Robert acquires Deep Red Games

Clive Robert, the co-founder of Milton Keynes development studio Deep Red Games, has bought back the company from parent Bangladesh Online and unveiled his plans for its future.

Robert established Deep Red together with Kevin Buckner in May 1998, and the studio went on to produce titles such as Monopoly Tycoon, Tycoon City: New York and Beach Life.

After agreeing a joint venture deal with BOL in 2004, Deep Red set up a new studio in the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka to employee 100 members of staff and expanded the size of its UK team to reach almost 50.

But now Robert plans to operate Deep Red as an independent studio. He told GamesIndustry.biz, "Our reasons for making the change were that the business as it stood was not moving forward, and we wanted to get back closer to making games that we enjoy."

Following the acquisition, 25 staff members have been made redundant - reducing the total number of employees by more than half.

According to Robert, Deep Red will now produce games for PC, Xbox 360 Nintendo DS, and will specialise in casual titles.

"My vision for Deep Red remains very much the same as it did in '98 when we stared the company - make great mass market games that everyone can play," he said.

"With the current massive growth of the casual games market and more varied gamers taking up keyboards and controllers, the opportunities for mass market games are better than ever."