MachineGames
{{Short description|Swedish video game developer}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2019}}
{{Infobox company
| name = MachineGames Sweden AB
| logo = MachineGames.svg
| type = Subsidiary
| industry = Video games
| founded = {{Start date and age|df=yes|2009}}
| founders = {{Unbulleted list|Kjell Emanuelsson|Jerk Gustafsson|Magnus Högdahl|Jim Kjellin|Fredrik Ljungdahl|Jens Matthies|Michael Wynne}}
| hq_location_city = Uppsala
| hq_location_country = Sweden
| num_locations = 2 (2024)
| num_employees = 162 (2024){{Cite web |title= MachineGames Sweden AB - Företagsinformation |url= https://www.allabolag.se/5568151483/bokslut |access-date=July 1, 2024 |website=AllaBolag}}
| key_people = {{Unbulleted list|Lars Johansson {{nowrap|(managing director)}}|Jim Kjellin {{nowrap|(CTO)}}}}
| products = Wolfenstein {{nowrap|(2014–present)}}
| parent = ZeniMax Media {{nowrap|(2010–present)}}
| divisions = MachineGames Sundsvall
| website = {{URL|https://www.machinegames.com/|machinegames.com}}
}}
MachineGames Sweden AB is a Swedish video game developer based in Uppsala. The studio was founded in 2009 by seven former employees of Starbreeze Studios, including founder Magnus Högdahl. After unsuccessfully pitching game ideas to several publishers, MachineGames agreed with Bethesda Softworks to develop an entry in the Wolfenstein series in July 2010 and was acquired by Bethesda's parent company, ZeniMax Media, in November. In the Wolfenstein series, MachineGames developed The New Order (2014), The Old Blood (2015), The New Colossus (2017), Youngblood (2019), and Cyberpilot (2019). The studio also developed Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (2024) and is developing another Wolfenstein game.
History
MachineGames' founding team—consisting of Kjell Emanuelsson, Jerk Gustafsson, Magnus Högdahl, Jim Kjellin, Fredrik Ljungdahl, Jens Matthies, and Michael Wynne—was previously employed by Swedish video game company Starbreeze Studios, of which Högdahl was also the founder. By mid-2009, while the team was working on the game Syndicate, Starbreeze had grown to more than 100 employees, and the seven-piece team wanted to start anew. All seven left the studio and set up MachineGames in Uppsala, Sweden. An alternative name considered for the company was "Tungsten". Matthies became the company's creative director, while Gustafsson became managing director and executive producer. Högdahl and Wynne left shortly thereafter for personal reasons. For the first one-and-a-half years, the MachineGames team brainstormed game ideas and pitched them to various publishers, including Bethesda Softworks, being rejected on all of them. Running out of funds, the team considered either selling their homes to finance the studio further or closing down the studio entirely.
Around this time, developer id Software and the rights to its Wolfenstein series of games were acquired by Bethesda's parent company, ZeniMax Media. Following this acquisition, Bethesda offered MachineGames to work on one of its intellectual properties, and when Matthies learned that no one was developing a Wolfenstein game at the time, he requested that MachineGames could develop one. Matthies, Gustafsson, and other MachineGames employees visited id Software in Mesquite, Texas, in July 2010 to discuss this prospect. Id Software was already impressed with the team's work while at Starbreeze and only requested that MachineGames use their id Tech 5 engine for the endeavour. By November, all necessary paperwork for MachineGames to develop a Wolfenstein game was completed, and the studio became a subsidiary of ZeniMax to pursue development on what would later become Wolfenstein: The New Order. MachineGames was incorporated as ZeniMax Sweden AB, which was later changed to MachineGames Sweden AB. After the acquisition, MachineGames resumed hiring. According to Gustafsson, around 70% of the company's employees at the time came from Starbreeze.
MachineGames developed Wolfenstein: The New Order (2014) and its prequel, Wolfenstein: The Old Blood (2015). In June 2016, they released Dimension of the Past, a free episode for id Software's 1996 game Quake, in celebration of the game's twentieth anniversary. At Electronic Entertainment Expo 2017, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, a sequel to The New Order, was announced with a release date of 27 October 2017 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. MachineGames developed Wolfenstein: Youngblood, the follow-up to The New Colossus with a focus on co-operative gameplay, and Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot, a virtual reality game, both released in 2019. MachineGames created a further Quake episode, Dimension of the Machine, for the game's re-release in 2021, as well as Call of the Machine for Quake II{{'}}s re-release in 2023.
Microsoft acquired ZeniMax in March 2021. A third Wolfenstein game has been in development since at least September 2018. MachineGames announced in January 2021 that it was developing a game set in the Indiana Jones film franchise, which in January 2024 was revealed as Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. In November 2023, the studio announced plans to open a satellite studio in Sundsvall, Sweden; which is expected to be fully staffed in 2025.
Games developed
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" |
| scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Title ! scope="col" | Platform(s) |
|---|
| scope="row" | 2014 |
| scope="row" | 2015
| PlayStation 4, Windows, Xbox One |
| scope="row" | 2016
| Quake: Dimension of the Past | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S |
| scope="row" | 2017
| Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, Xbox One |
| scope="row" rowspan="2" | 2019
| Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Stadia, Windows, Xbox One |
| Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot
| PlayStation 4, Windows |
| scope="row" | 2021
| Quake: Dimension of the Machine | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S |
| scope="row" | 2023
| Quake II: Call of the Machine | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S |
| scope="row" rowspan="2" | 2024
| Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S |
| Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
| Windows, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5 |
References
{{Reflist|refs=
{{cite web |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-09-21/microsoft-to-buy-bethesda-studios-for-7-5-billion-to-boost-xbox |title=Microsoft to Buy Bethesda for $7.5 Billion to Boost Xbox |first1=Dina |last1=Bass |first2=Jason |last2=Schreier |date=21 September 2020 |access-date=21 September 2020 |website=Bloomberg News |archive-date=21 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200921143256/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-09-21/microsoft-to-buy-bethesda-studios-for-7-5-billion-to-boost-xbox |url-status=live}}
{{cite magazine |url=https://www.gameinformer.com/2021/08/19/quake-remaster-is-available-now-with-bonus-new-expansion |title=Quake Remaster Is Available Now With Bonus New Expansion |first=Laura |last=Rupper |date=19 August 2021 |magazine=Game Informer |access-date=19 August 2021 |archive-date=19 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210819195457/https://www.gameinformer.com/2021/08/19/quake-remaster-is-available-now-with-bonus-new-expansion |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.gamereactor.se/wolfenstein-utvecklarna-oppnar-en-sundsvalls-filial-1256523/ |title=Wolfenstein-utvecklarna öppnar en Sundsvalls-filial |language=sv |trans-title=The Wolfenstein developers open a Sundsvall branch |first=Jonas |last=Mäki |date=2 November 2023 |website=Gamereactor Sverige |access-date=3 November 2023 |archive-date=3 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231103145341/https://www.gamereactor.se/wolfenstein-utvecklarna-oppnar-en-sundsvalls-filial-1256523/ |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.gamespot.com/articles/new-indiana-jones-game-coming-from-wolfenstein-studio/1100-6486174/ |title=New Indiana Jones Game Coming From Wolfenstein Studio |first=Eddie |last=Makuch |date=12 January 2021 |access-date=12 January 2021 |website=GameSpot |archive-date=12 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112161709/https://www.gamespot.com/articles/new-indiana-jones-game-coming-from-wolfenstein-studio/1100-6486174/ |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.gamespot.com/articles/wolfenstein-the-new-order-revealed/1100-6407979/ |title=Wolfenstein: The New Order revealed |first=Eddie |last=Makuch |date=7 May 2013 |website=GameSpot |access-date=5 May 2019 |archive-date=5 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190505213053/https://www.gamespot.com/articles/wolfenstein-the-new-order-revealed/1100-6407979/ |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://kotaku.com/did-the-house-of-fallout-just-buy-another-studio-5680866 |title=Did The House of Fallout Just Buy *Another* Studio? |first=Michael |last=McWhertor |date=3 November 2010 |website=Kotaku |access-date=5 May 2019 |archive-date=5 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190505213053/https://kotaku.com/did-the-house-of-fallout-just-buy-another-studio-5680866 |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.polygon.com/2018/8/12/17679082/prey-typhon-hunter-wolfenstein-cyberpilot-vr-quakecon-2018 |title=Prey and Wolfenstein take two very different approaches in VR spinoffs |first=Michael |last=McWhertor |date=12 August 2018 |website=Polygon |access-date=17 March 2019 |archive-date=29 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190629174049/https://www.polygon.com/2018/8/12/17679082/prey-typhon-hunter-wolfenstein-cyberpilot-vr-quakecon-2018 |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.polygon.com/features/2014/5/15/5713324/wolfenstein-the-new-order-machine-games |title=Making Wolfenstein: A fight club on top of the world |first=Russ |last=Pitts |date=15 May 2014 |website=Polygon |access-date=12 June 2017 |archive-date=15 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170315000005/http://www.polygon.com/features/2014/5/15/5713324/wolfenstein-the-new-order-machine-games |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.polygon.com/e3-2013/2013/6/14/4416444/the-team-reviving-wolfenstein |title=The team reviving Wolfenstein |first=Matt |last=Leone |date=14 June 2013 |website=Polygon |access-date=5 May 2019 |archive-date=5 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190505213053/https://www.polygon.com/e3-2013/2013/6/14/4416444/the-team-reviving-wolfenstein |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.polygon.com/e3/2017/6/12/15779794/wolfenstein-2-the-new-colossus-e3-2017-announcement-bethesda-softworks |title=BJ Blazkowicz is back in Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus |first=Michael |last=McWhertor |date=12 June 2017 |website=Polygon |access-date=12 June 2017 |archive-date=12 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170612074801/https://www.polygon.com/e3/2017/6/12/15779794/wolfenstein-2-the-new-colossus-e3-2017-announcement-bethesda-softworks |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.polygon.com/e3/2018/6/12/17452486/wolfenstein-youngblood-trailer-analysis |title=What do we know about Wolfenstein Youngblood? |first=Patrick |last=Gill |date=12 June 2018 |website=Polygon |access-date=23 June 2018 |archive-date=23 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180623165855/https://www.polygon.com/e3/2018/6/12/17452486/wolfenstein-youngblood-trailer-analysis |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2016/06/24/free-quake/ |title=Um, There's A New, Official Quake 1 Episode Out |first=Alec |last=Meer |date=24 June 2016 |website=Rock, Paper, Shotgun |access-date=12 February 2017 |archive-date=2 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180102010200/https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2016/06/24/free-quake/ |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.theverge.com/2023/8/10/23827253/quake-ii-remaster-price-release-date-features |title=Quake II is getting the remaster treatment |first=Jon |last=Porter |date=10 August 2023 |website=The Verge |access-date=10 August 2023 |archive-date=20 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231020032426/https://www.theverge.com/2023/8/10/23827253/quake-ii-remaster-price-release-date-features |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://variety.com/2018/gaming/news/bethesda-wolfenstein-iii-still-single-player-1202942199/ |title=Bethesda is Making 'Wolfenstein III,' Not Abandoning Single Player |first=Liz |last=Lanier |date=24 September 2018 |website=Variety |access-date=19 December 2020 |archive-date=12 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112163715/https://variety.com/2018/gaming/news/bethesda-wolfenstein-iii-still-single-player-1202942199/ |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/machinegames-indiana-jones-and-the-great-circle-uses-harrison-fords-likeness/ |title=MachineGames' Indiana Jones and the Great Circle uses Harrison Ford's likeness |first=Chris |last=Scullion |date=18 January 2024 |website=Video Games Chronicle |access-date=18 January 2024 |archive-date=18 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240118205514/https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/machinegames-indiana-jones-and-the-great-circle-uses-harrison-fords-likeness/ |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/microsoft-confirms-its-bethesda-acquisition-is-complete-and-some-games-will-be-exclusive/ |title=Microsoft confirms its Bethesda acquisition is complete and 'some games' will be exclusive |first=Andy |last=Robinson |date=9 March 2021 |access-date=9 March 2021 |website=Video Games Chronicle |archive-date=9 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309164348/https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/microsoft-confirms-its-bethesda-acquisition-is-complete-and-some-games-will-be-exclusive/ |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.zenimax.com/en/legal/legal-information |title=Legal Information |publisher=ZeniMax Media |access-date=17 January 2022 |archive-date=17 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220117171012/https://www.zenimax.com/en/legal/legal-information |url-status=live}}
}}
External links
- {{Official website|https://www.machinegames.com/}}
{{MachineGames}}
{{ZeniMax Media}}
{{Wolfenstein series}}
Category:2010 mergers and acquisitions
Category:Companies based in Uppsala County
Category:Swedish companies established in 2009
Category:Video game companies established in 2009
Category:Video game companies of Sweden