Piranha Games
Encyclopedia
Piranha Games Inc. is a Canadian
computer game developer
based in Vancouver
, British Columbia
. The company was founded by two members Russ Bullock President and Executive Producer and Bryan Ekman, VP and Creative Director. Piranha Games is one of the oldest independent game developers in the Vancouver
area and currently housed in the International Village Mall in the Chinatown area.
(DH:NP) (originally started by Jason Holtslander). After working together for a few months the team received a letter from Fox Interactive
requiring all work on the mod cease and desist. Russ, Bryan and Jason used this event as a catalyst to pursue their dreams of starting a new development studio and turning Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza
into a full product for the PC
platform.
Piranha Games Inc. was officially founded in early 2000 by Russ Bullock, Bryan Ekman, and Jason Holtslander, with an initial infusion of private funding. After an 8 month period of creating demos for Fox Interactive
, a deal was struck in August 2000, and Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza
was officially under production.
mid August, 2000. The team doubled in size from six developers to twelve and moved into its new office location in Downtown Vancouver
. Production on DH:NP
moved along steadily through the winter and into 2001 in preparation for E3 2001. After a modest E3 showing, DH:NP
continued development, targeting a fall release date. Crunching hard for the next 6 months, with the team exhausted and the ownership at odds with each other, the game's ship date slipped into spring 2002. During the summer and fall of 2001 Jason Holtslander was bought out by the remaining principals.
With the departure of Holtslander, Piranha refocused its energy towards finishing DH:NP
and expanding the business into the casual space through the creation of a new label and company called Jarhead Games. In the spring of 2002 DH:NP
was released.
In the summer of 2005 Piranha Games began working on an unannounced next generation title. It has since been revealed that this is a new Mechwarrior game. In the spring of 2007, Piranha Games was contracted to work on EA Playground
for the Nintendo DS
and Medal of Honor: Heroes 2
for the PSP.
to develop the PS3 and Xbox 360
versions, along with the multiplayer component of Duke Nukem Forever
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
computer 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...
based in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
. The company was founded by two members Russ Bullock President and Executive Producer and Bryan Ekman, VP and Creative Director. Piranha Games is one of the oldest independent game developers in the Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
area and currently housed in the International Village Mall in the Chinatown area.
History
During the fall of 1999 three entrepreneurs set out to create a Half-Life mod called Die Hard: Nakatomi PlazaDie Hard: Nakatomi Plaza
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza is a first-person shooter for PC made by Piranha Games. The game originally used a modified Build engine, later the GoldSrc engine, before it was finally moved to the Lithtech engine...
(DH:NP) (originally started by Jason Holtslander). After working together for a few months the team received a letter from Fox Interactive
Fox Interactive
20th Century Fox Games is a video game publisher and developer mainly concerned with titles based on 20th Century Fox properties, such as The Simpsons, Family Guy, Futurama, the Alien and Predator film franchises, Independence Day, Charmed, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The X-Files, Avatar, 24, the...
requiring all work on the mod cease and desist. Russ, Bryan and Jason used this event as a catalyst to pursue their dreams of starting a new development studio and turning Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza is a first-person shooter for PC made by Piranha Games. The game originally used a modified Build engine, later the GoldSrc engine, before it was finally moved to the Lithtech engine...
into a full product for the PC
Personal computer
A 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...
platform.
Piranha Games Inc. was officially founded in early 2000 by Russ Bullock, Bryan Ekman, and Jason Holtslander, with an initial infusion of private funding. After an 8 month period of creating demos for Fox Interactive
Fox Interactive
20th Century Fox Games is a video game publisher and developer mainly concerned with titles based on 20th Century Fox properties, such as The Simpsons, Family Guy, Futurama, the Alien and Predator film franchises, Independence Day, Charmed, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The X-Files, Avatar, 24, the...
, a deal was struck in August 2000, and Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza is a first-person shooter for PC made by Piranha Games. The game originally used a modified Build engine, later the GoldSrc engine, before it was finally moved to the Lithtech engine...
was officially under production.
The Early Years
Work began in earnest on DH:NPDie Hard: Nakatomi Plaza
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza is a first-person shooter for PC made by Piranha Games. The game originally used a modified Build engine, later the GoldSrc engine, before it was finally moved to the Lithtech engine...
mid August, 2000. The team doubled in size from six developers to twelve and moved into its new office location in Downtown Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
. Production on DH:NP
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza is a first-person shooter for PC made by Piranha Games. The game originally used a modified Build engine, later the GoldSrc engine, before it was finally moved to the Lithtech engine...
moved along steadily through the winter and into 2001 in preparation for E3 2001. After a modest E3 showing, DH:NP
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza is a first-person shooter for PC made by Piranha Games. The game originally used a modified Build engine, later the GoldSrc engine, before it was finally moved to the Lithtech engine...
continued development, targeting a fall release date. Crunching hard for the next 6 months, with the team exhausted and the ownership at odds with each other, the game's ship date slipped into spring 2002. During the summer and fall of 2001 Jason Holtslander was bought out by the remaining principals.
With the departure of Holtslander, Piranha refocused its energy towards finishing DH:NP
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza is a first-person shooter for PC made by Piranha Games. The game originally used a modified Build engine, later the GoldSrc engine, before it was finally moved to the Lithtech engine...
and expanding the business into the casual space through the creation of a new label and company called Jarhead Games. In the spring of 2002 DH:NP
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza
Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza is a first-person shooter for PC made by Piranha Games. The game originally used a modified Build engine, later the GoldSrc engine, before it was finally moved to the Lithtech engine...
was released.
In the summer of 2005 Piranha Games began working on an unannounced next generation title. It has since been revealed that this is a new Mechwarrior game. In the spring of 2007, Piranha Games was contracted to work on EA Playground
EA Playground
EA Playground is a video game for the Nintendo DS and Wii by Electronic Arts. The game is inspired by Wii Sports. .-Gameplay:The Wii game features various mini-games structured around a singleplayer "campaign" and a multiplayer party mode. All of the mini-games are based on well known playground...
for the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
and Medal of Honor: Heroes 2
Medal of Honor: Heroes 2
Medal of Honor: Heroes 2 is a first-person shooter game for the Wii and the PlayStation Portable. It is an installment in the long-running Medal of Honor series of World War II games. Each version was built from the ground up for its respective system. The Wii version was announced at Nintendo's...
for the PSP.
Present Day
Piranha Games has worked with Gearbox SoftwareGearbox Software
Gearbox Software, LLC is an American video game development company based in Plano, Texas.-History:Gearbox Software was founded in January 1999 by five members of the content team from the defunct developer Rebel Boat Rocker: Randy Pitchford, Brian Martel, Stephen Bahl, Landon Montgomery, and Rob...
to develop the PS3 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...
versions, along with the multiplayer component of Duke Nukem Forever
Duke Nukem Forever
Duke Nukem Forever is a 2011 first-person shooter video game for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 developed by 3D Realms and Triptych Games and finished by Gearbox Software and Piranha Games...
.
Games
- Bass Pro Shops: The StrikeBass Pro Shops: The StrikeBass Pro Shops: The Strike is a fishing game developed by Piranha Games and published by XS Games for the Wii, Windows, and Xbox 360 in 2009.-External links:*****...
(Microsoft Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, PC) - Duke Nukem ForeverDuke Nukem ForeverDuke Nukem Forever is a 2011 first-person shooter video game for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 developed by 3D Realms and Triptych Games and finished by Gearbox Software and Piranha Games...
(PC, X360, PS3) - MechWarrior Online (PC)
- Die Hard: Nakatomi PlazaDie Hard: Nakatomi PlazaDie Hard: Nakatomi Plaza is a first-person shooter for PC made by Piranha Games. The game originally used a modified Build engine, later the GoldSrc engine, before it was finally moved to the Lithtech engine...
(PC) - EA PlaygroundEA PlaygroundEA Playground is a video game for the Nintendo DS and Wii by Electronic Arts. The game is inspired by Wii Sports. .-Gameplay:The Wii game features various mini-games structured around a singleplayer "campaign" and a multiplayer party mode. All of the mini-games are based on well known playground...
(NDS) - Medal of Honor: Heroes 2Medal of Honor: Heroes 2Medal of Honor: Heroes 2 is a first-person shooter game for the Wii and the PlayStation Portable. It is an installment in the long-running Medal of Honor series of World War II games. Each version was built from the ground up for its respective system. The Wii version was announced at Nintendo's...
(PSP) - Need For Speed: UndercoverNeed for Speed: UndercoverNeed for Speed: Undercover is the 12th installment of the popular racing video game series Need for Speed, developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts . It was released on PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS, and mobile...
(PSP) - Transformers: Revenge of the FallenTransformers: Revenge of the Fallen (video game)Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen: The Game is a 2009 third-person shooter video game based on the 2009 live action film Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were developed by Luxoflux, and ported to the PC by Beenox Studios...
(PC, X360, PS3)