Impressions Games
Encyclopedia
Impressions Games was a video game developer
founded by David Lester (currently of Firefly Studios
) in the UK. He sold the company to Sierra Entertainment
in 1995, who was then bought out by Cendant
and eventually, Vivendi Universal (now known as Vivendi SA).
Impressions specialized in historical strategy games, and is most well known for its City Building Series
, which include Caesar
, Pharaoh, and Master of Olympus - Zeus
.
Mike Ryder, former president of Sierra Entertainment, forced a change in management in October 2001, during development of Lords of the Realm III
. Rod Nakamoto was installed as the new director. Lords III became Impressions's final game, and was released to mediocre reviews in March 2004.
The studio was shut down in April 2004 when Vivendi Universal closed most of their game development studios. Many members of the studio moved on to form Tilted Mill Entertainment
.
Former notable employees of Impressions include Chris Beatrice
and Peter Haffenreffer, co-founders of Tilted Mill Entertainment.
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 by David Lester (currently of Firefly Studios
Firefly Studios
Firefly Studios is a computer game developer that has offices in London, England and Canton, Connecticut, with a QA department in Aberdeen, Scotland. The Company was formed in August 1999 by Simon Bradbury, Eric Ouellette and David Lester who had worked together on numerous titles such as the...
) in the UK. He sold the company to Sierra Entertainment
Sierra Entertainment
Sierra Entertainment Inc. was an American video-game developer and publisher founded in 1979 as On-Line Systems by Ken and Roberta Williams...
in 1995, who was then bought out by Cendant
Cendant
Cendant Corporation was a New York-based provider of business and consumer services, primarily within the real estate and travel industries. In 2005 and 2006, Cendant broke up and spun off or sold its constituent businesses...
and eventually, Vivendi Universal (now known as Vivendi SA).
Impressions specialized in historical strategy games, and is most well known for its City Building Series
City Building Series
The City Building Series is the collective name of a series of historical city-building games for personal computers developed by Impressions Games, BreakAway Games, and Tilted Mill Entertainment and published by Sierra Entertainment and Myelin Media...
, which include Caesar
Caesar (video game)
Caesar is a city-building computer game where the player undertakes the role of a Roman governor, building ancient Roman cities.Released in 1992 on the Amiga, ported the next year to Atari ST, PC and Macintosh, the game was similar to SimCity...
, Pharaoh, and Master of Olympus - Zeus
Master of Olympus - Zeus
Zeus: Master of Olympus is the fifth full title of the City Building Series developed by Impressions Games and published by Sierra Entertainment....
.
Mike Ryder, former president of Sierra Entertainment, forced a change in management in October 2001, during development of Lords of the Realm III
Lords of the Realm III
Lords of the Realm III is a real-time strategy computer game published on March 17, 2004 by Sierra Entertainment. It is the latest game in the Lords of the Realm series, and the last game made by Impressions Games...
. Rod Nakamoto was installed as the new director. Lords III became Impressions's final game, and was released to mediocre reviews in March 2004.
The studio was shut down in April 2004 when Vivendi Universal closed most of their game development studios. Many members of the studio moved on to form Tilted Mill Entertainment
Tilted Mill Entertainment
Tilted Mill Entertainment is a video game developer located in Framingham, Massachusetts. It was founded in 2001 by former Impressions Games lead designer and general manager Chris Beatrice, business manager Peter Haffenreffer, and designer Jeff Fiske....
.
Former notable employees of Impressions include Chris Beatrice
Chris Beatrice
Chris Beatrice is a game designer noted for primary creative development of popular historical city-building games, including Caesar, Lords of the Realm, Pharaoh, and Zeus...
and Peter Haffenreffer, co-founders of Tilted Mill Entertainment.
Impressions games
- Lords of the Realm IIILords of the Realm IIILords of the Realm III is a real-time strategy computer game published on March 17, 2004 by Sierra Entertainment. It is the latest game in the Lords of the Realm series, and the last game made by Impressions Games...
(2004) - Emperor: Rise of the Middle KingdomEmperor: Rise of the Middle KingdomEmperor: Rise of the Middle Kingdom is the sixth title in the City Building Series. BreakAway Games was contracted for Emperor after having previously worked on Queen of the Nile...
(2002) - Master of Olympus - ZeusMaster of Olympus - ZeusZeus: Master of Olympus is the fifth full title of the City Building Series developed by Impressions Games and published by Sierra Entertainment....
(2000)- Master of Atlantis - PoseidonMaster of Atlantis - PoseidonMaster of Atlantis - Poseidon is a historical city building game expansion pack set in ancient Greece. It is the expansion pack to Master of Olympus - Zeus...
(2001) - Acropolis (Compilation)
- Master of Atlantis - Poseidon
- Pharaoh (1999)
- Cleopatra: Queen of the Nile (Expansion Pack)
- Caesar IIICaesar IIICaesar III is a video game developed by Impressions Games and published by Sierra Entertainment; the third installment of the Caesar series, part of Sierra's City Building Series...
(1998)- Caesar: Platinum Edition (1999) (Compilation of all three Caesar games)
- Caesar IICaesar IICaesar II is a computer game of the Caesar computer game series that takes place in Ancient Rome; when the game begins the Roman empire extends no further than Italy. Players have the opportunity to civilize adjacent barbarian provinces, eventually reaching the entire Roman Empire at its height....
(1995) - CaesarCaesar (video game)Caesar is a city-building computer game where the player undertakes the role of a Roman governor, building ancient Roman cities.Released in 1992 on the Amiga, ported the next year to Atari ST, PC and Macintosh, the game was similar to SimCity...
(1992) - Lords of MagicLords of MagicLords of Magic is a turn-based strategy PC game designed for Windows 95/98 by Sierra Entertainment. The game, which was distributed on CDs, includes a single-player mode and limited multiplayer features on LAN and the Internet as well...
(1997)- Lords of Magic: Legends of Urak (1998) (Expansion)
- Lords of Magic: Special Edition (1999) (Compilation)
- Grant-Lee-Sherman: Civil War 2: Generals (1997)
- Rise and Rule of Ancient Empires (1996)
- Robert E. Lee: Civil War GeneralRobert E. Lee: Civil War GeneralRobert E. Lee: Civil War General is a turn based strategy computer game by Impressions Games. It was published in 1996 by Sierra Entertainment and was the followed in 1997 by Civil War Generals II....
(1996) - Lords of the Realm IILords of the Realm IILords of the Realm II is a computer game published by Sierra Entertainment and developed by Impressions Games. It was first released for the PC on October 31, 1996, and is the second game in the Lords of the Realm series....
(1996)- Lords of the Realm II: Siege Pack (1997) (Expansion)
- Lords: Royal Collection (Compilation of Lords of the Realm, Lords of the Realm II & Siege Pack)
- Spacebucks (1996)
- Ultimate Soccer ManagerUltimate Soccer ManagerUltimate Soccer Manager or USM is a soccer management video game serie for MS-DOS, Commodore Amiga and Windows 95, produced by Impressions and distributed by Sierra from 1995 to 1999...
(1995) - Ultimate Soccer Manager 2 (1996)
- Ultimate Soccer Manager 98 (1998)
- Casino De Luxe (1995)
- High Seas TraderHigh Seas TraderHigh Seas Trader is a naval strategy video game. The player runs trade routes, fends off pirates, collects artifact and offers transport to fellow countrymen in need, all for the sake of climbing up the games ranking ladder, which in turn allows the player to buy bigger ships, more firepower and...
(1995) - Powerhouse (1995)
- Front Lines (1994)
- Lords of the RealmLords of the RealmLords of the Realm is a turn-based strategy computer game published and developed by Impressions Games. It was first released on June 15, 1994, and is the first game in the Lords of the Realm series....
(1994) - Cohort II (1993)
- DetroitDetroit (computer game)Detroit is a turn-based business simulation game that puts one in charge of a fledgling automobile company starting in 1908 . The player is responsible for the financing, research and development, design, testing, production, and marketing of automobile product lines...
(1993) - The Blue and the GrayThe Blue and the GrayThe Blue and the Gray is a television miniseries that first aired on CBS in three installments on November 14, November 16, and November 17, 1982. Set during the American Civil War, the series starred John Hammond, Stacy Keach, Lloyd Bridges, and Gregory Peck as President Abraham Lincoln...
(1993) - WW2 Air Force Commander (1993)
- Global DominationGlobal Domination (computer game)Global Domination is a 1993 strategy computer game modeled closely on the popular board game, Risk. Impressions Games expanded on the game dividing the world into more territories, adding unit types which could be controlled in a mini-game, adding the concept of unit obsolescence, valuing regions...
(1993) - Paladin IIPaladin IIPaladin II is a computer game distributed by Omnitrend Software and developed by Impressions Games in 1992 for the PC/MS-DOS, Amiga and Atari ST.-Plot:...
(1992) - Air BucksAir BucksAir Bucks was one of the first business simulation games dealing with running an airline.-External links:* at GameFAQs...
(1992) - Air Force Commander (1992)
- Conquest of Japan (1992)
- Crime City (1992)
- Charge of the Light Brigade (1991)
- Cohort: Fighting For Rome (1991)
- Kenny Dalglish Soccer MatchKenny Dalglish Soccer Match (video game)Kenny Dalglish Soccer Match is a computer game based on soccer legend Kenny Dalglish - who played and managed for Liverpool F.C., Celtic F.C., and Scotland's national soccer team...
(1990)
- Breach 2Breach 2Breach 2 is a tactical role-playing game developed by Omnitrend Software in for the Amiga, Atari ST and DOS. It is the first sequel to the 1987 game Breach, and was itself followed by Breach 3 in 1995...
- Breach 3
- The Final ConflictThe Final ConflictThe Final Conflict is an album by the British anarcho-punk band Conflict. It was released in 1988 by Mortarhate Records. One of the most controversial songs on the album was The Cord is Cut, a song outlining their pro-life stance, which they say stems from their views on animal rights.- Track...
- Merchant Colony
- Paladin
- Rorke's Drift
- Rules of Engagement 2
- Twenty Wargame Classics
- When Two Worlds War
External links
- Company Profile: Impressions on Home of the UnderdogsHome of the UnderdogsHome of the Underdogs was an abandonware archive founded by Thai Sarinee Achavanuntakul , aka: Underdogs or Fringer on her own blog, in September 1998, and grew to be one of the most significant abandonware websites on the Internet, despite losing its domains to cybersquatters and then briefly...