Another game development studio was acquired by a larger company.
Journey to the Savage Planet

Stop me if you've heard this one before: A small, independent studio has been picked up by a much larger company today. This small studio was started by just two men. Together, they have multiple years of experience in the field, having helped to deliver a series of high-profile AAA game releases during their time at other studios.

In looking to branch out, these two individuals built a new studio from the ground up. In doing so, they acquired a handful of additional talented individuals that also have backgrounds in AAA game development. Though creative freedom and an independence from large corporations were the goals, the newly formed studio quickly caught the attention of some large corporations after revealing their first title. It is at this time, in the here and now, that this team has just been acquired by a large corporation.

The team is no longer independent and will instead create games exclusively for just one platform.

To that end: Typhoon Studios was acquired today by Google and is now a part of the Stadia team. This small studio was started by Alex Hutchinson and Reid Schneider. Together, the two have worked on games like Batman: Arkham Knight, The Sims 2, Spore, Assassin's Creed III, and Far Cry 4.

Today, the team at Typhoon Studios numbers 26. This includes a number of talented individuals that have also had a hand in AAA game releases in prior years. So far, Typhoon Studios has only shown off one title, Journey to the Savage Planet. It has not yet been released but it seems to have caught the eye of Google and the powers that be within the Stadia division. Typhoon and its employees have been acquired by Google Stadia.

Even with that, Journey to the Savage Planet is not a Stadia exclusive. The game will still ship for all of its planned platforms: PC via Epic Games Store (affiliate link), PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. However, it seems obvious to suggest that future titles from the Typhoon team will be exclusive to the Stadia platform. There is still a long way to go before we'll even start to see what's next from the team.

You can read more about this acquisition from GI.biz.


"I see a lot of these sort of complaints as they're historical and perennial," Hutchinson says. "They seem to come out any time there's new technology or new hardware or a new platform. I remember how everyone hated on Steam when it was released. These things come and go. There's an early, sort of allergic reaction to it from a very small but very loud percentage of the player base, and they've just become part of the ecosystem pretty quickly. I don't think we're too stressed about it. It's another double-click on your desktop; it's not a giant barrier to entry."

That said, Schneider is quick to point out that it's very important for the studio to do right by its community.