704Games Company (formerly known as Dusenberry Martin Racing) is an American
video game developer
A video game developer is a broad term for a software developer specializing in video game development – the process and related disciplines of creating video games. A game developer can range from one person who undertakes all tasks to a large ...
and publisher based in
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
. The company acquired the license to be the exclusive developer of
NASCAR video games
NASCAR, the most popular motorsport in the United States, has worked with video game developers to design several video games. In 2003, EA Sports received an exclusive console license to produce NASCAR games, eliminating Papyrus and Hasbro Interac ...
in January 2015 and has since released six
console game
A console game is a type of video game consisting of images and often sounds generated by a video game console, which are displayed on a television or similar audio-video system, and that can be manipulated by a player. This manipulation usually ...
s and a
mobile game
A mobile game, or smartphone game, is a video game that is typically played on a mobile phone. The term also refers to all games that are played on any portable device, including from mobile phone (feature phone or smartphone), tablet, PDA to ...
.
The company has a long-standing relationship with the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
) and has the exclusive rights to develop and publish video games featuring the NASCAR brand.
History
704Games was formed as ''Dusenberry Martin Racing'' in January 2015, a
subsidiary
A subsidiary, subsidiary company or daughter company is a company owned or controlled by another company, which is called the parent company or holding company. Two or more subsidiaries that either belong to the same parent company or having a s ...
of
HC2 Holdings
INNOVATE Corp. (formerly known as HC2 Holdings, Inc. and Primus Telecommunications Group, Inc.) is an American public financial services company founded in 1994.
History
Beginning (1994–1997)
Primus commenced operations in 1994 intent on bei ...
; HC2 Holdings acquired the license to develop NASCAR video games from
Eutechnyx
Eutechnyx Limited (formerly Zeppelin Games Limited, until 1994, and Merit Studios (Europe) Limited, until 1997) is a British video game developer based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Since 1997, the company has focused on racing games. They a ...
on January 1, 2015.
As a result of the acquisition, DMR received ''
NASCAR '15'', a video game that
Eutechnyx
Eutechnyx Limited (formerly Zeppelin Games Limited, until 1994, and Merit Studios (Europe) Limited, until 1997) is a British video game developer based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Since 1997, the company has focused on racing games. They a ...
had been developing.
On April 13, 2015, Dusenberry Martin Racing secured $8,000,000 in equity capital.
''NASCAR '15'' was published and released by DMR on May 22, 2015.
The company was also beginning the development of its first video game, ''
NASCAR Heat Evolution
''NASCAR Heat Evolution'' is a racing video game developed by Monster Games and published by Dusenberry Martin Racing. The game was released in North America on September 13, 2016 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows. It is t ...
'' while collaborating with
Monster Games
Monster Games, Inc. is an American independent video game developer in Northfield, Minnesota, United States that specializes in racing games and ports in action, platforms and action role-playing game
An action role-playing game (often abb ...
.
The game was officially announced on May 20, 2016, and was released on September 13, 2016. In 2017, ''NASCAR Heat Mobile'' was released as a soft launch exclusive to Canada on March 8 and was released in the US on April 24. On March 21, an unnamed sequel to NASCAR Heat Evolution was announced, which was later revealed to be named ''
NASCAR Heat 2
''NASCAR Heat 2'' is a racing video game by Monster Games and published by 704Games. It is the sequel to ''NASCAR Heat Evolution'', and was released in North America on September 12, 2017 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows vi ...
'' and was released September 12. On July 7, 2018, ''
NASCAR Heat 3'' was announced with a release date of September 7, 2018.
In 2017, DMR rebranded to 704Games (taken from Charlotte's
area code
A telephone numbering plan is a type of numbering scheme used in telecommunication to assign telephone numbers to subscriber telephones or other telephony endpoints. Telephone numbers are the addresses of participants in a telephone network, rea ...
(704)) and hired former NASCAR Media Group President, NASCAR Senior
Vice President
A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...
, and DMR chairman Paul Brooks as
CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
.
In August 2018, it was announced
Motorsport Network
Motorsport Network is an American media and technology company headquartered in Miami, FL and London, UK. The company's proprietary brands, websites and OTT operations focus on motor racing and consumer automotive content serving and presenting ...
invested in 704Games. It was later revealed in March 2019 and later, in 2021, Motorsport Network made a majority investment in 704Games. Additionally, Colin Smith, former CEO of Motorsport Network, replaced Ed Martin as President of 704Games while Martin will direct 704Games’ esports initiatives. Paul Brooks will move into a non-executive chairman role. Finally, as part of the Motorsport Network deal, NASCAR extended its video game and esports license with 704Games through 2029. Subsequent NASCAR games published by the company however were developed by
Motorsport Games as the listed developer.
Games
*''
NASCAR '15''
*''
NASCAR Heat Evolution
''NASCAR Heat Evolution'' is a racing video game developed by Monster Games and published by Dusenberry Martin Racing. The game was released in North America on September 13, 2016 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows. It is t ...
''
*''NASCAR Heat Mobile''
*''
NASCAR Heat 2
''NASCAR Heat 2'' is a racing video game by Monster Games and published by 704Games. It is the sequel to ''NASCAR Heat Evolution'', and was released in North America on September 12, 2017 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows vi ...
''
*''
NASCAR Heat 3''
*''
NASCAR Heat 4
''NASCAR Heat 4'' is a racing video game simulating the 2019 NASCAR season. It was developed by Monster Games and was published by 704Games on September 13, 2019 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows via Steam. Kevin Harvick is the ...
''
*''
NASCAR Heat 5''
References
External links
*{{Official site, https://nascarheat.com/about-us/
American companies established in 2015
Video game development companies
Video game companies of the United States
Video game companies established in 2015
Video game publishers
2015 establishments in North Carolina
Companies based in Charlotte, North Carolina
Mobile game companies
NASCAR mass media