Vive Studios
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| Vive Studios | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Industry | Virtual reality content, video games |
| Founded | 2016 |
| Notable Personnel | Joel Breton (general manager) |
| Products | Arcade Saga, Front Defense, Virtual Sports, Knockout League, Operation Apex, Ready Player One: OASIS Beta, 7 Miracles, Vive Sync |
| Parent | HTC |
Vive Studios (styled VIVE Studios in later HTC releases) is a virtual reality content development and publishing arm of HTC's Vive business. HTC announced it in December 2016 as an internal studio and publishing group that would release games and applications made by its own teams and by outside developers, offering those partners development funding, publishing and marketing support.[1][2] Its first release was Arcade Saga, developed by the internal team 2 Bears Studio.[1]
Between 2016 and 2019 the group published games such as Front Defense, Virtual Sports, Knockout League and Operation Apex, the three Ready Player One experiences bundled as Ready Player One: OASIS Beta, and the cinematic VR feature 7 Miracles. From 2018 it also worked on enterprise software, including the meeting application Vive Sync.[3][4]
History
Launch
HTC had moved its Vive VR business into a subsidiary in June 2016.[5] Joel Breton, HTC Vive's vice president of VR content, unveiled Vive Studios on stage at the VRX conference in San Francisco in December 2016 and said the studio could release dozens of titles over the following year.[6] HTC's press release described a publishing model similar to that of console games, and said the studio was making content in games, education, cinematic, design, social, real estate and sports, plus tools and applications for media, retail, healthcare and location-based entertainment.[1] Road to VR compared the arrangement with Oculus Studios, Oculus's first-party content group.[2] Engadget reported that Vive Studios would also make games for HTC's push into VR arcades.[5]
The internal developer 2 Bears Studio (called 2 Bears Studios in the launch release) was led by veterans of Microsoft Game Studios, Rockstar and Midway who had joined senior engineers at HTC Vive.[1] MCV reported that it had more than 50 employees at the time of the announcement and was still hiring.[6]
Publishing, 2017 to 2019
The first partner title after Arcade Saga was Grab Games' boxing game Knockout League, which entered early access for HTC Vive on Steam on 24 January 2017 at US$17.99, and on Viveport in China.[7] At GDC 2017 Vive Studios presented a spring line-up that included Free Range Games' ping pong and tennis game VR Sports (sold as Virtual Sports), the World War II shooter Front Defense, and Sixense's 3D modelling program MakeVR.[8][9] Front Defense came from Fantahorn Studio, which Game*Spark described as a first-party developer of Vive Studios; it launched on Viveport on 28 June 2017.[10]
Later in 2017 the group released Beamz Interactive's music app Jam Studio VR on Viveport (28 September), the English version of Square Enix's card battle game Million Arthur VR: Character Command RPG (12 October, in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia), and Heavy-Iron Studios' wildlife "eco-tour" Amazon Odyssey (25 October on Viveport, with Steam to follow).[11][12][13] In November 2017 it announced two games for early December: Super Puzzle Galaxy, a physics puzzler from 2 Bears Studio, and Front Defense: Heroes, a 5v5 multiplayer follow-up from Fantahorn Studio.[14] Curiscope's shark and ocean ecosystem game Operation Apex followed on Steam and Viveport on 11 December 2017.[15][16]
The full version of Knockout League launched on 13 February 2018 on Viveport, Steam, the Oculus store and PlayStation VR. HTC said it was Vive Studios' first title on PlayStation VR and that Vive Studios content was "intended for all major VR platforms".[17] On 26 March 2018, three days before the release of the Ready Player One film, Vive Studios released Ready Player One: OASIS Beta on Viveport. The free download contained three experiences made by outside studios: Battle for the OASIS (Steel Wool Studios), Gauntlet (Directive Games) and Rise of the Gunters (Drifter Entertainment).[18][19]
In August 2018 Vive Studios announced 7 Miracles, a seven-part 360-degree film about the miracles of Jesus in the Gospel of John, directed by Rodrigo Cerqueira with co-director Marco Spagnoli and shot in Rome and Matera with photogrammetry and volumetric capture. HTC called it the first feature-length cinematic VR experience. It premiered on 3 October 2018 at the 26th Raindance Film Festival in London.[20] According to GamesBeat, it won the festival's VR Film of the Festival award.[3]
Vive Studios and Vertigo Games announced the multiplayer card battler Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl on 7 March 2019, set in the universe of Vertigo's Skyworld. It was scheduled for 2 April 2019 on the HTC Vive, Vive Focus, Oculus Rift and Windows Mixed Reality headsets, with cross-platform play between PC VR and standalone players.[21]
Enterprise work
In November 2018 HTC announced Vive Sync, a VR meeting and collaboration application for businesses developed by 2 Bears Studio. At announcement it supported up to 20 users in a session, with a pilot program starting in December 2018.[4] When HTC created its Vive Enterprise Solutions business unit in July 2019, it said it was developing Vive Sync through Vive Studios, now for up to 30 people in a shared virtual meeting space.[22] GamesBeat wrote that Breton also led Vive Studios' enterprise software initiative, which developed and deployed software for the healthcare, entertainment, education and design industries.[3]
Leadership change
In May 2019 Sixense hired Breton, by then vice president of VR content and general manager of Vive Studios, as executive vice president of product development and president of the new Sixense Studios.[3][23] GamesBeat reported that he had overseen about 30 projects at a time at HTC.[3] HTC's February 2020 press release on the Vive Cosmos series still listed "VIVE STUDIOS, an entertainment, gaming, and enterprise content studio" as part of the Vive business, next to Viveport, Vive Enterprise Solutions, the Vive X accelerator and Vive Arts.[24]
Products
The table lists titles that HTC or reputable press attribute to Vive Studios as developer or publisher. Dates are the release or launch dates given in the cited sources.
| Title | Developer | Release | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arcade Saga | 2 Bears Studio | December 2016 | Three arcade-style games (Fracture, Smash, Bowshot) with more than 84 levels; US$29.99 on Steam, also on Viveport in China[1] |
| Knockout League | Grab Games | 24 January 2017 (early access); 13 February 2018 (full) | Boxing game; full release on Vive, Oculus and PlayStation VR[7][17] |
| Virtual Sports (announced as VR Sports) | Free Range Games | March 2017 (planned) | Ping pong and tennis; US$19.99[9][8] |
| MakeVR | Sixense | 27 March 2017 (planned, Viveport) | 3D modelling program; GamesBeat lists MakeVR Pro among Vive Studios' content[8][3] |
| Front Defense | Fantahorn Studio | 28 June 2017 (Viveport) | Room-scale World War II shooter[10] |
| Jam Studio VR | Beamz Interactive | 28 September 2017 (Viveport) | Music creation app; US$19.99[11] |
| Million Arthur VR: Character Command RPG | Square Enix and Gree | 12 October 2017 (English version) | Card battle RPG; HTC credited the English launch to Vive Studios and Square Enix; US$39.99 on Steam[12][25] |
| Amazon Odyssey | Heavy-Iron Studios | 25 October 2017 (Viveport) | Wildlife exploration; US$9.99[13] |
| Super Puzzle Galaxy | 2 Bears Studio | December 2017 (announced) | Physics puzzler with 48 levels and a level editor[14] |
| Front Defense: Heroes | Fantahorn Studio | December 2017 (announced) | 5v5 multiplayer World War II shooter; US$4.99 promotional price at launch[14] |
| Operation Apex | Curiscope, co-developed with Vive Studios | 11 December 2017 | Shark and ocean ecosystem adventure; US$19.99[15][16] |
| Ready Player One: OASIS Beta | Steel Wool Studios, Directive Games, Drifter Entertainment | 26 March 2018 (Viveport) | Free bundle of three film tie-in experiences[18][19] |
| 7 Miracles | Vive Studios with Panogramma and Film Production Consultants | Premiered 3 October 2018 | Seven-part cinematic VR film[20] |
| Vive Sync | 2 Bears Studio | Pilot from December 2018 | Enterprise VR meeting application[4][22] |
| Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl | Vertigo Games | 2 April 2019 (scheduled) | Cross-platform multiplayer card battler[21] |
GamesBeat's list of content from Breton's team also includes TrueScale, Lifeliqe Museum and RemindVR.[3]
XR work
Vive Studios was HTC's first-party source of VR content for the Vive platform. Several early titles, such as the room-scale shooter Front Defense, were made for the original HTC Vive, and some, including Front Defense and Amazon Odyssey, came out on Viveport, HTC's app store, before other stores.[10][13] From 2018 the group also published on competing platforms, starting with Knockout League on Oculus and PlayStation VR, and its 2019 title Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl targeted both PC VR and the standalone Vive Focus.[17][21] Its work outside games included the film 7 Miracles and the enterprise tool Vive Sync.[20][22]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "HTC Launches Vive Studios; Debuts Studio's First Title "Arcade Saga"". VIVE Newsroom. HTC. 2016-12-09. https://www.vive.com/uk/newsroom/2016-12-09/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Ben Lang (2016-12-09). "HTC Launches 'Vive Studios' for First-party VR Game Development and Publishing". Road to VR. https://www.roadtovr.com/htc-launches-vive-studios-first-party-vr-game-development-publishing/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Dean Takahashi (2019-05-21). "Sixense hires HTC Vive's Joel Breton to run VR and AR content studio". GamesBeat. https://gamesbeat.com/sixense-hires-htc-vives-joel-breton-to-run-vr-and-ar-content-studio/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "HTC VIVE Announces VIVE Sync To Mainstream Enterprise VR Collaboration". VIVE Newsroom. HTC. 2018-11-08. https://www.vive.com/us/newsroom/2018-11-08/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Billy Steele (2016-12-08). "HTC launches its own VR app and game studio for Vive". Engadget. https://www.engadget.com/2016/12/08/htc-vive-studios-internal-vr-development/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 MCV Staff (2016-12-08). "HTC unveil internal development studios at VRX". MCV/DEVELOP. https://www.mcvuk.com/business-news/mobile/htc-unveil-internal-development-studios-at-vrx/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Vive Studios And Grab Games Bring Arcade Boxing To Virtual Reality With Knockout League". PR Newswire. HTC. 2017-01-24. https://prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/vive-studios-and-grab-games-bring-arcade-boxing-to-virtual-reality-with-knockout-league-611674205.html. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Sean Buckley (2017-02-28). "Vive Studios' 'VR Sports' is exactly what it sounds like". Engadget. https://www.engadget.com/2017-02-28-vive-studios-vr-sports-is-exactly-what-it-sounds-like.html. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Joe Durbin (2017-03-01). "GDC 2017: VR Sports for Vive is a Perfect Ping Pong Simulator". UploadVR. https://uploadvr.com/vr-sports-ping-pong/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 RIKUSYO (2017-06-28). "第二次世界大戦VRシューター『Front Defense』配信開始!―ドイツ軍の猛攻を耐え抜け". Game*Spark. https://www.gamespark.jp/article/2017/06/28/74329.html. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Jamie Feltham (2017-09-28). "Jam Studio VR Is A Vive Studios App For Making Music". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/jam-studio-vr-is-a-vive-studios-app-for-making-music/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 VIVE Team (2017-10-12). "Million Arthur VR: Character Command RPG Launches for HTC Vive". VIVE Blog. HTC. https://blog.vive.com/us/million-arthur-vr-character-command-rpg-launches-for-htc-vive/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Jamie Feltham (2017-10-25). "Vive Studios Launches Jungle Adventure, Amazon Odyssey". UploadVR. https://uploadvr.com/vive-studios-launches-jungle-adventure-amazon-odyssey/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Dominic Brennan (2017-11-17). "HTC Announces New First-Party Titles, 'Front Defense: Heroes' & 'Super Puzzle Galaxy'". Road to VR. https://www.roadtovr.com/htc-announces-new-first-party-titles-front-defense-heroes-super-puzzle-galaxy/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 "Curiscope launches Operation Apex: a VR marine adventure, in partnership with HTC Vive Studios". Decibel PR. 2017-12-08. https://www.decibel-pr.com/single-post/2017/12/08/curiscope-launches-operation-apex-a-vr-marine-adventure-in-partnership-with-htc-vive-stud. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Jamie Feltham (2017-12-05). "Vive Studios Underwater Adventure Operation Apex Launches Next Week". UploadVR. https://uploadvr.com/vive-studios-underwater-adventure-operation-apex-launches-next-week. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 Joel Breton (2018-02-13). "Knockout League is the First Vive Studios Title to Come to All Three Major VR Platforms". VIVE Blog. HTC. https://blog.vive.com/us/knockout-league-first-vive-studios-title-come-three-major-vr-platforms/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Joel Breton (2018-03-26). "Vive Studios' "Ready Player One" VR Experiences Now Available on Viveport". VIVE Blog. HTC. https://blog.vive.com/us/vive-studios-ready-player-one-vr-experiences-now-available-viveport. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Scott Hayden (2018-03-24). "HTC Releases 3 'Ready Player One' VR Experiences in 'OASIS Beta', Now Free on Viveport". Road to VR. https://roadtovr.com/?p=167554. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 "VIVE Studios Announces '7 Miracles,' The World's First Feature-Length Cinematic VR Experience". VIVE Newsroom. HTC. 2018-08-23. https://www.vive.com/us/newsroom/2018-08-23/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 VIVE Team (2019-03-07). "Vive Studios and Vertigo Games Announce "Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl", A Competitive Card-Battler Built for VR". VIVE Blog. HTC. https://blog.vive.com/us/vive-studios-vertigo-games-announce-skyworld-kingdom-brawl-competitive-card-battler-built-vr. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 "HTC VIVE Announces New Business Unit For Commercial Virtual Reality - VIVE Enterprise Solutions". VIVE Newsroom. HTC. 2019-07-01. https://www.vive.com/us/newsroom/2019-07-01/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ David Jagneaux (2019-05-21). "Former Head Of HTC Vive Studios Joel Breton Joins Sixense". UploadVR. https://uploadvr.com/joel-breton-htc-vive-sixense/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ "HTC VIVE Unveils Complete VIVE Cosmos Series". VIVE Newsroom. HTC. 2020-02-20. https://www.vive.com/us/newsroom/2020-02-20/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
- ↑ "Square Enix brings Million Arthur VR card battler to the U.S. and more". GamesBeat. 2017-10-12. https://gamesbeat.com/square-enix-brings-million-arthur-vr-card-battler-to-the-u-s-and-more/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.