Crystal Dynamics

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This article is about the video game developer. For the natural property, see Crystallization.
Crystal Dynamics, Inc.
TypeSubsidiary
IndustryVideo games
FoundedJuly 8, 1992; 30 years ago (1992-07-08) in Palo Alto, California, US
Founders
Headquarters
San Mateo, California
,
US
Key people
Scot Amos (head of studio)
Products
Number of employees
273[1] (2022)
Parent
Divisions
  • Crystal Northwest
  • Crystal Southwest
Websitecrystald.com

Crystal Dynamics, Inc. is an American video game developer based in San Mateo, California and part of Embracer Group. The studio developed the Gex, Legacy of Kain, and Tomb Raider series. Founded in 1992 by Madeline Canepa, Judy Lange, and Dave Morse, it was acquired by Eidos Interactive in 1998. It became part of SCi Entertainment in 2005, Square Enix Europe in 2009 and Embracer Group (via CDE Entertainment) in 2022.

History[edit]

Background and early years (1989–1994)[edit]

Crystal Dynamics was founded by Madeline Canepa, Judy Lange, and Dave Morse.[2][3] Morse, a founder of Amiga Corporation, had previously founded New Technology Group with Dave Needle and Robert J. Mical in 1989 to create a video game console that could succeed those by Nintendo and Sega. In 1990, New Technology Group's founders discussed this idea with Trip Hawkins, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Electronic Arts, who shared with them his vision for such a system. The two companies signed an agreement in September 1990 that would see New Technology Group develop the system under Electronic Arts' provision of software and money. The development of what would become the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer began in 1991, and out of the partnership between New Technology Group and Electronic Arts grew The 3DO Company, led by Hawkins.[4] Canepa and Lange had been marketing executives for Sega, where Canepa (the "Mother of Sonic") had been integral in the launch of Sonic the Hedgehog.[5][6] On July 8, 1992, Canepa, Lange, and Morse spun off Crystal Dynamics from The 3DO Company as an independent developer.[4][7] Its first offices were located in the retail space of Palo Alto Airport in Palo Alto, California.[8][9] Crystal Dynamics started out simultaneously developing Crash 'n Burn and Total Eclipse, which were announced for the then-upcoming 3DO in April 1993.[9][10] Developing for the 3DO meant that it could produce games for CD-ROM, avoiding the higher costs of cartridges.[8] A 1993 editorial in Electronic Gaming Monthly declared the studio "the hottest new video game company on the upscale scene".[11] In June 1993, Strauss Zelnick resigned as president and CEO of 20th Century Fox to become the president and CEO of the nascent studio. He acquired between 25% and 50% of the company. Lange, who had acted as Crystal Dynamics' president, stated that he had been hired for his business expertise, whereas the creative expertise was already present at the studio, which had twenty-eight developers at that time.[10] Zelnick brought in investors through earlier connections: Home Box Office bought 10% in July 1993, followed by King World Productions acquiring 10% for US$7.5 million in September of that year.[12][13] While Home Box Office's price was not disclosed, the combined stakes' value was estimated at $20 million.[14] Zelnick's background in film and television increased Crystal Dynamics' focus on full-motion video in its games.[8]

Crash 'n Burn was released as part of the 3DO in October 1993.[15] In January 1994, Zelnick was in the process of setting up the company Star Interactive, which was to publish third-party games by outsourcing the management and distribution to Crystal Dynamics, as well as the manufacturing to a third company.[16][17] In return for the former, Crystal Dynamics was to receive annual payments of $1.5 million and 10% of Star Interactive's profit for the management role, as well as 22.5% of its gross receipts for the distribution. The management was to consist of The Software Toolworks' former senior vice president (VP) Mark Beaumont as CEO, as well as Crystal Dynamics' now-executive VP Lange and VP of sales Allen Chaplin.[18] In February, Zelnick announced his intent for Crystal Dynamics to, like a movie studio, produce its own games while also releasing titles from other, independent developers.[5] As such, it partnered with Toys for Bob for several games, starting with The Horde.[8] In March, Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG), which Zelnick had been consulting, agreed to handle marketing and distribution for Crystal Dynamics and Star Interactive outside of North America.[19] As Star Interactive failed to raise $30 million, the plan for this company was scrapped in early 1994 and Lange departed Crystal Dynamics shortly thereafter.[3][20] In August, Crystal Dynamics had more than 100 employees.[21] Despite Zelnick steering Crystal Dynamics away from relying solely on the 3DO and the company becoming the first licensed third-party developer for the PlayStation,[8][22] the 3DO's poor commercial performance had a significant impact on the company.[20] John Eastburn, the studio's chief operating officer, estimated that 3DO game developers could not break even unless its consumer base expanded from 75,000 to 500,000.[23] In September, Zelnick was announced as the new manager for BMG's North American operations. He would join the company in January 1995 while remaining a director and shareholder in Crystal Dynamics.[22] The vacant CEO position attracted several parties interested in acquiring the studio. Although The 3DO Company and Spectrum HoloByte were frequently rumored as potential buyers, chairman Morse stated that Crystal Dynamics was not for sale, having spare savings of $20 million and a newly acquired loan of $5 million from Silicon Valley Bank.[4][20] The studio partnered with Matsushita Electric, the manufacturer of the 3DO, in December 1994 to have its 3DO games distributed through 10,000 consumer electronics stores.[24]

Gex, Legacy of Kain, and acquisition (1995–1999)[edit]

Looking to come up with a mascot character for itself, the studio sought after an animal that was generally liked and had interesting abilities. The result was Gex, an anthropomorphic gecko introduced with the game of the same name in 1995. Geckos' ability to walk on walls allowed the development team to implement planar and vertical platforming elements despite the 3DO's limitations.[8] In 1995, Crystal Dynamics hired LucasArts' Randy Komisar as CEO and began converting its older 3DO games to the PlayStation and Sega Saturn.[25][26] Around this time, Crystal Dynamics' publishing arm released Slam 'N Jam '95 and Blazing Dragons, and it was working with Canada-based Silicon Knights on Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain. The game was already expansive in content but lacked structure, wherefore Crystal Dynamics brought Amy Hennig into the project to help make the game more engaging.[8] By 1996, due chiefly to the unexpectedly slow growth of the next-generation games market, the studio's expansion in its early years had failed to pay off.[27][28] The company had raised capital through Technology Partners, and that company's general partner Ted Ardell announced a reorganization of the studio in June 1996: Of its 102 employees, a third would be laid off over a course of three months, while Komisar, Canepa, and Eastburn would be ousted and Ardell installed as the new CEO.[26] Crystal Dynamics also ceased publishing efforts to focus solely on internally developed games.[27] Ardel managed the day-to-day operations while Crystal Dynamics lacked a president until Rob Dyer was promoted to this position in April 1997.[29] Surplus computer hardware and office equipment were auctioned off from its newer Menlo Park in September of that year.[30]

Following the release of Enter the Gecko, Crystal Dynamics began producing Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko. By this point, many developers–including close the entire team of the original Gex–had left the company, and some of them had joined Naughty Dog. Bruce Straley, a designer on Enter the Gecko, was initially offered to direct the third game but chose to join his friends at Naughty Dog instead.[8] Crystal Dynamics further began the development of a second Legacy of Kain game, codenamed Shifter, without Silicon Knights' involvement. While original characters were created by Hennig and Seth Carus, Silicon Knights filed an injunction, accusing Crystal Dynamics of plagiarizing the characters from Blood Omen. In a private settlement, the two companies agreed that Crystal Dynamics could use Blood Omen's characters as long as Silicon Knights was credited as their creator. Thus, Shifter became Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver.[8] Following losses of $1.5 million in its 1997 fiscal year, Crystal Dynamics agreed to bought by publisher Eidos Interactive in September 1998 for £28.4 million ($47.5 million) paid in cash.[31][32] The studio had returned to over 100 employees by this time.[33] Originally set to close on October 31, the acquisition was completed on November 5, 1998.[32][34][35] Dyer and Crystal Dynamics' VP of marketing Scott Steinberg subsequently acceded to Eidos Interactive as president and senior VP of marketing, respectively, in January 1999.[36]

Developing Tomb Raider (2003–present)[edit]

Following the commercial disappointment of Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness in 2003, Eidos assigned the Tomb Raider franchise to Crystal Dynamics, forgoing series creator Core Design.[37] Its first game in the series, Tomb Raider: Legend, was released in 2006 and was the fastest-selling game in the series, selling 4.5 million units worldwide.[38][39] Crystal Dynamics co-developed Tomb Raider: Anniversary with developer Buzz Monkey Software. A remake of the first Tomb Raider game, it was released in June 2007. The next installment, Tomb Raider: Underworld, was released in October 2008. Crystal Dynamics' next release was the spin-off title Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, which did not feature the Tomb Raider branding despite utilizing the lead character.

In 2009, Crystal Dynamics laid off over 30 employees to refocus their efforts on the Tomb Raider games only.[40][41] In the same year, Eidos Interactive was acquired by Square Enix and integrated into its Western operations, becoming Square Enix Limited.[42] On January 3, 2012, studio community manager Meagan Marie said that the studio would be revealing a new intellectual property (IP) in 2012.[43] In a podcast, released on June 23, 2012, executive producer Scot Amos said Crystal Dynamics new IP will be "fresh and familiar" and offer a similar experience to the new Tomb Raider game.[44] This was followed by Tomb Raider in 2013, a reboot which introduced a new backstory for Lara.

In December 2015, Square Enix announced that Darrell Gallagher, the studio's head, had left the company. His role in the company was filled by Scot Amos and Ron Rosenberg.[45] In 2016, Brian Horton, director of the game Rise of the Tomb Raider, left the company. He had previously undertaken the role of senior art director on the Tomb Raider reboot in 2013.[46] On January 26, 2017, Square Enix announced a partnership with Marvel Entertainment to create multiple video games based on Marvel properties, the first of which was announced as Avengers, based on the comics of the same name, which would be developed by Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal.[47] On August 13, 2018, Square Enix announced that Crystal Dynamics had opened a satellite studio based in Bellevue, Washington called Crystal Northwest, which will assist the development of the Avengers game and future Crystal Dynamics projects.[48] On May 26, 2021, Crystal Dynamics announced that they opened a new studio based in Austin, Texas, called Crystal Southwest. The studio will be headed by Dallas Dickinson, who worked before as Executive Producer in Crystal Dynamic games and will be a major part of Crystal Dynamics titles.[49] On September 23, 2021, Crystal Dynamics partnered with The Initiative to work on the upcoming Perfect Dark reboot which is in development.[50]

On May 1, 2022, the Embracer Group announced that it would acquire Crystal Dynamics alongside other assets of Square Enix Limited for $300 million. Embracer expected the deal to close between July and September 2022.[51] On May 20, 2022, Embracer Group (before the acquisition was complete) expressed interest in sequels, remakes and remasters in established franchises of the studio such as Tomb Raider and Legacy of Kain.[52] The acquisition was completed on August 26, 2022, with the assets being held under CDE Entertainment.[53]

Games developed[edit]

Main article: List of Crystal Dynamics video games

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Embracer Group acquires Eidos, Crystal Dynamics, and Square Enix Montréal" (PDF). Embracer Group. May 2, 2022. p. 5. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 14, 2022. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
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External links[edit]

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