Creative Assembly

The Creative Assembly Limited
Creative Assembly
Subsidiary
Industry Video game industry
Founded 1987 (1987)
Founder Tim Ansell
Headquarters Horsham, England
Key people
 Tim Heaton (studio director)
Products
Number of employees
 500+[1] (2017)
Parent Sega (2005–present)
Subsidiaries Creative Assembly Sofia
Website creative-assembly.com

The Creative Assembly Limited, doing business as Creative Assembly, is a British video game developer based in Horsham, founded in 1987 by Tim Ansell. In its early years, the company worked on porting games to MS-DOS from Amiga and ZX Spectrum platforms, later working with Electronic Arts to produce a variety of games under the EA Sports brand. In 1999, the company had sufficient resources to attempt a new and original project, proceeding to develop the strategy computer game Shogun: Total War which was a critical and commercial hit, and is regarded as a benchmark strategy game. Subsequent titles in the Total War series built on the success of Shogun: Total War, increasing the company's critical and commercial success.

In March 2005, Creative Assembly was acquired by Sega as a subsidiary. An Australian branch was operated from Fortitude Valley, Queensland as Sega Studios Australia. Under Sega, further Total War titles were developed, and Creative Assembly entered the console market with action-adventure games such as Spartan: Total Warrior, Viking: Battle for Asgard and Alien: Isolation.

History

Founding (1987–1998)

Creative Assembly was founded in 1987. The founder, Tim Ansell, had begun professional computer programming in 1985, working on video game titles for the Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64 and Atari 800. Initially, Ansell kept the company small so he could personally work on computer programming. The company's early work, often produced personally by Ansell, involved porting games from the Amiga platform to DOS, such as the 1989 titles Geoff Crammond's Stunt Car Racer and Shadow of the Beast by Psygnosis. Creative Assembly began work with Electronic Arts in 1993, producing titles under the EA Sports label, starting with the DOS version of the early FIFA games. With EA Sports, Creative Assembly was able to produce low development risk products bearing official league endorsements. The company's products included Rugby World Cup titles for 1995 and 2001, the game for the 1999 Cricket World Cup and the Australian Football League games for 1998 and 1999, of which the AFL 98 title was particularly successful in the Australian market. When it became clear that the company needed to expand further, Ansell employed Michael Simpson in 1996 as creative director. Simpson, a microchip designer turned video game designer, later became the driving force for the creative design of the Total War series. Ansell left Creative Assembly after Sega acquired the developer in 2005, later on, Tim Heaton took over as studio director.

Early Total War titles (1999–2004)

As a result of their success in sports titles, by 1999 Creative Assembly had sufficient resources and backing from Electronic Arts to develop more high risk titles in other genres. The result was Shogun: Total War, the company's breakthrough title. A blend of real-time tactics and turn-based gameplay, Shogun: Total War was announced in early 1999. The game focused the Sengoku period of Japanese feudal history, and upon its release in June 2000 it was met with critical acclaim. The game won multiple industry awards and became regarded as one of the benchmark strategy video games.[2][3] Inhouse composer Jeff van Dyck won both a BAFTA and an EMMA award for his work on the game's soundtrack.[2] In May 2001, Creative Assembly announced The Mongol Invasion, an expansion pack focusing on the earlier Mongol invasions of Japan. Released in August 2001, the expansion pack also received a positive response.

Soon after, Creative Assembly broke away from Electronic Arts, instead using Activision as a publisher and distributor. In August 2001, Creative Assembly announced a second Total War, set in the Middle Ages. Medieval: Total War was of a larger scope than Shogun: Total War, spanning a larger time period and the entirety of Medieval Europe. Released in August 2002, the game was a greater success than Shogun: Total War, becoming the best-selling video game in the UK for the first two weeks, and the fourth best-selling game in the US market in its first week. As with Shogun: Total War, Medieval: Total War won multiple industry awards, and was named the top game of 2002 by PC Gamer.[4] Creative Assembly was awarded the "PC Game Developer of the Year" award at the 2003 European Computer Trade Show.[5] Viking Invasion, an expansion pack focusing on the Viking invasion of Britain in the Dark Ages, was released in May 2003.

A third Total War title was announced in January 2003. Entitled Rome: Total War, the game featured a new game engine to Shogun: Total War and Medieval: Total War, and redesigned the approach to the series. Set during the rise of the Roman Empire, the game's code was used for two television shows: the BBC's Time Commanders[6] and the History Channel's Decisive Battles.[7] Upon release in September 2004, the game was given praise, becoming one of the year's top ten best-selling titles.[8]

Buyout and later games (2005–2016)

Despite speculation that Activision might buy Creative Assembly, as the publisher had done with previous successful developers under its wing,[9] the Japanese company Sega announced on 9 March 2005 that they had sealed an acquisition deal with Creative Assembly,[9] purchasing all issued shares in the company.[10] Sega explained that the acquisition was to strengthen Sega Europe's presence in the European and North American video game markets.[11] All preceding titles in the Total War series had been exclusively computer games. By July 2005, Sega had acquired the publishing rights to Rome: Total War from Activision,[12] and built on the brand strategy by releasing two expansion packs: Barbarian Invasion in September 2005 and Alexander in September 2006. Spartan: Total Warrior was released in October 2005 on Xbox, PlayStation 2 and GameCube, receiving a mixed reception from critics.[13][14][15]

Medieval II: Total War, the fourth title in the franchise, was announced in January 2006.[16] It was a remake of the earlier Medieval: Total War using the new assets and technology behind Rome: Total War. The game was released in November 2006, and although not as successful as Rome: Total War,[17] Medieval II: Total War was still a critical and commercial hit, holding a place in the UK games charts in November 2006,[18] and in the US charts until the end of January 2007.[19] An expansion pack, Kingdoms, was announced in March 2007. The expansion received a positive reception from critics upon release in August 2007.[20]

At the Games Convention in August 2007, Creative Assembly announced new titles. The first, Viking: Battle for Asgard, was a console-exclusive title, similar in style to Spartan: Total Warrior, but focusing on Norse mythology.[21] The game was released in March 2008. It received an average reception from critics in the industry.[22][23] The second title was a fifth Total War installment, Empire: Total War, set in the early modern period of the 18th century and early 19th century.[24] As was the case with Rome: Total War, Empire: Total War features a redesigned approach to the series and a new game engine. It was released in March 2009, receiving high praise,[25] selling double the number of units sold of Medieval II: Total War and Rome: Total War. However, numerous significant issues were pointed out by critics after the release. Though there were numerous patches, not all of these were addressed by the abandonment of support for the game, which caused many to question Sega's influence on Creative Assembly.[26] In July 2008, Creative Assembly announced Stormrise. Unlike previous historically-based games, Stormrise is a science fiction real-time strategy game developed for both consoles and PC, released in 2009.[27] Stormrise received negative and mediocre responses, with criticisms focusing on broken pathfinding and the game's flawed control scheme (designed with the intent to create an easy interface for consoles).[28][29]

The Australian branch of the Creative Assembly ported the first three Sonic the Hedgehog games and the Sonic & Knuckles lock-on games to Sonic Classic Collection. This compilation received overall positive reviews from Aussie-Nintendo and Official Nintendo Magazine, but criticised some speed issues when playing, rarely speeding up or slowing down and some graphical and sound glitches. Reviewers also criticised the removal of multiplayer in the games, previously available in earlier versions of the games.

In 2010, the company released Napoleon: Total War, based on the exploits of Napoleon Bonaparte to generally favourable reviews that praised the tightly scripted elements of a smaller, more focussed campaign than its globe-spanning predecessor, Empire Total War.[30]

The company released Total War: Shogun 2 in 2011, to universal acclaim.[31] The title is the first to make the brand Total War the main title, in an effort to increase brand awareness.[32]

On 6 December 2012, a partnership between Games Workshop and Creative Assembly was announced. Also announced was the creation of a new Warhammer Fantasy Battle game.

On 5 April 2013, it was announced that Sega Studios Australia (formerly known as The Creative Assembly Australia) will be shut down later in the year.[33]

On 3 September 2013, Creative Assembly released Total War: Rome II. The game uses an updated Warscape engine and suffered from technical issues shortly after release which eventually led to Creative Assembly's creative director, Mike Simpson, apologising publicly for the widespread technical issues.[34] In the ten months following release, Creative Assembly released fourteen patches for the game, solving most technical issues and balancing gameplay. As of July 2014, the game currently stands at a rating of 76/100 on Metacritic by critics.[35]

Alien: Isolation is a first person stealth horror game based on the film Alien.[36] The game was released on 7 October 2014 for PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.[37]

In 2016, the company released the game Total War: Warhammer, which is set to be the first game in a trilogy.[38] Currently they are developing the following games: Total War: Arena and Total War Battles: Kingdom, which are free-to-play games set in the Total War universe.[39]

Expansion (2017–present)

In February 2017, the studio released Halo Wars 2, which received positive reviews.[40] In March 2017 Creative Assembly announced the acquisition of Crytek Black Sea which was shut down in December 2016.[41] This was the first studio opened by Creative Assembly abroad. The studio has been re-named to Creative Assembly Sofia.[42]

Games developed

Year Title Platform(s)
1989 Blood Money MS-DOS
Baal MS-DOS
Stunt Car Racer MS-DOS
1990 Infestation MS-DOS, FM Towns
Stryx MS-DOS
1991 Shadow of the Beast FM Towns[43]
1993 FIFA International Soccer MS-DOS
1994 Microcosm MS-DOS
Rugby World Cup 95 MS-DOS
1996 ARL 96 MS-DOS, Microsoft Windows
International Rugby League MS-DOS, Microsoft Windows
1998 AFL 98 Microsoft Windows
1999 ICC Cricket World Cup England 99 Microsoft Windows
2000 Cricket 2000 Microsoft Windows
Shogun: Total War Microsoft Windows
2001 Rugby PlayStation 2
Shogun: Total War: The Mongol Invasion Microsoft Windows
2002 Medieval: Total War Microsoft Windows
2003 Medieval: Total War: Viking Invasion Microsoft Windows
2004 Rome: Total War iOS, macOS, Microsoft Windows
2005 Rome: Total War: Barbarian Invasion macOS, Microsoft Windows
Spartan: Total Warrior GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox
2006 Rome: Total War: Alexander macOS, Microsoft Windows
Medieval II: Total War Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
2007 Medieval II: Total War: Kingdoms Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
2008 Viking: Battle for Asgard Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
2009 Empire: Total War Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
Stormrise Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
2010 Napoleon: Total War macOS, Microsoft Windows
Sonic Classic Collection Nintendo DS
2011 Total War: Shogun 2 Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
2012 Total War: Shogun 2: Fall of the Samurai Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
Total War Battles: Shogun Android, iOS
London 2012 Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
2013 Total War: Rome II macOS, Microsoft Windows
2014 Alien: Isolation Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
2015 Total War: Attila Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
2016 Total War: Warhammer Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows
2017 Halo Wars 2 Microsoft Windows, Xbox One
Total War: Warhammer II Microsoft Windows
2018 Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia Microsoft Windows
TBA Total War: Arena Microsoft Windows
Total War: Three Kingdoms Microsoft Windows

References

  1. ↑ "Creative Assembly acquires Arena of Fate developer Crytek Black Sea". PC Gamer. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  2. 1 2 "Awards". The Creative Assembly. Retrieved 3 November 2008.
  3. ↑ "Shogun: Total War (PC: 2000)". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  4. ↑ "Top 100", PC Gamer UK: 2002
  5. ↑ "ECTS 2003: Best of Year Awards". IGN. 2 September 2003. Retrieved 3 November 2008.
  6. ↑ Price, Peter (16 October 2007). "Machinima waits to go mainstream". BBC. Retrieved 3 November 2008.
  7. ↑ Butts, Steve (21 July 2004). "History Channel's Decisive Battles". IGN. Retrieved 3 November 2008.
  8. ↑ "NPD full-year PC tally nets hat trick for Activision". GameSpot. 24 January 2005. Retrieved 3 November 2008.
  9. 1 2 Thorsen, Tor (9 March 2005). "Sega conquers The Creative Assembly". GameSpot. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  10. ↑ Dunham, Jeremy (8 March 2005). "GDC 2005: SEGA Gets Creative". IGN. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  11. ↑ Adams, David (9 March 2005). "SEGA Buys The Creative Assembly". IGN. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  12. ↑ "Sega Secures Publishing Rights to Rome: Total War Expansion". GameSpot. 1 July 2005. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  13. ↑ "Spartan: Total Warrior (Xbox: 2005)". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  14. ↑ "Spartan: Total Warrior (PS2: 2005)". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  15. ↑ "Spartan: Total Warrior (Cube: 2005)". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  16. ↑ Steel, Wade (20 January 2006). "Total War Goes Medieval Again". IGN. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  17. ↑ "Medieval II: Total War (PC: 2006)". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  18. ↑ Boyes, Emma (15 November 2006). "UK game charts: November 5–11". GameSpot. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  19. ↑ Sinclair, Brendan (8 February 2007). "PC game charts: January 21–27". GameSpot. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  20. ↑ "Medieval II: Total War Kingdoms (PC: 2007)". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  21. ↑ Thorsen, Tor (21 August 2007). "Viking officially pillaging PS3, 360". GameSpot. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  22. ↑ "Viking: Battle for Asgard (PS3: 2008)". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  23. ↑ "Viking: Battle for Asgard (Xbox 360: 2008)". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  24. ↑ Magrino, Tom (21 August 2007). "Sega waging new Total War". GameSpot. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  25. ↑ "Empire: Total War (PC:2009)". Metacritic. Retrieved 8 April 2009.
  26. ↑ Burnes, Andrew (10 March 2009). "Empire: Total War Breaks U.K. Sales Records". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 8 April 2009. Retrieved 19 March 2009.
  27. ↑ Magrino, Tom (10 July 2008). "Creative Assembly building console RTS". GameSpot. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  28. ↑ "Stormrise (PS3: 2009)". Metacritic. Retrieved 19 April 2009.
  29. ↑ "Stormrise (Xbox 360: 2009)". Metacritic. Retrieved 19 April 2009.
  30. ↑ Steve Butts (18 December 2010). "Napoleon Total War Review". IGN. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
  31. ↑ "Total War: Shogun 2 for PC Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic". Metacritic.com. Retrieved 2 April 2012.
  32. ↑ "Hands on: Shogun 2's siege battles". PC Gamer. 3 December 2010. Retrieved 28 July 2012.
  33. ↑ Phillips, Tom (5 April 2013). "Sega to shut down Medieval 2: Total War developer Sega Studios Australia". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Retrieved 5 April 2013.
  34. ↑ Ian Birnbaum (3 September 2013). "Total War: Rome 2 creative director: launch issues are "totally unacceptable"". PC Gamer. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
  35. ↑ "Total War: Rome II for PC reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
  36. ↑ Erik Kain (7 September 2014). "'Alien: Isolation' Reunites Original Cast Of 'Alien' But Only As Pre-Order DLC". Forbes. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
  37. ↑ David Scammell (12 March 2014). "Alien: Isolation release date set for October 7". VideoGamer.com. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
  38. ↑ Shreidan, Conner (22 April 2015). "Total War: Warhammer is just the start of a new strategy trilogy". GamesRadar. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
  39. ↑ Stephany Nunneley (3 December 2014). "Total War Battles: Kingdom is a free-to-play persistent-world strategy game for PC, Mac, tablets". VG247. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  40. ↑ "Halo Wars 2". Metacritic. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  41. ↑ "Crytek eliminates five studios after struggling to pay employees". pcgamer. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  42. ↑ "Creative Assembly acquires Arena of Fate developer Crytek Black Sea". pcgamer. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  43. ↑ Dean, Paul (27 September 2012). "Creation Legend: The history of The Creative Assembly". Eurogamer. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
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