Midway Studios – Newcastle

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Midway Studios – Newcastle Limited
FormerlyPitbull Syndicate (1996–2005)
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryVideo games
Founded10 December 1996; 28 years ago (1996-12-10)
Defunct14 July 2009; 15 years ago (2009-07-14)
Headquarters,
England
ProductsTest Drive series (1997–2002)
ParentMidway Games (2005–2009)

Midway Studios – Newcastle Limited (originally The Pitbull Syndicate Limited) was a British video game developer based in Gateshead, England.

History

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Pitbull Syndicate was formed in December 1996 by an ensemble of programmers and artists with extensive experience in the video game industry.[1] The company started with a small office in Sunderland, England, and initially employed eight people, working on PC and PlayStation games. Slowly expanding, the company moved to larger offices in Chester-le-Street and later to larger offices in Gateshead. By 2005, its staff had swelled to over 60 people working on PC, PlayStation 2 and Xbox.

In October 2005, the company was sold to Midway Games and were renamed Midway Studios – Newcastle.[2] Prior to that, Pitbull had created the titles L.A. Rush and Rush for Midway. It was Midway's only studio located outside the U.S. and was closed in July 2009 after the sale of most of Midway's assets to Warner Bros. A game called Necessary Force was being developed at the time of the closure. The rights to the game have diverted back to Midway Games as they are shopping the intellectual property.[3] Some members of the team were able to band together and form a new company, Atomhawk Design.[4]

In July 2010, Robert Troughton, founder of Pitbull Syndicate, announced the formation of Pitbull Studio, one year after Midway folded the renamed company. Troughton also said that an unannounced project was in development.[5]

Games developed

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As Pitbull Syndicate

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Year Game Platform(s) Publisher
1997 Test Drive 4 Microsoft Windows, PlayStation Accolade
1998 Test Drive 5
1999 Big Air PlayStation
Demolition Racer Microsoft Windows, PlayStation Infogrames North America
Test Drive 6 Dreamcast, Game Boy Color, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation
2000 Demolition Racer: No Exit Dreamcast Infogrames
2002 TD Overdrive: The Brotherhood of Speed Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, Xbox Infogrames

As Midway Studios – Newcastle

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Year Game Platform(s)
2005 L.A. Rush Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Xbox
2009 Wheelman Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360

Unauthorized logo used by hate groups

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In the early 2000s, Pitbull Syndicate's logo was used by several Neo-Nazi groups, most prominently by the Keystone United skinhead group. The Anti-Defamation League has listed this exact pitbull image as a White Supremacist extremist symbol.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "GameSpy: Pitbull Syndicate Company Profile". uk.gamespy.com. Retrieved 30 June 2023.
  2. ^ "Midway acquires Pitbull Syndicate". GameSpot. Retrieved 30 June 2023.
  3. ^ "Necessary Force game announced by Midway in hopes of selling it". Video Games Publisher. 20 June 2009.
  4. ^ "Video Game News & Reviews".
  5. ^ Eddie Makuch. "Pitbull bites back". GameSpot.
  6. ^ "Pit Bull".
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