Evolution Studios

Not to be confused with Evolution Games.

Evolution Studios was a British video game developer formed in 1999 by Martin Kenwright, Michael Hocking (both of them came from Digital Image Design, which Kenwright co-founded) and Ian Hetherington (who previously established Psygnosis). The company is best known for producing WRC-licensed games and the MotorStorm series. The company was headquartered in Runcorn, Cheshire.

Evolution Studios also established Bigbig Studios as a satellite studio in Warwickshire, together with Sony. On September 19, 2007, the company, alongside Bigbig Studios, were acquired by Sony to become part of SCE Worldwide Studios.

On March 22, 2016, Sony confirmed the company's closure. Most of the staff now being transferred to Codemasters' internal studio, Codemasters EVO. Another part of the staff is said to have continued at Sony North West Studio (now Sony Manchester Studio).

Logo (November 30, 2001-October 13, 2016)

ImagesVideos

• 
• 
  WRC: World Rally Championship
• 
  WRC II: Extreme
• 
  WRC 3
• 
  WRC 4
• 
  WRC: Rally Evolved
• 
  MotorStorm RC
• 
  Driveclub

Visuals: The logo consists of a silver 3D oval banner made out of two white ovals. Below them is the company name, "evolution s t u d i o s".

Variants:

• On WRC: World Rally Championship, an URL address for the company can be seen below.
• Beginning with the release of MotorStorm, the registered trademark is placed below the corner of the oval banner.
• Beginning with the release of Driveclub, the oval banner is now bigger, colored white and in 2D.
• Animated variants:
  • WRC II: Extreme: A blue light moves in as lens flare is seen throughout. It then shines and reveals that it's an extreme closeup of the glossy oval banner, which rotates and settles into position while leaving blue lights behind. As the company name settles into position, blue smoke can be seen on the background. A glowing registered trademark can also be seen beside the text.
  • WRC 3: An off-screen light moves in, reveals the logo. Like the previous logo, a registered trademark can be seen.
  • WRC 4: An orange light draws the first oval as the company name is seen. It then shines and reveals the entire orange-tinted logo. Like before, a registered trademark can also be seen.
  • WRC: Rally Evolved: The camera zooms through several copies of the logo. The speed then increases, causing the copies being merged together into a single logo as the camera zooms in slowly. Also, the enhanced logo is used and a registered trademark is now placed between the "o" and "n" above.
  • MotorStorm RC: The camera zooms out on a pale wireframe background as a digital frame draws itself in and out, alongside the company name, which wipes in from the left and right onto it, and the black 2D logo, which draws itself.

Technique: A still, digital graphic. CGI for the animated variants.

Audio: Usually none, except for the following variants:

• WRC 4: Storm sounds.
• WRC: Rally Evolved: Several whooshes can be heard from several copies of the logo.
• MotorStorm RC: Various reverb sounds can be heard.

Availability

Edit Table

Media Title	Platform(s)	Date(s) of Release	Additional Note(s)
WRC: World Rally Championship MobyGames	PlayStation 2	November 30, 2001	Debut appearance, URL is seen below the logo
WRC II: Extreme MobyGames	PlayStation 2	November 29, 2002	Custom animated variant
WRC 3 MobyGames	PlayStation 2	November 21, 2003	Custom animated variant
WRC 4 MobyGames	PlayStation 2	October 22, 2004	Custom animated variant
WRC: Rally Evolved MobyGames	PlayStation 2	October 14, 2005	Custom animated variant, enhanced logo is used beginning with the release
MotorStorm MobyGames	PlayStation 3	December 14, 2006	Smaller variant
MotorStorm: Pacific Rift MobyGames	PlayStation 3	October 28, 2008	Smaller variant
MotorStorm: Apocalypse MobyGames	PlayStation 3	May 3, 2011	Smaller variant
MotorStorm RC MobyGames	PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita	February 22, 2012	Custom animated variant
Driveclub MobyGames	PlayStation 4	October 7, 2014	Beginning with the release, the oval banner is now bigger, colored white and in 2D.
Driveclub VR MobyGames	PlayStation VR	October 13, 2016	Final appearance

External Links

• Official website for Evolution Studios (archived)
• Evolution Studios  on Wikipedia