NVIDIA's Blackwell AI GPUs unveiled at GTC 2024, will cost a hefty price for potential buyers, as the firm is estimated to have poured several billion dollars into the project.
29.02.2024 - 21:21 / ign.com / Rebekah Valentine / Toys For Bob / For Bob
Amid mass layoffs, studio closures, and general industry uncertainty, today began with a handful of studios and companies reclaiming control of their own destinies. We learned this morning that Saber Interactive and Gearbox are reportedly breaking free of Embracer Group. And now, it looks like Crash Bandicoot developer Toys for Bob has sprung free of Activision and Microsoft.
The studio announced this news via a blog post today, stating that Toys for Bob would be spinning off into indie development in an effort to return to its roots.
While going independent would notable deprive Toys for Bob of its access to the IPs its become known for - Crash Bandicoot and Spyro especially - it sounds like there might be hope for those series after all. Toys for Bob goes on to state that it's currently exploring "a possible partnership between our new studio and Microsoft" and adds that both Microsoft and Activision are "extremely supportive" of its new direction. While Toys for Bob's first project as an indie studio is apparently "in the early days" still, it's possible this could bear fruit as a revival of Crash, Spyro, or another IP that Toys for Bob has become known and beloved for.
It's not all sunshine and rainbows. 86 employees were let go earlier this year as part of broader cuts at Xbox, and its physical studio in Novato, California has shut down. It's possible Toys for Bob's move to independent development was part of a broader move to save the studio long-term, and didn't come without a heavy cost.
Toys for Bob was first founded way back in 1989 as a joint effort between Paul Reiche III and Fred Ford. The two oversaw the studio through its development of the Star Control series, and a handful of Disney licensed titles. Following a lengthy partnership with Crystal Dynamics, Toys for Bob was acquired by Activision in 2005 and went on to develop the Skylanders games, the Spyro Reignited Trilogy, and Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time. Reiche and Ford left the studio in 2020, leaving Paul Yan and Avery Lodato in charge. Since then, Toys for Bob has largely worked as a support studio on multiple Call of Duty games.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to [email protected].
NVIDIA's Blackwell AI GPUs unveiled at GTC 2024, will cost a hefty price for potential buyers, as the firm is estimated to have poured several billion dollars into the project.
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Toys for Bob, the developer behind titles like Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time and Spyro: Reignited Trilogy, has announced that it's becoming an independent studio. Previously, the Californian outfit had operated under Activision, but it was hit with layoffs after Microsoft's acquisition of the publisher. Toys for Bob also had its office shuttered as part of the 'consolidation' process.
Longtime Activision developer Toys for Bob is spinning off as an independent game studio, breaking off from Activision’s new owners Microsoft… but curiously also then exploring a potential new partnership with Microsoft.
Longtime Activision developer Toys for Bob is spinning off as an independent game studio, breaking off from Activision’s new owners Microsoft… but curiously also then exploring a potential new partnership with Microsoft.
Sea of Thieves co-developer Radical Forge has laid off “a handful” of employees.
Activision has announced Crash Team Rumble is ending support next week.
As the video games industry violently contracts to ensure shareholder satisfaction at the cost of making thousands upon thousands of people unemployed, Skylanders studio Toys For Bob have announced they're splitting from Activision Blizzard and Microsoft to go independent. Good for them, but maybe too late for some. Earlier this month, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that it seemed Activision Blizzard were closing Toys For Bob's California headquarters and laying off 86 people. Still, the new independent Toys For Bob say they're working on something new and "exploring a possible partnership" with Microsoft.
Crash Team Rumble will have no further content updates after 4th March, less than nine months after its launch.
Out of the blue, Novato-based game developer Toys for Bob announced it is going indie, splitting from Activision and Microsoft. The brief announcement message says this is a move to 'return to roots' and be a nimble studio once again.
Current Crash and Spyro developer Toys For Bob is spinning itself out of Activision Blizzard.