Examining a ''Bizarre'' Move

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Author: Dave Rudden
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Bizarre Creations, the team behind the Project Gotham and Geometry Wars series has signed on to develop games exclusively for Activision. Read on to find out who really wins.

This is definitely better than Wreckless and Disney Kart Racing,

Earlier today, Activision took a huge step in preserving its spot as the world's biggest third party when it acquired Bizarre Creations. Bizarre Creations, though never officially Microsoft-exclusive, had worked primarily on the Xbox and Xbox 360 for the last half-decade, delivering four iterations of the critically-acclaimed Project Gotham series, and one of the greatest Xbox Live Arcade games in Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved. While it's logical to think that Microsoft screwed the pooch by letting one of its biggest supporters go third-party, there's really no losers in this publisher-developer triangle.

Activision certainly made a nice move in picking up Bizarre. Between Metropolis Street Racer and Project Gotham, Bizarre has a "track" record of producing high-quality racing titles. Think back to the last Activision racer you enjoyed. Or have seen on a store shelf, for that matter. After EA announced Rock Band and skate, it became apparent that the former top dog was planning on fighting fire with fire. Taking aim at Burnout and Need for Speed is a lofty challenge, but if any company can do it, Bizarre can. When you add the company's ability to branch into other genres as it has with Geometry Wars and the upcoming The Club, it's an even better deal for Activison.

While Microsoft may lose exclusivity of the Project Gotham franchise, it's still well off with this new arrangement. Undoubtedly, all of Bizzare's upcoming creations will be 360-bound. Given the track record of every third-party thus far, whatever game they produce will likely be better-received on Microsoft's console. And what does Microsoft really lose? It's got another amazing exclusive racing franchise in Forza Motorsport, and companies are champing at the bit to make the next great Xbox Live Arcade title.

It'll be interesting to see the fruits of Activision's latest acquisition. Is the Project Gotham Franchise going to remain Microsoft-exclusive, or does Bizarre have the keys to the car. If it doesn't, what kind of racer will Activision pin its hopes for third-party dominance to?

Hey, thanks: Kotaku

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