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Introversion Software
Introversion Software Limited is a British video game developer based in Walton-on-Thames, England. History The company was founded in 2001 by three friends, Chris Delay, Mark Morris, and Thomas Arundel, who met as undergraduates at Imperial College London. The company originally labelled itself "the last of the bedroom programmers" due to the trio working out of their homes - they moved into an office when working on their fourth game, '' Multiwinia''. Their first released video game, ''Uplink'', was programmed and designed almost exclusively by Chris, while Mark and Tom handled marketing, materials and the other business elements. Their small initial investment enabled them to buy CD-Rs and printer cartridges. Early copies of the game were handmade. The company was able to fully make back their investment within a few hours of accepting orders. A large community formed and the team, along with a new programmer Andy Bainbridge, started work on two new games. '' Darwinia'' wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Privately Held Company
A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in the respective listed markets, but rather the company's stock is offered, owned, traded, exchanged privately, or Over-the-counter (finance), over-the-counter. In the case of a closed corporation, there are a relatively small number of shareholders or company members. Related terms are closely-held corporation, unquoted company, and unlisted company. Though less visible than their public company, publicly traded counterparts, private companies have major importance in the world's economy. In 2008, the 441 list of largest private non-governmental companies by revenue, largest private companies in the United States accounted for ($1.8 trillion) in revenues and employed 6.2 million people, according to ''Forbes''. In 2005, using a substantially smaller pool size (22.7%) for comparison, the 339 companies on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Steam (service)
Steam is a video game digital distribution service and storefront by Valve. It was launched as a software client in September 2003 as a way for Valve to provide automatic updates for their games, and expanded to distributing and offering third-party game publishers' titles in late 2005. Steam offers various features, like digital rights management (DRM), game server matchmaking, anti-cheat measures, social networking and game streaming services. It provides the user with automatic game updating, saved game cloud synchronization, and community features such as friends messaging, in-game chat and a community market. Valve released a freely available application programming interface (API) called Steamworks in 2008, which developers can use to integrate Steam's functions into their products, including in-game achievements, microtransactions, and user-created content support. Initially developed for Microsoft Windows operating systems, Steam was released for macOS in 2010 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
UK Insolvency Law
United Kingdom insolvency law regulates companies in the United Kingdom which are unable to repay their debts. While UK bankruptcy law concerns the rules for natural persons, the term insolvency is generally used for companies formed under the Companies Act 2006. "Insolvency" means being unable to pay debts. Since the Cork Report of 1982, the modern policy of UK insolvency law has been to attempt to rescue a company that is in difficulty, to minimise losses and fairly distribute the burdens between the community, employees, creditors and other stakeholders that result from enterprise failure. If a company cannot be saved it is "liquidated", so that the assets are sold off to repay creditors according to their priority. The main sources of law include the Insolvency Act 1986, the Insolvency Rules 1986 (replaced in England and Wales from 6 April 2017 by the Insolvency Rules (England and Wales) 2016 – see below), the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986, the Employment ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Darwinia+
''Darwinia'' is a 2005 real-time tactics and real-time strategy video game for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. It is the second game developed by Introversion Software, and is set within a computer environment that simulates artificial intelligence. It received favourable reviews and won three awards at the 2006 Independent Games Festival. A multiplayer sequel, '' Multiwinia'', was released for Windows in 2008. ''Darwinia'' and ''Multiwinia'' were released together as ''Darwinia+'' for the Xbox 360 in 2010. Plot ''Darwinia'' was created as a digital theme world for artificially intelligent polygons by Dr. Sepulveda. Housed in a massive network of surplus Protologic 68000 machines from the 1980s, Darwinia is a world where the single-poly Darwinians, with their simple, but growing AI, can grow and evolve. Darwinia is also where the world can visit to see them frolicking in their natural, fractal habitat. A Darwinian lives a life working and growing, until the eventual death ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Game Developer (magazine)
''Game Developer'' was a magazine for video game creators, originally started in March 1994 by Miller Freeman, Inc as quarterly, later bimonthly, and finally monthly. In each issue, industry leaders and experts shared technical solutions, reviewed new game development tools, and discussed strategies for creating innovative, successful video games. Monthly postmortems dissected the industry's leading games, from AAA console to social and mobile games and beyond, and columns gave insight into deeper development practices from across all disciplines, from design, to programming, to art, to business, and audio. It was closed in 2013 as part of a restructuring at parent company UBM Tech (part of UBM plc) that included the closing of all print publications owned by that company. Contents The magazine contained articles on professional game development topics relating to game programming, art, audio, quality control, design, and production. Monthly columns from industry veterans offe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Digital Distribution
Digital distribution, also referred to as content delivery, online distribution, or electronic software distribution, among others, is the delivery or distribution of digital media content such as audio, video, e-books, video games, and other software. The term is generally used to describe distribution over an online delivery medium, such as the Internet, thus bypassing physical distribution methods, such as paper, optical discs, and VHS videocassettes. The term online distribution is typically applied to freestanding products; downloadable add-ons for other products are more commonly known as downloadable content. With the advancement of network bandwidth capabilities, online distribution became prominent in the 21st century, with prominent platforms such as Amazon Video, and Netflix's streaming service starting in 2007. Content distributed online may be streamed or downloaded, and often consists of books, films and television programs, music, software, and video game ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Valve Corporation
Valve Corporation is an American video game developer, publisher, and digital distribution company headquartered in Bellevue, Washington. It is the developer of the software distribution platform Steam and the franchises ''Half-Life'', '' Counter-Strike'', '' Portal'', '' Day of Defeat'', '' Team Fortress'', '' Left 4 Dead'' and ''Dota''. Valve was founded in 1996 by former Microsoft employees Gabe Newell and Mike Harrington. Their debut game, the first-person shooter (FPS) ''Half-Life'' (1998), was a critical and commercial success; with its realism, scripted sequences and seamless narrative, it had a lasting influence on the FPS genre. Harrington left in 2000. In 2003, Valve launched Steam, followed by '' Half-Life 2'' in 2004. With advanced physics systems and an increased focus on story and characters, ''Half-Life 2'' received critical acclaim and sold 12 million copies by 2011. In 2006, Valve released '' Half-Life 2: Episode One'', the first of two episodic sequels; ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bankruptcy In Canada
The Parliament of Canada has exclusive jurisdiction to regulate matters relating to bankruptcy and insolvency, by virtue of Section 91(2) of the Constitution Act, 1867. It has passed the following statutes as a result: :* The ''Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act'' ("BIA") :* The ''Companies' Creditors Arrangements Act'' ("CCAA") :* The '' Farm Debt Mediation Act'' :* The '' Wage Earner Protection Program Act'' :* The ''Winding-Up and Restructuring Act'' (which essentially applies only to financial institutions under federal jurisdiction) In applying these statutes, provincial law has important consequences. Section 67(1)(b) of the BIA provides that "any property that as against the bankrupt is exempt from execution or seizure under any laws applicable in the province within which the property is situated and within which the bankrupt resides". Provincial legislation under the property and civil rights power of the Constitution Act, 1867 regulates the resolution of financial di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Strategy First
Strategy First Inc. is a Canadian video game publisher based in Montreal. Founded in 1988 by Don McFatridge, Steve Wall and Dave Hill, the company filed for bankruptcy in 2004 and was subsequently acquired by Silverstar Holdings in 2005. Initially specializing in developing strategy video games, it since switched to primarily publishing, releasing games like the ''Disciples'' series, the ''Jagged Alliance'' series, '' O.R.B: Off-World Resource Base'', and the ''Space Empires'' series. History Strategy First was founded by Don McFatridge, Steve Wall and Dave Hill, three board game designers. During one lunch break in 1988, they decided that they would begin their careers anew, establishing Strategy First as a video game development company. Richard Therrien joined as a partner shortly thereafter. The four wished to focus on strategy video games and named the company accordingly. By May 2004, Strategy First had amassed over in debt and had shrunk from more than 100 employ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Technology Demonstration
A technology demonstration (or tech demo), also known as demonstrator model, is a prototype, rough example or an otherwise incomplete version of a conceivable product or future system, put together as proof of concept with the primary purpose of showcasing the possible applications, feasibility, performance and method of an idea for a new technology. They can be used as demonstrations to the investors, partners, journalists or even to potential customers in order to convince them of the viability of the chosen approach, or to test them on ordinary users. Computers and gaming Technology demonstrations are often used in the computer industry, emerging as an important tool in response to short development cycles, in both software and hardware development. * Computer game developers use tech demos to rouse and maintain interest to titles still in development (because game engines are usually ready before the art is finished) and to ensure functionality by early testing. Short segmen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Humble Indie Bundle
Humble Bundle, Inc. is a digital storefront for video games, which grew out of its original offering of Humble Bundles, collections of games sold at a price determined by the purchaser and with a portion of the price going towards charity and the rest split between the game developers. Humble Bundle continues to offer these limited-time bundles, but have expanded to include a greater and more persistent storefront. The Humble Bundle concept was initially run by Wolfire Games in 2010, but by its second bundle, the Humble Bundle company was spun out to manage the promotion, payments, and distribution of the bundles. In October 2017, the company was acquired by Ziff Davis through its IGN Entertainment subsidiary, though operates as a separate subsidiary. Initial bundles were typically collections of independently developed games featuring multi-platform support (including Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux platforms) provided without digital rights management (DRM). Occurring e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rock Paper Shotgun
''Rock Paper Shotgun'' (also rendered ''Rock, Paper, Shotgun''; short ''RPS'') is a UK-based website for reporting on video games, primarily for PC. Originally launched on 13 July 2007 as an independent site, ''Rock Paper Shotgun'' was acquired and brought into the Gamer Network, a network of sites led by ''Eurogamer'' in May 2017. Its editor-in-chief is Katharine Castle and its deputy editor is Alice Bell. Contributors ''Rock Paper Shotgun'' was founded by Kieron Gillen, Jim Rossignol, Alec Meer and John Walker in 2007. All four were freelancing for Future Publishing, and decided they wanted to create a website focused entirely on games for PC. Gillen announced that he would no longer be involved in posting the day-to-day content of ''Rock Paper Shotgun'' in 2010, focusing more on his work with Marvel Comics, but would continue to act as a director and occasionally write essay pieces for the site. Rossignol founded his own game studio Big Robot in 2010, but also conti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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