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Junction Point Studios

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Junction Point Studios
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryVideo games
FoundedNovember 2004; 19 years ago (2004-11)
FounderWarren Spector
Defunct29 January 2013; 11 years ago (2013-01-29)
FateDissolved
SuccessorLibrary:
Disney Interactive
HeadquartersAustin, Texas, U.S.
Key people
Warren Spector[1]
Art Min
ProductsEpic Mickey
Epic Mickey 2
Number of employees
160[2] (2012)
ParentDisney Interactive Studios
Websitejunctionpoint.com

Junction Point Studios (JPS) was an American video game developer based in Austin, Texas founded by Deus Ex creator, Warren Spector, in 2004.[3] Disney Interactive Studios acquired Junction Point Studios in July 2007[1] to develop a property based on Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, a character created by Walt Disney but owned by Universal Studios until the character was acquired by The Walt Disney Company from Universal in 2006.[4] The studio was closed in 2013.[5]

History

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The studio was established in November 2004 by Warren Spector[6][1] and Art Min.[7] The new studio is based around several former employees of Ion Storm, where Spector[8] and Min previously worked.[9]

From inception up until their acquisition by Disney Interactive Studios, Junction Point was working on a Source Engine based game that was to be distributed on Valve's Steam distribution network.[7] This was later revealed to be a new game in Valve's Half-Life series which was cancelled when Junction Point was acquired.[10]

Junction Point developed Epic Mickey, a Wii game which was released on November 25, 2010 in Europe and on November 30 in North America. The game is about Mickey Mouse's adventure in Wasteland, a world where forgotten characters like Oswald the Lucky Rabbit live. Junction Point has indicated that its game will be a "combination of action and roleplaying, traditional narrative and player choice", and will use Emergent Game Technologies' Gamebryo engine. The game has been developed for the Wii console platform.[citation needed]

On March 21, 2012, Warren Spector announced that a sequel, Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two, was in development for Wii and Wii U.[11]

On January 29, 2013, Disney Interactive Studios confirmed the closure of the studio.[12]

Before its closure, Junction was working on a video game called Project Goliath.[13]

Name

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There has been speculation regarding the name "Junction Point" — apparently, this name was used by a canceled game at Looking Glass Studios, where Spector once worked.[8] According to available descriptions, this game was a "massively multiplayer fantasy role-playing game, changed in midstream to a single-player science-fiction role-playing game."

In March 2007, Spector explained the name in an interview:[8]

When I was with Looking Glass, the last thing I worked on with them on was a concept that I came up with along with Doug Church and some other guys. It was a very different approach to multiplayer online games called Junction Point. I loved the name and concept. I'm not revealing anything too dramatic since we're not doing the game, though I'd love to some day, but the name spoke to me more as a name for a studio than a name for a game. ... It's also nice that it abbreviates to JPS, which rolls off the tongue.

Games developed

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Year Game Platform(s)
Cancelled Untitled Half-Life 2 episode Microsoft Windows (Steam)
Sleeping Giants[14] Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
2010 Epic Mickey Wii
2012 Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U, PlayStation Vita, Wii

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Disney buys game developer Junction Point". Los Angeles Times. Bloomberg News. July 13, 2007. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
  2. ^ "Disney closes Warren Spector's Junction Point Studios". Polygon. 2013-01-29. Retrieved 2021-08-17.
  3. ^ "Warren Spector on game development". Eurogamer. 27 June 2006. Retrieved 2021-08-17.
  4. ^ Miller, Terin. "History of Disney: Timeline and Facts". TheStreet. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  5. ^ "Disney closes Epic Mickey developer Junction Point Studios (updated with comments from Warren Spector)". VentureBeat. 2013-01-29. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  6. ^ "Warren Spector on game development". Eurogamer. 27 June 2006. Retrieved 2021-08-17.
  7. ^ a b "Warren Spector Developing on Source for Steam". Archived from the original on 2016-09-15.
  8. ^ a b c Sheffield, Brandon (March 5, 2007). "All For Games: An Interview With Warren Spector". gamasutra.com. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
  9. ^ "MobyGames - Art Min".
  10. ^ "Warren Spector's Half-Life Work ... Plus Other Gaming Mysteries, Secrets".
  11. ^ Dutton, Fred (21 March 2012). "Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two revealed". eurogamer.net. Associated Press. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
  12. ^ "Junction Point Closed". gamespot.com.
  13. ^ "A Failed Pitch For A Disney Game Called Project Goliath". Kotaku.
  14. ^ "Sleeping Giants (Junction Point Studios) [Xbox 360, PS3, PC - Cancelled] - Unseen64". 27 March 2020.
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