Phoenix Games (defunct)

About

Phoenix Games was a European publisher known for its line of Value Priced titles for the Playstation 2, Wii, DS, and PC.

Founded in 2003 by Will Horden and Paul and Steve Share, Phoenix Games B. V. were a self-described "Super Budget Publisher" that aimed to release a deluge of low-priced titles for the PS2, DS, PC and Wii, presumably in an attempt to get as much of a return on tiny investments as possible. They claim to have distributed to less "mainstream game" outlets like convenience stores and newsagents to increase exposure on their releases. At one point, they had a UK subsidiary based in Leicester.

Releases

The company's titles took only around 3-5 months to develop. They are best known for the infamous Animal Soccer World, which consisted of several minigames and a cartoon. The cartoon portion of the game was later posted online by a YouTube user and became something of an incredibly minor meme in gamer culture due to the dubious quality of its voiceovers and animation, as well as the fact that the main character looked exactly like Simba from Disney's The Lion King.

Many of their games use the exact same formula as Animal Soccer World but use commonly known stories such as Mulan or Pinocchio as their theme.

Demise

Little is known about how exactly things turned out, but Phoenix Games appear to have suddenly declared bankruptcy in 2009. The ultimate fate of their six man team, and whether they went on to new ventures in the game industry, is unknown.