New Interactive Publishing House, FireSky, Building a Distinct Breed of Online Games
MESA, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--FireSky, a new video game publisher dedicated to improving how gamers
play and interact online, announced today that it would publish Stargate
Worlds, a massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG) based
on MGM’s award-winning Stargate franchise.
FireSky will also publish other unannounced titles as it paves the way
for SNAP games.
FireSky is pioneering the development and publishing of games for Social
Networks At Play™ (SNAPs), a unified theory of
online gaming that combines social interaction, economies and game play
across a variety of titles. The FireSky team calls this evolution “Project:
Ascension.” This project –
currently under wraps – will bring gamers
together in new and unprecedented ways.
“We don’t intend to
be another garden-variety games publisher,”
said FireSky CEO Tim Jenson. “We are focused
on publishing high quality social gaming experiences online. As the
industry moves online, more and more people will be turning to games as
a way to spend time with friends. With a few notable exceptions, game
developers and publishers haven’t done a
great job of marrying quality games with social experiences. Project:
Ascension and SNAP games will change that dynamic forever.”
FireSky Senior Vice President of Product Development, Rod Nakamoto, has
launched more than 80 titles over his 25-year career in game
development. Mr. Nakamoto leads FireSky’s
four internal development studios and oversees the progress on Project:
Ascension.
“There is a degree of pressure to play a
title after the fun factor has gone, simply because the investment is
too great,” explained Mr. Nakamoto. “Gamers
who invest time building characters, making friends and gathering
resources typically have no ability to transfer this investment to a new
experience. We’re working on a new set of
ideals that will push online gaming past these barriers and into an era
of portability.”
Senior Vice President of Strategic Operations Joe Ybarra, a 25-year
veteran of the video game industry and one of the founding members of
Electronic Arts, is heading up FireSky’s
publishing operations. Mr. Ybarra has extensive experience publishing
products worldwide, handling licensed material and managing business
development with third-party developers.
“From a business perspective, publishing is
the logical next step for FireSky,” said Mr.
Ybarra. “We’ve got
the chops to do it and we’re assembling a
great team here in the desert. I can’t wait
to get our flagship up and running to show off our operation.”
FireSky, a subsidiary of Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment, currently has
four studios working on a variety of interactive titles.
“It’s almost time
for us to lift the veil and show the world some of the unique projects we’re
working on in addition to Stargate Worlds,”
said Mr. Jenson. “Our studios are filled with
talented game designers, world builders and engineers and we’ll
be announcing several products over the course of the summer and fall
that will lay the foundation for SNAP games and Project: Ascension. We
have projects that span a variety of game genres as well as proven and
emerging business models.”
About FireSky
FireSky is a publisher for Social Networks at Play or SNAP games. FireSky’s
flagship product is Stargate Worlds, based on the longest-running U.S.
science fiction television series Stargate SG-1®
and Stargate Atlantis™ which are officially
licensed by MGM Interactive. For more information, visit the company's
website www.firesky.com and the
Stargate Worlds community site at www.stargateworlds.com.
FireSky, the FireSky logo and Social Networks at Play are trademarks
of Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment, Inc. All other products or
services mentioned in this document are trademarks, service marks,
registered trademarks or registered service marks of their respective
owners.