2000 NFL Quarterback Club 2001 Acclaim Dreamcast, Nintendo 64 Sports N/A
2000 All-Star Baseball 2001 (with KnowWonder) Acclaim Nintendo 64 Sports 85%[58]
2000 Ground Control: Dark Conspiracy (with Massive Entertainment) Sierra Studios PC Real-time tactics 81%[59]
2000 NBA Inside Drive 2000 Microsoft PC Sports 74.85%[60]
1999 LEGO Racers LEGO Media Game Boy Color, PlayStation, N64, PC Racing 66%[61]
1999 Paperboy Midway Games N64 Action 67%[62]
1997 NCAA Final Four '97 Mindscape PlayStation, PC Sports 46%[63]
1997 World League Basketball Mindscape PlayStation, PC Sports 65%[64]
1996 Tempest X3 Interplay PlayStation Arcade 63%[65]
1996 Tempest 2000 Interplay Sega Saturn, Macintosh Arcade 78%[66]
1996 NBA Hangtime Midway Games PC Sports 57%[67]
1996 Fight For Life Atari Atari Jaguar Fighting N/A
1996 NBA Jam: Tournament Edition Midway Games Atari Jaguar Sports 69%[68]
1996 NHL Open Ice Midway Games PC Sports N/A
1995 Vid Grid Jasmine Atari Jaguar, Macintosh Puzzle N/A
1995 Star Trek: Starfleet Academy Interplay Sega 32X Simulation N/A
1995 Ruiner Pinball Atari Atari Jaguar Arcade 40%[69]
1995 Thea Realm Fighters Atari Atari Jaguar Fighting N/A
1995 White Men Can't Jump Atari Atari Jaguar Sports 50%[70]

References

  1. ↑ Matt Casamassina. "Exclusive First Look: The Conduit". IGN.
  2. ↑ Ross Miller. "The Conduit gameplay trailer released". Joystiq.
  3. ↑ "Official: SEGA Publishes The Conduit". IGN. 2008-10-29. Retrieved 2008-10-29.
  4. ↑ IGN: The Conduit Preview
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Casamassina, Matt (2008-04-17). "Exclusive First Look: The Conduit". IGN. Retrieved 2008-04-18.
  6. ↑ "High Voltage Software Lays Off Staff". Gamasutra.
  7. ↑ Magrino, Tom (2008-07-07). "Q&A: Eric Nofsinger channels The Conduit". Gamespot. Retrieved 2008-07-07.
  8. ↑ "High Voltage Software’s Eric Nofsinger Explains How Freedom, Feedback and Fans Channel into The Conduit". GameCyte. 2008-10-06. Retrieved 2008-10-08.
  9. ↑ "Injustice: Gods Among Us for PlayStation 4 Reviews - Metacritic". Metacritic. 2013-04-16. Retrieved 2013-04-16.
  10. ↑ "Mortal Kombat Komplete Edition for PC Reviews - Metacritic". Metacritic. 2013-07-03.
  11. ↑ "Zoombies: Animales de la Muerte! for iOS (iPhone/iPad)". GameRankings. 2013-05-02. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  12. ↑ "Le Vamp for iOS (iPhone/iPad)". GameRankings. 2013-03-14. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  13. ↑ "Victorious: Taking the Lead for Wii". GameRankings. 2012-11-13. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  14. ↑ "Nickelodeon Dance 2 for Xbox 360". GameRankings. 2012-11-06. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  15. ↑ "Toy Story Mania! for Xbox 360". GameRankings. 2012-10-30. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  16. ↑ "Zone of the Enders HD Collection for Xbox 360". GameRankings. 2012-10-30. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  17. ↑ "Kinect Star Wars for Xbox 360". GameRankings. 2012-04-03. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  18. ↑ "Country Dance All Stars for Xbox 360". GameRankings. 2012-03-27. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  19. ↑ "Country Dance 2 for Wii". GameRankings. 2011-11-01. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  20. ↑ "Country Dance for Wii". GameRankings. 2011-03-29. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  21. ↑ "Nicktoons MLB for Xbox 360". GameRankings. 2011-09-13. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  22. ↑ "Captain America: Super Soldier for Wii". GameRankings. 2011-07-19. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  23. ↑ "Conduit 2 for Wii". GameRankings. 2011-04-19. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 Matt Casamassina. "Pre-E3 2009: Gladiator A.D. Revealed". IGN.
  25. ↑ "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer for Wii". GameRankings. 2010-11-11. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  26. ↑ Tournament of Legends Reviews
  27. ↑ "High Voltage developing Wii version of Iron Man 2". GoNintendo.com. 2010-01-14. Retrieved 2010-05-02.
  28. ↑ Iron Man 2 Reviews
  29. ↑ The Conduit Reviews
  30. ↑ Evasive Space Reviews
  31. ↑ High Voltage Hot Rod Show Reviews
  32. ↑ Gyrostarr Reviews
  33. ↑ V.I.P. Casino Blackjack Reviews
  34. ↑ Go, Diego, Go!: Safari Rescue Reviews
  35. ↑ America's Army: True Soldiers Reviews
  36. ↑ Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 Reviews
  37. ↑ Ben 10: Protector of Earth Reviews
  38. ↑ Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law Reviews
  39. ↑ Family Guy Reviews
  40. ↑ Blitz: Overtime Reviews
  41. ↑ The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy Reviews
  42. ↑ Codename: Kids Next Door: Operation V.I.D.E.O.G.A.M.E. Reviews
  43. ↑ Call of Duty 2: Big Red One Reviews
  44. ↑ 50 Cent: Bulletproof G Unit Edition Reviews
  45. ↑ Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Reviews
  46. ↑ Zathura Reviews
  47. ↑ Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude Reviews
  48. ↑ Duel Masters Reviews
  49. ↑ The Haunted Mansion Reviews
  50. ↑ NBA Inside Drive 2004 Reviews
  51. ↑ Hunter: The Reckoning Redeemer Reviews
  52. ↑ Hunter: The Reckoning Wayward Reviews
  53. ↑ Hunter: The Reckoning Reviews
  54. ↑ Disney's Stitch: Experiment 626 Reviews
  55. ↑ NBA Inside Drive 2002 Reviews
  56. ↑ "Monster Jam: Maximum Destruction for PC". GameRankings. 2002-12-20. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  57. ↑ Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance Reviews
  58. ↑ All-Star Baseball 2001 Reviews
  59. ↑ Ground Control: Dark Conspiracy Reviews
  60. ↑ "NBA Inside Drive 2000 for PC". GameRankings. 2000-08-17. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  61. ↑ Lego Racers Reviews
  62. ↑ Paperboy Reviews
  63. ↑ NCAA Final Four 97 Reviews
  64. ↑ "NCAA Basketball Final Four 97 for PlayStation". GameRankings. 1997-03-31. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
  65. ↑ Tempest X3 Reviews
  66. ↑ Tempest 2000 Reviews
  67. ↑ NBA Hangtime Reviews
  68. ↑ NBA Jam Tournament Edition Reviews
  69. ↑ Ruiner Pinball Reviews
  70. ↑ White Men Can't Jump Reviews

External links