Big Huge Games lives again with original founder, mobile strategy
Big Huge Games, known for PC strategy games such as Rise of Nations and the RPG Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, was a casualty of 38 Studios' financial troubles in 2012 and its bankruptcy in 2013. 38 Studios closed Big Huge Games in 2012 and sold off its properties for $320,000 in December 2013. Turns out, the original Big Huge Games founder, Brian Reynolds, is the one who picked up those IPs. He's been operating under the studio name SecretNewCo (which really should have been a hint to the rest of us) since 2013, and now Big Huge Games is back with its first game, a mobile, empire-building strategy title called DomiNations. It will be published by Nexon.
Prior to re-launching Big Huge Games, Reynolds was Chief Designer at Zynga, and before that he co-founded Civilization studio Firaxis Games. In between, he helped found Big Huge Games the first time around. Reynolds is now CEO of the shiny, new Big Huge Games.
"We're honored to continue the legacy of Big Huge Games, which we founded on the concept of making fun, beautiful and innovative gameplay experiences on mobile devices," Reynolds says in a press release. "Nexon is lending us its proven free-to-play expertise in pursuit of that goal, and we can't wait to show players what we've created together."
DomiNations allows players to craft empires from the stone age to the space age, with single-player and co-op modes. It's free and due out on iOS and Android devices in 2015.
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BIG HUGE GAMES AND NEXON REVEAL DOMINATIONS,
A MOBILE COMBAT STRATEGY GAME
Brian Reynolds' SecretNewCo Becomes Big Huge Games
With Focus on Mobile Games
LOS ANGELES and BALTIMORE – Oct. 27, 2014 – Big Huge Games, the Maryland-based game development studio founded by 23-year industry veteran Brian Reynolds and formerly known as SecretNewCo, in partnership with Nexon have revealed the studio's debut mobile title, DomiNations. With a focus on creating mobile strategy games, Big Huge Games' DomiNations is an epic strategic combat game of advancement, exploration and conquest being developed for iPhone and iPad and Android mobile devices.
DomiNations, an innovative free-to-play mobile strategy game that allows players to lead the world's greatest civilizations from the Stone Age to the Space Age, will be published by Nexon's mobile gaming group, Nexon M. In DomiNations, players can explore, advance and grow their civilizations while conquering the world through single-player campaign and cooperative gameplay modes.
"Brian and the team at Big Huge Games have built a truly epic new game with DomiNations. Strategy game fans and mobile gamers are going to love the innovation, depth, and player choice DomiNations gives each user," said John Robinson, general manager, Nexon M.
Big Huge Games was initially formed in 2013 following founder and CEO Brian Reynolds' departure from Zynga, where he served as the company's chief game designer, responsible for creating innovative social mechanics for popular titles including FrontierVille and CityVille 2. Prior to Zynga, Reynolds led the founding of the first incarnation of Big Huge Games in 2000, where he and his team created award-winning titles Rise of Nations and Rise of Legends prior to the studio closing in 2012. Reynolds was also a founder of Firaxis Games, along with Sid Meier and Jeff Briggs. He rose to prominence as the lead designer and lead engineer on Civilization II, his first multi-million selling title, and led the creation of renowned games such as Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri.
"We're honored to continue the legacy of Big Huge Games, which we founded on the concept of making fun, beautiful and innovative gameplay experiences on mobile devices," said Brian Reynolds, chief executive officer, Big Huge Games. "Nexon is lending us its proven free-to-play expertise in pursuit of that goal, and we can't wait to show players what we've created together."
DomiNations will launch on iOS and Android mobile devices next year. To register to receive updates for DomiNations and to check out the latest trailer visit: www.dominations.com.
To learn more about Big Huge Games, please visit www.bighugegames.com.
