Lucasfilm Games

Moby ID: 72

AKA +
  • LucasArts (from 2003-03-31 to 2021-01-11)
  • LucasArts Entertainment Company LLC (from 1993 to 2003-03-30)
  • Lucasfilm Games LLC (from 1982-05 to 1993)
  • Games Group - Original company name.
  • Lucasfilm Ltd. (from 1987)

Overview edit · view history

LucasArts was founded in May 1982 as Lucasfilm Games Group, the video game development group split off of Lucasfilm Computer Division( the computer special effects division of Lucasfilm Ltd.). The group was created by a joint agreement between Lucasfilm Ltd. and Atari; Atari paid US$1 million as seed money and, in return, got first right of refusal on publishing any game they developed. The first titles developed by Lucasfilm Games were Ballblazer and Rescue on Fractalus!, action games published in 1984 by Atari. At the time Lucasfilm Games were forbidden from developing Star Wars games because Lucasfilm Ltd. made more money licensing the franchise out to other game publishers.

The "first generation" of Lucasfilm Games employees were Peter Langston, David Fox, Charlie Kellner, Dave Levine, and Gary Winnick. Loren Carpenter, technically a member of Lucasfilm Computer Division, was "loaned" to Lucasfilm Games to program the fractal landscapes of Rescue on Fractalus!.

The release of Maniac Mansion (1987), an adventure game that introduced the SCUMM engine, was the starting point of the company's "Golden Age", during which it established itself as one of the leading adventure game developers. Secret of Monkey Island (1990) consolidated the company's adventure game design philosophy, including "death-free" gameplay, interaction with highlighted objects, and branching dialogue system. Later in the same year, a restructuring of Lucas' companies led to the video game division's name change to LucasArts.

Holding the licenses to the popular movie franchises Star Wars and Indiana Jones, LucasArts also developed games based on these movies. Their first Star Wars game was the space combat simulator X-Wing (1993). In 1995, LucasArts produced Star Wars: Dark Forces, which incorporated the Star Wars license with the nascent first-person shooter genre and started its own series.

The adventure legacy began to decline with the release of Grim Fandango in 1998. It received raving press reviews, but turned out to be the first game the company did not make a profit from. Escape from Monkey Island (2000) marked the end of the company's adventure era. From then on, almost all effort was diverted towards the Star Wars license. Most development was also outsourced, especially to the British development studio Traveller's Tales Ltd.

A large amount of staff was laid off in June 2008, although the company still has projects in development at its internal development studio.

Along with its parent company Lucasfilm Ltd., LucasArts was acquired by The Walt Disney Company in October 2012. The development division was then shut down on 3 April 2013, cancelling all projects and laying off all staff, with the exception of a skeleton crew. LucasArts has since became a small publishing/licensing company. It was fully re-established as a label for Star Wars-licensed games on 11 January 2021.

Credited on 232 Games from 1985 to 2024

Displaying most recent · View all

Star Wars: Dark Forces - Remaster (2024 on Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5...)
Star Wars: Jedi - Survivor (2023 on Windows, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series)
Return to Monkey Island (2022 on Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5...)
LEGO Star Wars: Castaways (2021 on tvOS, iPhone, Macintosh...)
Star Wars: Hunters (2021 on iPhone, iPad, Android)
Zombies Ate My Neighbors and Ghoul Patrol (2021 on Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One...)
Star Wars: Mega Bundle (2016 on PlayStation 3)
Star Wars: Classic Collection (2016 on Windows, Macintosh)
Star Wars: Mega Bundle (2015 on PSP, PS Vita)
Star Wars: Tiny Death Star (2013 on iPhone, Android, iPad...)
LEGO Star Wars: The Yoda Chronicles (2013 on iPhone, Android, iPad)
LEGO Star Wars: Battle Orders (2012 on iPhone, iPad)
Kinect Star Wars (2012 on Xbox 360)
Star Wars: Brisksaber (2012 on Android, iPad, iPhone)
LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars (2011 on Nintendo DS, PSP, Nintendo 3DS)
LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars (2011 on Windows, Xbox 360, Macintosh...)
Star Wars: Imperial Academy (2010 on iPhone)
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II (2010 on Wii)
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II (2010 on Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3...)
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II (2010 on Nintendo DS)

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History +

January 11, 2021

Lucasfilm Games re-established as a label for Star Wars-licensed games.

April 3, 2013

The Walt Disney Company shuts down LucasArts' development division and cancels its then-upcoming games.

October 30, 2012

The Walt Disney Company acquires Lucasfilm and its subsidiaries, including LucasArts.

January 4, 2007

The company cancels Traxion, a PSP music rhythm based game that would create levels on-the-fly from MP3s stored on a memory stick, developed by Kuju.

March 3, 2004

The sequel to Sam & Max: Hit the Road is canned. The sales department believed there was not a market for adventure games in 2004.

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Trivia +

Lucasfilm Games won the "Best Game Developer in 1989" award from the German gaming magazine Power Play (issue 01/1990).

Lucasfilm Games won the "Best Game Developer in 1993" award from the German gaming magazine Power Play (issue 02/1994).

Address and contact information in January 1996:

LucasArts Entertainment Co.

P.O. Box 10307

San Rafael, CA 94912

Technical support: 415-507-4545

Fax support: 415-507-0300

BBS support: 415-507-0400

Hints: 1-900-740-5334 $.75 a minute

Order line: 1-800-98-LUCAS

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