Digital Anvil

Digital Anvil was a video game studio founded April 8, 1996 with funding from Microsoft and Advanced Micro Devices by brothers Chris Rroberts and Erin Roberts, creators of the Wing Commander franchise from Origin Systems, along with Tony Zurovec, Marten Davies, Craig Cox, John Miles, Eric Peterson and Robert Rodriguez.

Microsoft was seeking known developpers to solidify it's video games presence while Digital Anvil was seeking financing and international distribution.

Chris Roberts left Origin Systems to be in a smaller more focused company and group, to do a small number a high quality games a year, and to know everyone who was walking down the corridor. He also wanted the ability to exploit universes and stories he created or other people in the company created and take them to film or tv and be small enough to react, whereas Electronic Arts which had acquired Origin didn't care about the film business.

Chris Roberts who was Chairman and CEO wanted a name that would say old world craftsmanship and new world technology, therefore a forge or an anvil.

A number of Origin Systems employees went on to work for Digital Anvil.

it's first title, Starlancer, in collaboration with Warthog Games, inscribes itself in the line of Wing Commander and Privateer.

In June 2000, Microsoft started talks to buy Digital Anvil. Chris Roberts admitted that his team required large sums of money, which only a huge company could provide. The acquisition of Digital Anvil by Microfost was completed on December 5th 2000.

One of the consequences of Digital Anvil's purchase was a reshuffling of titles being developed. Of all the projects being produced, only Freelancer escaped major change.

Chris Roberts left the company after the Microsoft takeover, but still worked as a consultant on Freelancer.

Digital Anvil also worked on the visual effects of the 1999 Wing Commander movie and several others, including Spy Kids.

In 2001, Digital Anvil revealed a lighter Freelancer to the press. Although some of the more ambitious elements were dropped, this act proved Freelancer was not vaporware. In March 2003, Freelancer was released and immediately became one of the month's top-selling games.

In May 2003, Digital Anvil released Brute Force for the Xbox. The game also did quite well, setting first-month sales records for Xbox games. In November 2005, Microsoft redeployed the developer's employees to its Microsoft Studios headquarters.

Digital Anvil was officially dissolved on January 31, 2006.

Trivia

 * At the time Robert Rodriguez was director and producer on movies such as El Mariachi, Desperado and From Dusk 'til Dawn.