Way back in November, I was asked by members of the forums to let you know where we Ensemble folks would end up.
Four separate companies have so far formed from the ashes of Ensemble Studios. Robot Entertainment, Bonfire Studios, Windstorm Studios, and Newtoy.
I believe that Robot is the largest of the new companies, and much of the old Ensemble Studios upper management went to Robot. Bonfire is nearly as large. Windstorm is the mindchild of Dusty Monk, one of Ensemble's top programmers, and it is still quite small, though if I know Dusty it is likely to take off ere long. Newtoy was created by veterans Paul & David Bettner to create games for the iPhone. Their first game was Chess With Friends, and is a free download.
For byzantine contractual reasons, none of us were allowed to take new jobs for at least 60 days after leaving Ensemble (Robot might have been an exception to this), so Windstorm and Bonfire haven't really been able to start their engines yet, though I bet they hit the ground running in April.
Not everyone went to the new studios. I did not, for one, and there are plenty of Ensemble alumni in my position. We have been left in the happy situation of being able to take our time about finding new positions, because Microsoft, whatever its flaws, handed us an extremely generous severance.
For those who are still reading this - I, Sandy Petersen will start in April as a professor at the Guildhall at Southern Methodist University, teaching game design! From nearly the Guildhall's beginnings, I was involved as an unpaid consultant. I helped to design the curriculum, taught the occasional seminar, and was given the title of Guildmaster (along with other industry professionals, such as Randy Pitchford and Paul Jaquays). Anyway, when the forces of darkness conspired to rob the gaming world of Ensemble, the Guildhall made me an offer, and it was irresistable. I have always liked teaching (my favorite job at church is Sunday School), and I'm excited about doing this fulltime.
Thanks for a great community, and I will continue to peek in from time to time.
Sandy Petersen
Four separate companies have so far formed from the ashes of Ensemble Studios. Robot Entertainment, Bonfire Studios, Windstorm Studios, and Newtoy.
I believe that Robot is the largest of the new companies, and much of the old Ensemble Studios upper management went to Robot. Bonfire is nearly as large. Windstorm is the mindchild of Dusty Monk, one of Ensemble's top programmers, and it is still quite small, though if I know Dusty it is likely to take off ere long. Newtoy was created by veterans Paul & David Bettner to create games for the iPhone. Their first game was Chess With Friends, and is a free download.
For byzantine contractual reasons, none of us were allowed to take new jobs for at least 60 days after leaving Ensemble (Robot might have been an exception to this), so Windstorm and Bonfire haven't really been able to start their engines yet, though I bet they hit the ground running in April.
Not everyone went to the new studios. I did not, for one, and there are plenty of Ensemble alumni in my position. We have been left in the happy situation of being able to take our time about finding new positions, because Microsoft, whatever its flaws, handed us an extremely generous severance.
For those who are still reading this - I, Sandy Petersen will start in April as a professor at the Guildhall at Southern Methodist University, teaching game design! From nearly the Guildhall's beginnings, I was involved as an unpaid consultant. I helped to design the curriculum, taught the occasional seminar, and was given the title of Guildmaster (along with other industry professionals, such as Randy Pitchford and Paul Jaquays). Anyway, when the forces of darkness conspired to rob the gaming world of Ensemble, the Guildhall made me an offer, and it was irresistable. I have always liked teaching (my favorite job at church is Sunday School), and I'm excited about doing this fulltime.
Thanks for a great community, and I will continue to peek in from time to time.
Sandy Petersen