Double Fine Productions
Encyclopedia
Double Fine Productions is an American
video game developer
founded in July 2000
by Tim Schafer
after his departure from LucasArts
. He started Double Fine with Programmers David Dixon (Ocean of America, Capcom, LucasArts) and Jonathan Menzies (LucasArts) in what was once a clog shop in San Francisco. After several months of working on the demo for what would become Psychonauts
, a mixture of personnel from the Grim Fandango
development team and other new employees were slowly added to begin production.
The name "Double Fine" is a play on the Golden Gate Bridge
being a "double fine zone" as Schafer drove from place to place around the Bay Area to meet with possible publishers for Psychonauts. The company is based in San Francisco. The official Double Fine website is also host to five webcomic
s, which are created by members of Double Fine's art team and are collectively referred as the Double Fine Action Comics
.
. Critically praised, it was released for the Xbox
, PlayStation 2
and Microsoft Windows
. However, despite its acclaim, it did not sell well initially. It was later re-released on Xbox 360 under the Xbox Originals banner, as well as for Microsoft Windows
via GameTap and Steam.
Double Fine's second project was Brütal Legend
, a hybrid real time strategy, action-adventure game
following roadie Eddie Riggs as he is transported to a fantasy world in which demons have enslaved humanity. The game appears to have been inspired by Nordic mythology and heavy metal music
. Brütal Legend was published by Electronic Arts
and was released in North America on October 13, 2009 for the PlayStation 3
and Xbox 360
.
During the development of Brütal Legend, publishing issue arose as Activision, having acquired the rights to the title through its merger with Vivendi Games, decided to drop it and forced Schafer to locate another publisher, eventually signing a deal with Electronic Arts. During this period, around 2007 to 2008, Schafer boosted the company's morale by engaging the team in an "Amnesia Fortnight". For a two-week period, the employees were split into four groups and tasked to develop a game prototype for review by the other groups. Each of the four ideas were successfully created and praised by the whole company. The process was repeated later near the end of Brütal Legend, providing an additional four prototypes. Schafer credits the concept of the Amnesia Fortnights to film director Wong Kar-Wai
; during the long, three-year filming of Ashes of Time
, Kar-Wai had taken some of his actors and film crew to Hong Kong to shoot footage for fun, but ultimately resulting in the films Chungking Express
and Fallen Angels
, which Schafer noted were some of the director's more famous films.
These Amnesia Fortnight periods proved fortuitous, as Schafer considers these to have kept the company viable. Upon completion of Brütal Legend, Double Fine had started work towards its sequel, but was told to stop development shortly after as Electronic Arts decided against publishing the sequel. With no other publishing deals lined up at the time, Schafer turned back to the eight game ideas developed from Amnesia Fortnight, believing they could be developed further into short complete games. Schafer also looked at the success of smaller focused games like Geometry Wars
on the various download services, realizing the potential market for similar titles. Schafer and his team selected the best four, and began shopping the games to various publishers, and successfully worked publishing details with these. Two of these games, Costume Quest
and Stacking
, were picked up by THQ
and released digitally on the Xbox Live and PlayStation Network storefronts; both games were considered successful and THQ has expressed interested in helping Double Fine produce similar titles in the future. Trenched (Iron Brigade in Europe due to trademark issues) was developed as an Xbox Live Arcade with association with Microsoft Game Studios
, and similarly received positive praise from journalists. A fourth game, Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster
, is to be published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment in association with the Sesame Workshop
for the Xbox 360 using the Kinect controller; though initially not a licensed title, Schafer and his team found it to be an ideal fit for their first licensed-property game. With these additional games, Ron Gilbert
, Schafer's former collaborator at LucasArts, was hired by the company to work on the new titles, as well as a future title that Gilbert has envisioned.
Double Fine's website features several free minigame
s. The most recent of these, Host Master and the Conquest of Humor
, is a pastiche of Schafer's LucasArts games, and features Schafer himself as the protagonist.
Double Fine has also produced a few flash games, developed by Klint Honeychurch and showcased on its website.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
video game developer
Video game developer
A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...
founded in July 2000
2000 in video gaming
-Events:* May 11–13 — 6th annual Electronic Entertainment Expo ; the 3rd annual Game Critics Awards for the Best of E³* June 26 — International Game Developers Association renamed from Computer Game Developers Association...
by Tim Schafer
Tim Schafer
Timothy Schafer is an American computer game designer. He founded Double Fine Productions in January 2000, after having spent over a decade at LucasArts...
after his departure from LucasArts
LucasArts
LucasArts Entertainment Company, LLC is an American video game developer and publisher. The company was once famous for its innovative line of graphic adventure games, the critical and commercial success of which peaked in the mid 1990s...
. He started Double Fine with Programmers David Dixon (Ocean of America, Capcom, LucasArts) and Jonathan Menzies (LucasArts) in what was once a clog shop in San Francisco. After several months of working on the demo for what would become Psychonauts
Psychonauts
Psychonauts is a platform video game created by Tim Schafer, developed by Double Fine Productions and published by Majesco. The game was released on April 19, 2005, for the Xbox, April 26 for Microsoft Windows and June 21 for PlayStation 2. It was released on Steam on Oct 11, 2006, as an "Xbox...
, a mixture of personnel from the Grim Fandango
Grim Fandango
Grim Fandango is a personal computer game in the graphic adventure genre released by LucasArts in 1998 and primarily written by Tim Schafer. It is the first adventure game by LucasArts to use 3D computer graphics overlaid on pre-rendered, static backgrounds...
development team and other new employees were slowly added to begin production.
The name "Double Fine" is a play on the Golden Gate Bridge
Golden Gate Bridge
The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the opening of the San Francisco Bay into the Pacific Ocean. As part of both U.S. Route 101 and California State Route 1, the structure links the city of San Francisco, on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula, to...
being a "double fine zone" as Schafer drove from place to place around the Bay Area to meet with possible publishers for Psychonauts. The company is based in San Francisco. The official Double Fine website is also host to five webcomic
Webcomic
Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are comics published on a website. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers or often in self-published books....
s, which are created by members of Double Fine's art team and are collectively referred as the Double Fine Action Comics
Double Fine Action Comics
Double Fine Action Comics is a webcomics collective supported by Double Fine Productions. Each comic varies in style and tone, but they all reflect the eclectic humor found in the Double-Fine produced game Psychonauts...
.
Projects
Double Fine's first completed project was a multi-platform game titled PsychonautsPsychonauts
Psychonauts is a platform video game created by Tim Schafer, developed by Double Fine Productions and published by Majesco. The game was released on April 19, 2005, for the Xbox, April 26 for Microsoft Windows and June 21 for PlayStation 2. It was released on Steam on Oct 11, 2006, as an "Xbox...
. Critically praised, it was released for the Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
, PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
and Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
. However, despite its acclaim, it did not sell well initially. It was later re-released on Xbox 360 under the Xbox Originals banner, as well as for Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
via GameTap and Steam.
Double Fine's second project was Brütal Legend
Brütal Legend
Brütal Legend is an action-adventure/real-time strategy game created by Double Fine Productions and published by Electronic Arts for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game was released during October 2009 in North America and Europe...
, a hybrid real time strategy, action-adventure game
Action-adventure game
An action-adventure game is a video game that combines elements of the adventure game genre with various action game elements. It is perhaps the broadest and most diverse genre in gaming, and can include many games which might better be categorized under narrow genres...
following roadie Eddie Riggs as he is transported to a fantasy world in which demons have enslaved humanity. The game appears to have been inspired by Nordic mythology and heavy metal music
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
. Brütal Legend was published by Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
and was released in North America on October 13, 2009 for the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
.
During the development of Brütal Legend, publishing issue arose as Activision, having acquired the rights to the title through its merger with Vivendi Games, decided to drop it and forced Schafer to locate another publisher, eventually signing a deal with Electronic Arts. During this period, around 2007 to 2008, Schafer boosted the company's morale by engaging the team in an "Amnesia Fortnight". For a two-week period, the employees were split into four groups and tasked to develop a game prototype for review by the other groups. Each of the four ideas were successfully created and praised by the whole company. The process was repeated later near the end of Brütal Legend, providing an additional four prototypes. Schafer credits the concept of the Amnesia Fortnights to film director Wong Kar-Wai
Wong Kar-wai
Wong Kar-wai BBS is a Hong Kong Second Wave filmmaker, internationally renowned as an auteur for his visually unique, highly stylized, emotionally resonant work, including Days of Being Wild , Ashes of Time , Chungking Express , Fallen Angels , Happy Together and 2046...
; during the long, three-year filming of Ashes of Time
Ashes of Time
-Critical:When the film opened in Hong Kong it received mixed reviews. Critics found it so elliptical that it was almost impossible to make out any semblance of a plot, something very rare in a wuxia film....
, Kar-Wai had taken some of his actors and film crew to Hong Kong to shoot footage for fun, but ultimately resulting in the films Chungking Express
Chungking Express
Chungking Express is a 1994 Hong Kong film written and directed by Wong Kar-wai. The film consists of two stories told in sequence, each about a lovesick Hong Kong policeman mulling over his relationship with a woman...
and Fallen Angels
Fallen Angels (1995 film)
Fallen Angels is a 1995 Hong Kong movie written and directed by Wong Kar-wai, starring Leon Lai, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Michelle Reis, Charlie Yeung and Karen Mok.Fallen Angels can be seen as a companion piece to Chungking Express...
, which Schafer noted were some of the director's more famous films.
These Amnesia Fortnight periods proved fortuitous, as Schafer considers these to have kept the company viable. Upon completion of Brütal Legend, Double Fine had started work towards its sequel, but was told to stop development shortly after as Electronic Arts decided against publishing the sequel. With no other publishing deals lined up at the time, Schafer turned back to the eight game ideas developed from Amnesia Fortnight, believing they could be developed further into short complete games. Schafer also looked at the success of smaller focused games like Geometry Wars
Geometry Wars
Geometry Wars is a minigame created by Bizarre Creations as part of Project Gotham Racing 2 for the Xbox, accessible through the in-game garage. An updated version of the game, Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved, is available for download on the Xbox 360 via Xbox Live Arcade. It can also be played in...
on the various download services, realizing the potential market for similar titles. Schafer and his team selected the best four, and began shopping the games to various publishers, and successfully worked publishing details with these. Two of these games, Costume Quest
Costume Quest
Costume Quest is an adventure role-playing video game developed by Double Fine Productions and published by THQ. In the game, the player controls a child that is trick-or-treating with their twin on Halloween night when they encounter a monster that kidnaps the sibling...
and Stacking
Stacking (video game)
Stacking is an adventure/puzzle video game developed by Double Fine Productions and published by THQ; like Double Fine's previous Costume Quest, it is a smaller title created during the development period of Brütal Legend, and was released in February 2011 for the Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation...
, were picked up by THQ
THQ
THQ Inc. is an American developer and publisher of video games. Founded in 1989 in the United States, the company develops products for video game consoles, handheld game systems, as well as for personal computers and wireless devices...
and released digitally on the Xbox Live and PlayStation Network storefronts; both games were considered successful and THQ has expressed interested in helping Double Fine produce similar titles in the future. Trenched (Iron Brigade in Europe due to trademark issues) was developed as an Xbox Live Arcade with association with Microsoft Game Studios
Microsoft Game Studios
Microsoft Studios is the video game production wing for Microsoft, responsible for the development and publishing of games for the Xbox, Xbox 360, Games for Windows and Windows Phone platforms. They were established in 2002 as Microsoft Game Studios to coincide with the release of the Xbox, before...
, and similarly received positive praise from journalists. A fourth game, Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster
Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster
Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster is a video game developed by Double Fine Productions and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment in conjunction with Sesame Workshop...
, is to be published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment in association with the Sesame Workshop
Sesame Workshop
Sesame Workshop, formerly known as the Children's Television Workshop , is a Worldwide American non-profit organization behind the production of several educational children's programs that have run on public broadcasting around the world...
for the Xbox 360 using the Kinect controller; though initially not a licensed title, Schafer and his team found it to be an ideal fit for their first licensed-property game. With these additional games, Ron Gilbert
Ron Gilbert
Ron Gilbert is an American computer game designer, programmer, and producer, best known for his work on several classic LucasArts adventure games, including Maniac Mansion and the first two Monkey Island games. Gilbert was also co-founder of Humongous Entertainment and its sister company Cavedog...
, Schafer's former collaborator at LucasArts, was hired by the company to work on the new titles, as well as a future title that Gilbert has envisioned.
Double Fine's website features several free minigame
Minigame
A minigame is a short video game often contained within another video game. A minigame is always smaller or more simplistic than the game in which it is contained. Minigames are sometimes also offered separately for free to promote the main game...
s. The most recent of these, Host Master and the Conquest of Humor
Host Master and the Conquest of Humor
Host Master and the Conquest of Humor is a free Flash adventure game, written by Klint Honeychurch and game developer Tim Schafer, with gameplay and art by Honeychurch and music by Bert Chang...
, is a pastiche of Schafer's LucasArts games, and features Schafer himself as the protagonist.
Games
- 2005 PsychonautsPsychonautsPsychonauts is a platform video game created by Tim Schafer, developed by Double Fine Productions and published by Majesco. The game was released on April 19, 2005, for the Xbox, April 26 for Microsoft Windows and June 21 for PlayStation 2. It was released on Steam on Oct 11, 2006, as an "Xbox...
– PCPersonal computerA personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
, PlayStation 2PlayStation 2The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
, XboxXboxThe Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console... - 2009 Brütal LegendBrütal LegendBrütal Legend is an action-adventure/real-time strategy game created by Double Fine Productions and published by Electronic Arts for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game was released during October 2009 in North America and Europe...
– PlayStation 3PlayStation 3The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, Xbox 360Xbox 360The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles... - 2010 Costume QuestCostume QuestCostume Quest is an adventure role-playing video game developed by Double Fine Productions and published by THQ. In the game, the player controls a child that is trick-or-treating with their twin on Halloween night when they encounter a monster that kidnaps the sibling...
- PlayStation Network, Xbox Live ArcadeXbox Live ArcadeXbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
(THQ), Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... - 2011 StackingStacking (video game)Stacking is an adventure/puzzle video game developed by Double Fine Productions and published by THQ; like Double Fine's previous Costume Quest, it is a smaller title created during the development period of Brütal Legend, and was released in February 2011 for the Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation...
- PlayStation Network, Xbox Live ArcadeXbox Live ArcadeXbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
(THQ) - 2011 Iron Brigade (formally titled Trenched) - Xbox Live ArcadeXbox Live ArcadeXbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
(Microsoft Studios) - 2011 Sesame Street: Once Upon a MonsterSesame Street: Once Upon a MonsterSesame Street: Once Upon a Monster is a video game developed by Double Fine Productions and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment in conjunction with Sesame Workshop...
- Xbox 360Xbox 360The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
with Kinect (Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment) - 2011 Happy Action Theater - Xbox Live ArcadeXbox Live ArcadeXbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
with Kinect (Microsoft Studios)
Double Fine has also produced a few flash games, developed by Klint Honeychurch and showcased on its website.
- Epic Saga: Extreme Fighter - A low-res 2D fighting game, complete with moral victory quotes.
- My Game About Me - Three minigames focused around Olympic 'events': Eating, Sleeping and Surfing.
- Tasha's Game - A platform game in which players use a cat to collect platforms to help Tasha progress through the level.
- Host Master and the Conquest of HumorHost Master and the Conquest of HumorHost Master and the Conquest of Humor is a free Flash adventure game, written by Klint Honeychurch and game developer Tim Schafer, with gameplay and art by Honeychurch and music by Bert Chang...
- A point-and-click game in the style of Monkey Island in which Tim SchaferTim SchaferTimothy Schafer is an American computer game designer. He founded Double Fine Productions in January 2000, after having spent over a decade at LucasArts...
must find jokes for his speech at the Game Developer's Conference.
Psychonauts Awards
- British Academy Video Games Awards 2006: Best Screenplay
- GameSpot Best and Worst of 2005: Best Voice Acting, Best Graphics Artistic, Funniest Game, Best Game No One Played, Best Platformer
- IGN 2005 Awards: Best Platformer, Best Game No One Played
- EuroGamer: Overall Game of the Year 2005
- PSM: Buy or Die award in issue #100, #5 on Top 10 Games of 2005 list, Best Characters
- Electronic Gaming Monthly 2005 Awards: Best Game No One Played
- 6th annual Game Developers Choice Awards: Best Writing
- PC Gamer magazine 2005 Awards: Best Game You Didn't Play, Editor's Choice Award
- E3 2002 Game Critics Awards: Best Original Game
- GameShadow Innovation in Games Awards nominee (Best Game, Innovative Visual Effects, Best Narrative)