Hi-Rez Studios Launches Three New Individual Development Studios
Published: Aug 15, 2018 - Last Updated: Nov 4, 2019
Hi-Rez Studios, the US-based game developer, has announced the creation of three new development studios. Its signature games — SMITE, Paladins, and Realm Royale — will now be developed by the three standalone entities.
Hi-Rez’s development
Now developing each of its staple games with a standalone studio, the company is transforming. Hi-Rez now moves from a self-publishing studio into a multi-game entity backing individual development studios. The three new studios are Titan Forge Games (which will operate SMITE), Evil Mojo Games (for Paladins), and Heroic Leap Games for battle royale third-person shooter Realm Royale.
“The establishment of Titan Forge, Heroic Leap and Evil Mojo as standalone studios enables each of our development teams to fulfill their maximum potential and stay hyper focused on serving their individual player communities,” said Hi-Rez Executive Producer Chris Larson.
“We view game operation as a marathon, not a sprint. Our games are built to provide near constant updates over many years. By giving each major game its own dedicated studio and identity, we empower them to control their own destiny and focus exclusively on their player communities, while still having access to our leading shared publishing services.”
The company’s games run across multiple platforms, including PC, console, and mobile. This breadth gives the developer important know-how in the business. Hi-Rez boasts over 70 million players as a base and regularly sees its titles rank among top 10 games in the market.
“By structuring ourselves in this manner, we allow the organization to scale to multiple games more easily, while ensuring our existing game communities receive a better, more focused service than ever before,” said Hi-Rez Studios President Stew Chisam.
Two service companies to serve the group
In addition to the three individual studios, two service companies should serve as entities to further develop esports presence and tech art-related tasks.
Skillshot Media, an esports production company launched in May this year, should focus on growing and servicing player communities through esports. Taking care of production and event management, Hi-Rez aims to expand its presence in the ever-growing industry of competitive gaming.
The second one, Alacrity Arthouse, will provide technical art services to both wholly owned and partner game studios. These include cinematic video creation, concept art, 3D modeling, rigging, animation, FX, and art pipeline consultation and production.
“We want each person under the Hi-Rez umbrella to be focused on building amazing player communities around incredibly creative and constantly evolving games,” Chisam added. “By organizing in this way, we give each group a distinct mission around this common goal.”
Founded in 2005, Hi-Rez has come a long way, establishing itself a leading game developer with top titles under its belt.
Since: September 12, 2015
