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Black Forest Games

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Black Forest Games GmbH
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryVideo games
PredecessorSpellbound Entertainment
Founded13 July 2012; 12 years ago (2012-07-13)
FounderAndreas Speer
Headquarters
Offenburg
,
Germany
Key people
Andreas Speer (CEO)
ProductsGiana Sisters series
Number of employees
50 (2024)
ParentTHQ Nordic (2017–present)
Websiteblack-forest-games.com

Black Forest Games GmbH is a German video game developer based in Offenburg. The company was founded in July 2012 by a team of 40 staff members, including chief executive officer Andreas Speer, previously employed by Spellbound Entertainment, which filed for insolvency earlier that year. As of August 2017, it is a subsidiary of THQ Nordic.[1] As of August 2024, the company employs 50 people.[2]

History

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Following the release of Arcania: Fall of Setarrif, the game's developer, Spellbound Entertainment, filed for insolvency in March 2012.[3] Upon completion, on 13 July 2012, the opening of Black Forest Games in Offenburg as a successor to Spellbound was announced, employing 40 of the Spellbound's former 65 staff.[3][4] Under these 40 was most of the former management, including chief executive officer Andreas Speer.[4][5]

In July 2012, Black Forest Games started a Kickstarter campaign for a new installment of The Great Giana Sisters tentatively titled Project Giana, stating "Project Giana is the grandchild of The Great Giana Sisters". The game features music from The Great Giana Sisters' original composer Chris Huelsbeck and the Swedish "SID metal" band Machinae Supremacy.[6] Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams was released on October 23, 2012 for PC with later releases on Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, and Nintendo eShop.[7]

Rogue Stormers was revealed at the Game Developers Conference 2010, in San Francisco under the project name RavensDale, although it has been in development since 2007. After an unsuccessful attempt on Kickstarter in 2013 the game was put on hold. In a second attempt in early 2014 the game, then known as DieselStormers, was successfully funded on Kickstarter and went to Steam early access in July 2014.[8][9][10]

Due to a trademark registration of DieselStormers by Diesel S.p.A.'s successful trademark lawsuit, Black Forest Games decided to change the name from DieselStormers to Rogue Stormers.[11] Fade to Silence was announced at The Game Awards 2017. It is a survival game set in a snow-covered forest, requiring the player to collect resources, build a refuge, and recruit others as followers to survive. The game entered early access on Steam on 14 December 2017, and had its full release on 30 April 2019 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. The game was published by THQ Nordic.[12]

On 7 June 2019, THQ Nordic announced a remake of the 2005 science fiction game Destroy All Humans! is in development at Black Forest Studios, set for a release in 2020 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. The remake will feature content that was cut from the original release developed by Pandemic Studios.[13] The game was officially announced in June 2019. An extended gameplay demo was launched at E3 2019.[14] In August 2019, Google announced that the game will also be available for Stadia.[15]

In August 2023, it was announced that Black Forest Studios would develop a game based on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin, with the game set to release on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Microsoft Windows.[16]

In January 2024, it was announced that the studio had laid off roughly 50% of its team, with the creative directors and most of the executives keeping their jobs.[17][18][19]

Games developed

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Year Title Platform(s)
2012 Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams Microsoft Windows
2013 PlayStation 3, Wii U, Xbox 360
Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams - Rise of the Owlverlord Microsoft Windows
2014 Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams - Directors Cut PlayStation 4, Xbox One
2015 Giana Sisters: Dream Runners Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
2016 Rogue Stormers Linux, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Titan Quest: Anniversary Edition Microsoft Windows
2017 Bubsy: The Woolies Strike Back Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4
2018 Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams – Owltimate Edition Nintendo Switch
Titan Quest Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
2019 Fade to Silence
2020 Destroy All Humans! Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Stadia, Xbox One
2021 Nintendo Switch
2022 Destroy All Humans! Clone Carnage Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Destroy All Humans! 2: Reprobed Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S
2023 PlayStation 4, Xbox One
TBA Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S

References

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  1. ^ McAloon, Alissa (21 August 2017). "THQ Nordic picks up Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams dev Black Forest Games". Gamasutra.
  2. ^ Fröhlich, Petra (15 August 2024). "Die größten Games-Studios in Deutschland 2024" [The largest game studios in Germany in 2024]. GamesWirtschaft (in German). Archived from the original on 15 August 2024. Retrieved 15 August 2024.
  3. ^ a b Steinlechner, Peter (13 July 2012). "Nach Insolvenz: Spellbound wird zu Black Forest Games" [After insolvency: Spellbound becomes Black Forest Games]. Golem.de (in German).
  4. ^ a b Gera, Emily (13 July 2012). "'Gothic 4' developer emerges from insolvency as Black Forest Games". Polygon.
  5. ^ Holmes, Mike (13 July 2012). "Black Forest Games launch". Gamereactor.
  6. ^ "Giana Sisters: Twisted DreamsGiana Sisters: Twisted Dreams - a platformer with a twist!". Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
  7. ^ "Project Giana by Black Forest Games".
  8. ^ "Dag Frommhold, Managing Partner, Trinigy - GDC 2010, San Francisco, CAIDIA GPU Computing Theater". Archived from the original on 20 November 2012. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
  9. ^ "DieselStörmers". Kickstarter.
  10. ^ "Save 75% on Rogue Stormers on Steam". store.steampowered.com.
  11. ^ "Blog – Black Forest Games". Archived from the original on 18 April 2016. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
  12. ^ Roemer, Dan (7 December 2017). "New Early Access survival game Fade to Silence leaked ahead of The Game Awards". Destructoid. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  13. ^ Yin-Poole, Wesley (7 June 2019). "The trailer for the Destroy All Humans! remake is certainly something". Eurogamer. Retrieved 8 June 2019.
  14. ^ "Destroy All Humans Remake - 15 Minutes Of Cinematics And Extended Gameplay Demo | E3 2019". GameSpot. 13 June 2019.
  15. ^ Romano, Sal (19 August 2019). "Destroy All Humans! remake adds Stadia version". Gematsu. Retrieved 19 August 2019.
  16. ^ Lyles, Taylor (11 August 2023). "Destroy All Humans! Studio Announced As TMNT: The Last Ronin Developer". IGN. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  17. ^ "24 Days Into 2024 And 3,900+ Video Game Layoffs Have Been Announced". Kotaku. 10 January 2024. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  18. ^ Carter, Justin (25 January 2024). "Destroy All Humans dev Black Forest Games reportedly cuts 50% of staff". www.gamedeveloper.com. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  19. ^ "Destroy All Humans Remake Developer Black Forest Games Reportedly Lays Off 50 Employees". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 25 January 2024. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
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