Rockstar Vienna

The neo Software GmbH Production, 2003-2006 Rockstar Vienna, from 1993 until the final resolution in 2006 alongside Max Design is one of the most successful and best known Austrian developers of computer games.

History

Neo Software was founded in Shepherd Mountain, in the district of Baden in Lower Austria, Niki Laber, Hannes Seifert and Peter Baustädter as neo Software production GmbH 1993. The first project of the then small team was successful game Whale 's Voyage, which still appeared in the same year. Published in 1994, neo software the title The Sting, 1995 the sidescrolling shooter Prototype and Whale 's Voyage II: The superiority. In 1998, the company released a track with pre-rendered 3D graphics, Rent-A- Hero, which only locally but sold well in Germany and Austria.

A major success was recorded in 1999 with the Game Software The peoples neo, which sold nearly one million units internationally. As a publisher for " The Peoples" acted JoWooD. The sequel, " The peoples II " which was released in 2001, but it is no longer of neo software, but JoWooD itself.

2000, the studio part of the gameplay group and began developing the title Der Clou! 2 and to develop online Pirates. Beginning of 2001 was the sequel to The Sting! published.

As Rockstar Vienna

Neo Software was acquired by American publisher Take 2 Still in the year 2001. neo developed henceforth no longer own projects, but mostly contract work or ports for Take 2 or its subsidiary Rockstar Games. As a result, among other things, the Xbox version of Max Payne was neo responsible. Two years later, at the tenth birthday neos in 2003, the studio was renamed Rockstar Vienna, signifying the end of the name neo represented software.

In the following years, the studio has developed, now as Rockstar Vienna, including the Xbox versions of GTA III and GTA: Vice City, and the Xbox and PS2 version of Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne.

The studio was closed unexpectedly on May 11, 2006. The 97 employees were, according to his own statements, on the morning of the day before exchanged locks and could not enter their offices.

As Deep Silver Vienna

The former Rockstar Vienna employees, among them the two company founders, Hannes Seifert and Niki Laber, made ​​themselves then with the new Studio Games -That- Matter independent again and took over part of the old workforce. Legally, however, this studio had no connections to neo software, yet there worked a large part of the former employees. The German publisher Deep Silver ( a division of Koch Media ) took only a short time later selbiges studio and renamed it Deep Silver Vienna. In early 2010, shortly after the publication of the first own title, Cursed Mountain, Deep Silver Vienna was, however, also closed. Koch Media announced their intention to merge all development capabilities in the headquarters in the Munich suburb Planegg, the title being developed Ride To Hell should be completed there.

Well-known games ( selection)

  • Whale's Voyage ( 1993)
  • The Sting! (1994)
  • Prototype
  • Whale 's Voyage II: The superior power (1995 )
  • Rent-A -Hero (1998)
  • The Peoples ( 1999)
  • The Sting! 2 (2001)
Types of business entity Hirtenberg Baden District JoWooD Entertainment GameSpot
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