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Foundation 9 Entertainment, Inc. was an American
video game company The video game industry is the tertiary and quaternary sectors of the entertainment industry that specialize in the development, marketing, distribution, monetization, and consumer feedback of video games. The industry encompasses dozens ...
based in
Irvine, California Irvine () is a Planned community, planned city in central Orange County, California, United States, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. It was named in 1888 for the landowner James Irvine. The Irvine Company started developing the area in the ...
. The company was formed in March 2005 through the merger of video game developers
Backbone Entertainment Backbone Entertainment was an American video game developer based in Emeryville, California. The company was formed in 2003 as the result of a merger between developers Digital Eclipse and ImaginEngine. In 2005, Backbone merged with The Colle ...
and The Collective.


History

Foundation 9 Entertainment was founded on March 29, 2005, in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, through the merger of video game developer
Backbone Entertainment Backbone Entertainment was an American video game developer based in Emeryville, California. The company was formed in 2003 as the result of a merger between developers Digital Eclipse and ImaginEngine. In 2005, Backbone merged with The Colle ...
and The Collective. The company's initial management board consisted of Jon Goldman (
chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...
), Andrew Ayre and Douglas Hare (co-
presidents President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *''Præsidenten ...
), Gary Priest and Mark Loughridge (co- chairmen), Richard Hare (
chief creative officer The title Chief Creative Officer (CCO) typically describes the highest-ranking position of a creative team within a media company. Depending on the type of company, this position may be responsible for the overall look and feel of marketing, media, ...
), Jeff Vavasour (
vice-president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
of Canadian operations), Steven Sardegna (
chief financial officer A chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization who is assigned the primary responsibility for making decisions for the company for projects and its finances; i.a.: financial planning, management of financial risks, ...
), and Larry Kelly (
chief operating officer A chief operating officer (COO), also called chief operations officer, is an executive in charge of the daily operations of an organization (i.e. personnel, resources, and logistics). COOs are usually second-in-command immediately after the C ...
). Shortly after the merger, on April 12, Foundation 9 acquired and integrated
Pipeworks Software Pipeworks Studios is an American video game developer based in Eugene, Oregon. The company was founded in November 1999 by Dan White and Dan Duncalf and works to provide full development, co-development, and live operations to video game publis ...
. Subsequently, Dan Duncalf, the company's president and co-founder, joined Foundation 9's
board of directors A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...
. In May, Foundation 9 acquired an
equity stake In finance, equity is an ownership interest in property that may be subject to debts or other liabilities. Equity is measured for accounting purposes by subtracting liabilities from the value of the assets owned. For example, if someone owns a ...
in Circle of Confusion, a
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...
management company, to establish a
strategic partnership A strategic partnership (also see strategic alliance) is a relationship between two commercial enterprises, usually formalized by one or more business contracts. A strategic partnership will usually fall short of a legal partnership entity, agency ...
. On June 1, 2006, investment firm
Francisco Partners Francisco Partners Management, L.P., doing business as Francisco Partners, is an American private equity firm focused exclusively on investments in technology and technology-enabled services businesses. It was founded in August 1999 and based in ...
(as advised by UBS Securities) agreed to provide in funding to Foundation 9 over a time frame of several years, with additional funding to be provided when needed. The investment was followed by the acquisitions of
Shiny Entertainment Shiny Entertainment, Inc. was an American video game developer based in Laguna Beach, California. Founded in October 1993 by David Perry, Shiny was the creator of video games such as ''Earthworm Jim'', '' MDK'' and ''Enter the Matrix''. Perry ...
from
Atari Atari () is a brand name that has been owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by French holding company Atari SA (formerly Infogrames) and its focus is on "video games, consumer hardware, licensing and bl ...
in October 2006, Amaze Entertainment and related studios in November 2006, and
Sumo Digital Sumo Digital Ltd. is a British video game developer based in Sheffield and the principal subsidiary of Sumo Group since 2017. The company was founded in 2003 by four former members of the management team of Infogrames Studios. History Sumo D ...
and its Indian sub-studio in August 2007. Under the terms of Shiny's acquisition, the studio would co-locate and merge with The Collective. The merger was formally announced in October 2007, at which point both studios had moved to new offices in
Irvine, California Irvine () is a Planned community, planned city in central Orange County, California, United States, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. It was named in 1888 for the landowner James Irvine. The Irvine Company started developing the area in the ...
. The amalgam was named Double Helix Games in March 2008. In January 2008, Foundation 9 promoted David Mann (previously
chief operating officer A chief operating officer (COO), also called chief operations officer, is an executive in charge of the daily operations of an organization (i.e. personnel, resources, and logistics). COOs are usually second-in-command immediately after the C ...
), Chris Charla and Jack Brummet to president, vice-president of
business development Business development entails tasks and processes to develop and implement growth opportunities within and between business organizations. It is a subset of the fields of business, commerce and organizational theory. Business development is the cre ...
, and vice-president of
quality assurance Quality assurance (QA) is the term used in both manufacturing and service industries to describe the systematic efforts taken to assure that the product(s) delivered to customer(s) meet with the contractual and other agreed upon performance, design ...
, respectively, followed by James North-Hearn, one of Sumo Digital's founders, becoming the chief executive officer of the company in March. In July 2008, Foundation 9 reinstated
Griptonite Games Glu Mobile LLC is an American developer and publisher of mobile games. It was founded as Sorrent in 2001 and acquired Macrospace in 2004. Both companies collectively rebranded as Glu Mobile in 2005. In April 2021, the company was acquired by E ...
and Fizz Factor, two studios absorbed into Amaze in 2005, under their original brandings. However, in July 2009, Fizz Factor was closed down entirely, while Amaze was merged into Griptonite and Double Helix suffered staff cuts. FXLabs, based in
Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...
, India, was acquired by Foundation 9 in October 2010 and became part of Griptonite under the name Griptonite India. Griptonite was sold to
Glu Mobile Glu Mobile LLC is an American developer and publisher of mobile games. It was founded as Sorrent in 2001 and acquired Macrospace in 2004. Both companies collectively rebranded as Glu Mobile in 2005. In April 2021, the company was acquired by E ...
in August 2011 in exchange for 6 million shares of Glu's
common stock Common stock is a form of corporate equity ownership, a type of security. The terms voting share and ordinary share are also used frequently outside of the United States. They are known as equity shares or ordinary shares in the UK and other C ...
. Backbone's location in
Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
had been closed in May 2009, and in October 2012, its ImaginEngine studio was closed as well, while its primary location in
Emeryville, California Emeryville is a city located in northwest Alameda County, California, in the United States. It lies in a corridor between the cities of Berkeley, California, Berkeley and Oakland, California, Oakland, with a border on the shore of San Francisc ...
, laid off the majority of its staff. In February 2014, Double Helix was sold to
Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology company * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek myth ...
. Later that year, under advisory from GP Bullhound, Foundation 9 sold Pipeworks to Italian publisher Digital Bros, and Sumo Digital to its own management, the latter of which was backed by NorthEdge Capital. In 2015, Foundation 9's board of directors elected to dissolve the company.


Subsidiaries

* Amaze Entertainment (2004–2009) – Merged into Griptonite Games ** Adrenium ** Griptonite Games ** KnowWonder (1996-2004) - PC game studio ** Fizz Factor - Handheld game studio ** Black Ship Games *
Backbone Entertainment Backbone Entertainment was an American video game developer based in Emeryville, California. The company was formed in 2003 as the result of a merger between developers Digital Eclipse and ImaginEngine. In 2005, Backbone merged with The Colle ...
(2005–2015) – Closed ** Backbone Charlottetown (2006–2007) – Spun off from Backbone and renamed Other Ocean Interactive ** Backbone Emeryville (2005–2015) – Became a subsidiary of Other Ocean Group and renamed Digital Eclipse ** Backbone Vancouver (2005–2009) – Closed ** Games2Learn – Closed ** ImaginEngine (2005–2012) – Closed * The Collective (2005–2007) – Merged into Double Helix Games * Double Helix Games (2007–2014) – Sold to Amazon Game Studios * Fizz Factor (2008–2009) – Closed * Griptonite Games (2008–2011) – Sold to
Glu Mobile Glu Mobile LLC is an American developer and publisher of mobile games. It was founded as Sorrent in 2001 and acquired Macrospace in 2004. Both companies collectively rebranded as Glu Mobile in 2005. In April 2021, the company was acquired by E ...
** Griptonite India (2010–2011) – Sold to
Glu Mobile Glu Mobile LLC is an American developer and publisher of mobile games. It was founded as Sorrent in 2001 and acquired Macrospace in 2004. Both companies collectively rebranded as Glu Mobile in 2005. In April 2021, the company was acquired by E ...
*
Pipeworks Software Pipeworks Studios is an American video game developer based in Eugene, Oregon. The company was founded in November 1999 by Dan White and Dan Duncalf and works to provide full development, co-development, and live operations to video game publis ...
(2005–2014) – Sold to Digital Bros *
Shiny Entertainment Shiny Entertainment, Inc. was an American video game developer based in Laguna Beach, California. Founded in October 1993 by David Perry, Shiny was the creator of video games such as ''Earthworm Jim'', '' MDK'' and ''Enter the Matrix''. Perry ...
(2006–2007) – Merged into Double Helix Games *
Sumo Digital Sumo Digital Ltd. is a British video game developer based in Sheffield and the principal subsidiary of Sumo Group since 2017. The company was founded in 2003 by four former members of the management team of Infogrames Studios. History Sumo D ...
(2007–2014) – Sold back to founders in a
management buyout A management buyout (MBO) is a form of acquisition in which a company's existing managers acquire a large part, or all, of the company, whether from a parent company or individual. Management- and/or leveraged buyouts became noted phenomena of 19 ...
** Sumo India (2007–2014) – Sold back to founders in a
management buyout A management buyout (MBO) is a form of acquisition in which a company's existing managers acquire a large part, or all, of the company, whether from a parent company or individual. Management- and/or leveraged buyouts became noted phenomena of 19 ...


References

{{Reflist 2005 establishments in California 2015 disestablishments in California American companies disestablished in 2015 American companies established in 2005 Defunct companies based in Greater Los Angeles Defunct video game companies of the United States Video game companies based in California Video game companies disestablished in 2015 Video game companies established in 2005 Video game development companies