| Bungie Studios |
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Bungie Studios is a '', '' Pathways Into Darkness '' and '' Oni ''. HISTORY Bungie's first release was the free Pong clone '' Gnop! '' for MacOS. This was followed by the tile combat game ''Operation Desert Storm'' also for MacOS. For much of the 1990s they developed a series of increasingly technically detailed First Person Shooter (FPS) games for this platform. Their first big break was the FPS '' Pathways Into Darkness '' in 1993. Bungie would then follow with the groundbreaking Marathon series, which introduced a number of new concepts into the FPS genre (a complete physics engine, dual-wielding, and a sophisticated and deep plot, to name a few). Marathon 2 was Bungie's first game that was released for Windows as well as Mac (though the Windows version was released a year later, in 1996 ). Many of the following titles would be dual platform as well, but Bungie was still considered a Macintosh publisher by many, producing some titles on the Macintosh platform first, or Mac only. Bungie's success gave rise to a large third-party developer community as well as a short lived newsletter published through BBS . Following the success of Marathon, Bungie released the Myth series of games, which stressed tactical unit management as opposed to the resource gathering model of other combat strategy titles. The Myth games won several awards and spawned a large and active online community (which is still active on the fan-supported playmyth.net), receiving Cult Status . Bungie was seen as a significant member of the Macintosh developer community in the 1990s. The mid-1990s, in particular, was a dire time for the Mac platform, with many rumors circulating about Apple's low sales, poor financial performance, and the impending death of the Macintosh platform in an industry dominated by Microsoft Windows. Bungie was one of the few publishers to develop primarily for the Mac platform during this time, rather than port PC-platform games, or not publish for Mac at all. In 1997, Bungie expanded and formed Bungie West , a studio in California. Bungie West created Bungie's first multi-platform game, Oni , to be released in 1999 for the Mac, PC, and Playstation 2 . Oni was Bungie West's first and only game. The final version of Oni lacked multiplayer, significantly affecting the game's success. In 2000, Bungie West was closed, and the rights to Oni were sold to Take-Two Interactive . In , which featured a world-beating Physics and AI system. Halo's public unveiling occurred at the Macworld Expo 1999 keynote address by Apple's then-interim-CEO Steve Jobs (after a closed-door screening at E3 in 1999). However, on June 19 , 2000 , (also known as Black Monday ), Microsoft announced that they had acquired Bungie Software and that Bungie would become a part of the Microsoft Game Division (subsequently renamed Microsoft Game Studios ) under the name Bungie Studios. As a result, the Mac and PC versions were delayed, and the game was re-purposed for Microsoft's Xbox , on which it became the console's Killer App . Bungie's sale to Apple's long-time rival Microsoft was seen as a betrayal to the Mac community at the time. Mac and Windows versions of Halo were eventually released two years later. The Xbox version of '' Halo '' received the "Game of the Year" and "Console Game of the Year" awards for 2002 from the Academy Of Interactive Arts & Sciences and topped video game bestseller charts for almost two years. ''Halo'' has been one of the most critically acclaimed games of all time. Prior to the release of their next game, Bungie oversaw and 'signed off' on the '' Theatrical Trailer . Bungie provided the Haunted Apiary designers with the "Halo Bible", allowing them to develop the story according to Halo canon, but did not directly contribute to the game. On November 9 , 2004 , Halo 2 was officially released. It was a huge hit, making more than $125 million on release day and setting a record in the entertainment industry. In September 2005 Bungie moved into its new studio in Kirkland , Washington, in order to support the growing size of the staff and resources in use. On " for the Xbox 360. Bungie has also announced a Number Of Beta And Alpha Tests for the public and gaming writers, prior to its release, this is so that they can make sure every detail of the game, especially online multiplayer, is up to scratch as this is set to be one of the biggest game releases of all time. BUNGIE.NET Purpose Bungie.net serves as the main official portal for interaction between Bungie staff and the community surrounding Bungie's games. The 'News' area of the site typically contains information about events in the community, updates to the online aspect of Halo 2, and 'Bungie Weekly Updates'. These weekly updates, written by Frank O'Connor and Luke Smith, are generally humorous (although factual) in nature and deliver updates on day-to-day life in Bungie Studios as well as updates on the progress of Halo 3 . In addition to this, the site has a large forum section where users can post on a range of topics, mainly related to Bungie's games. Another large feature of the site is the integration with Xbox Live , specifically Halo 2 and the upcoming Halo 3 . Detailed information about each game played is recorded, and can be viewed using the 'My Stats' area of the website. This information includes statistics on each player in the game, and a map of the game level showing where kills occurred. The website also contains Screenshot s (including QuickTime '3D' screenshots), Wallpapers , Storyboard s, video Trailers , as well as short 'ViDocs' (Video '''Doc'''umentaries ). Website history Bungie.net began life in 1996 as Bungie.com, a community/business website covering '' Marathon '' and previous projects. Before Bungie was purchased by Microsoft , Bungie.net was used to host and play the ''Myth'' series of games. Even in the beginning, classic pages such as Letters to the Webmaster and Soapbox existed, if in a somewhat graphically inferior manner to the later versions. A few layout and content updates ensued throughout 1997 , until at the tail end of the year, consequent of the release of '' Myth '', Bungie.net was born, serving as a community, statistics and multiplayer metaserver. Bungie.com remained to cover the business side, while it's sibling thrived. With the release of '' Myth II '' at the close of 1998 , the site was further updated and now supported the multiplayer sides of both games. Since . This new design has a darker color theme and a more grid-like layout. |
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