- SCE Studio Liverpool
Infobox Company
company_name = SCE Studio Liverpool
company_
company_type =Subsidiary
parent =Sony Computer Entertainment
foundation =1984 (originallyPsygnosis )
location =Liverpool ,England
key_people =Mick Hocking , Group Studio DirectorClemens Wangerin , Studio Director
Tony Buckley, Lead Director
industry = Video Game Industry
products = "Wipeout series"
"Formula One" series
"Colony Wars series"
num_employees = 100 (as of May 2005)
homepage = [http://eu.scee.com/ http://eu.scee.com] |SCE Studio Liverpool is a video game development house head-quartered at Wavertree Technology Park in
Liverpool ,England . The company is a wholly ownedsubsidiary ofSony Computer Entertainment and currently employs roughly 100 individuals comprising two development teams.Mick Hocking currently oversees Studio Liverpool's operations as Group Studio Director, a position he also holds within two other SCE-owned developers,Evolution Studios andBigbig Studios .Studio Liverpool, which is the oldest and second largest development house within Sony Computer Entertainment Europe's stable of developers, is best known for the "Wipeout" series of futuristic racing games, with the first instalment releasing on the original
PlayStation back in 1995. The studio is also known for the "Formula One" series of licensed racing games, and their "Colony Wars" series released on the originalPlayStation .History
SCE Studio Liverpool was founded as
Psygnosis in 1984, an independent developer and publisher of video games. Psygnosis was wholly acquired bySony Computer Entertainment in 1993 in preparation for the 1994 release of thePlayStation , and the development house (that is now known as SCE Studio Liverpool) shifted exclusively towards creating software for thePlayStation . The publishing side of Psygnosis continued to operate as normally however, publishing titles for both the PlayStation "and" competing consoles fromNintendo andSega . Towards the later part of the 90's though, Psygnosis began to focus overall more and more exclusively on the PlayStation, and in 1999 the publishing branch of the company was merged into Sony Computer Entertainment Europe as a whole, and thePsygnosis brand was dropped in favour of SCE Studio Liverpool, which marked the full integration of the studio within Sony Computer Entertainment.After extremely successful instalments in the "Wipeout" and "Colony Wars" series' released for the
PlayStation under thePsygnosis banner, the newly named SCE Studio Liverpool released their first title, "Formula One 2001 ", in 2001. The game was also the studio's first release on thePlayStation 2 , and their first entry in the "Formula One" series after taking over for developerStudio 33 . From 2001 to 2007, Studio Liverpool has since released 8 instalments in the series between the PlayStation 2,PlayStation Portable andPlayStation 3 . However, Sony Computer Entertainment's exclusive license with theFormula One Group expired, without renewal, before the 2007 season, marking the end of any further "Formula One" series instalments from the developer.Studio Liverpool's larger and more prominent development team, responsible for the "Wipeout" series, was much less visible during the first years since the name change, contributing only two titles from 2001 to 2006. "
Wipeout Fusion ", the first and only instalment of the series on thePlayStation 2 , released in 2002, and "Wipeout Pure " for the PlayStation Portable, which launched alongside the handheld in 2005 to significant acclaim, with many media outlets heralding it a return to glory for the series, which had seen only one other instalment in the last 7 years.Currently, with a renewed focus due to the loss of the "Formula One" license, Studio Liverpool has three separate "Wipeout" instalments in development. "
Wipeout Pulse ", a sequel to "Wipeout Pure " for the PSP, which was released in December 2007. "Wipeout HD ", a downloadable title for the PlayStation 3'sPlayStation Network service, consisting of various courses taken from both "Wipeout Pure" and "Wipeout Pulse" with completely redone visuals. And the as-of-yet untitled new "Wipeout" instalment, also for the PlayStation 3, which marks the first completely new instalment in the series in 6 years.Games
PlayStation 3
*"" (2006)
*"Wipeout HD " (2008) "(September 25th)"
*"Wipeout" "(working title)" (2008) "(in development)"PSP
*"
Wipeout Pure " (2005)
*"F1 06" (2006)
*"Wipeout Pulse " (2007)PlayStation 2
*"
Formula One 2001 " (2001)
*"Wipeout Fusion " (2002)
*"Formula One 2002 " (2002)
*"Formula One 2003 " (2003)
*"F1 04" (2004)
*"F1 05" (2005)
*"F1 06" (2006)PlayStation
*"
Wipeout " (1995)
*"Krazy Ivan " (1996)
*"Wipeout 2097 " "(Wipeout XL)" (1996)
*"Colony Wars " (1996)
*"Lifeforce Tenka " (1997)
*"" (1998)
*"Global Domination " (1999)
*"Wipeout 3 " (1999)
*"" (2000)Affiliated Developers
*
Psygnosis (Original company name)
*SCE London Studio
*SCE Studio Cambridge
*Evolution Studios
*Bigbig Studios External links
* [http://www.development.scee.net/profile_liverpool.html Studio Liverpool Profile]
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