Strategy First Inc. is a Canadian
video game publisher
A video game publisher is a company that publishes video games that have been developed either internally by the publisher or externally by a video game developer.
They often finance the development, sometimes by paying a video game developer ( ...
based in
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
. Founded in 1988 by Don McFatridge, Steve Wall and Dave Hill, the company filed for
bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...
in 2004 and was subsequently acquired by Silverstar Holdings in 2005. Initially specializing in developing
strategy video games
Strategy is a major video game genre that emphasizes thinking and planning over direct instant action in order to achieve victory. Although many types of video games can contain strategic elements, as a genre, strategy games are most commonly defi ...
, it since switched to primarily publishing, releasing games like the
''Disciples'' series, the
''Jagged Alliance'' series, ''
O.R.B: Off-World Resource Base'', and the
''Space Empires'' series.
History
Strategy First was founded by Don McFatridge, Steve Wall and Dave Hill, three board game designers. During one lunch break in 1988, they decided that they would begin their careers anew, establishing Strategy First as a video game development company. Richard Therrien joined as a partner shortly thereafter. The four wished to focus on
strategy video games
Strategy is a major video game genre that emphasizes thinking and planning over direct instant action in order to achieve victory. Although many types of video games can contain strategic elements, as a genre, strategy games are most commonly defi ...
and named the company accordingly.
By May 2004, Strategy First had amassed over in debt and had shrunk from more than 100 employees in three offices to sixteen staff in its primary office in Montreal. The debts included almost owed to investors, as well as owed to developers. As a result, Strategy First filed for
bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...
on 4 August 2004. Due to this insolvency, multiple developers, including
Stardock
Stardock Corporation is a software development company founded in 1991 and incorporated in 1993 as Stardock Systems. Stardock initially developed for the OS/2 platform, but was forced to switch to Microsoft Windows due to the collapse of the OS/ ...
and
Paradox Interactive
Paradox Interactive AB is a video game publisher based in Stockholm, Sweden. The company started out as the video game division of Target Games and then Paradox Entertainment (now Cabinet Entertainment) before being spun out into an independen ...
, did not receive royalties for their respective games published by Strategy First. Subsequently, Polish developer
Techland
Techland S.A. is a Polish video game developer and publisher founded in 1991 by Paweł Marchewka. It developed ''Call of Juarez'' (2006) and its prequel '' Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood'' (2009), as well as ''Dead Island'' (2011) and ''Dying Li ...
cut all ties with Strategy First, disallowing Strategy First from distributing any Techland product, effective on 18 September.
Silverstar Holdings, a
public company
A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange (l ...
based in
Boca Raton, Florida
Boca Raton ( ; es, Boca Ratón, link=no, ) is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It was first incorporated on August 2, 1924, as "Bocaratone," and then incorporated as "Boca Raton" in 1925. The population was 97,422 in the ...
, that specialized in the acquisition of pay-to-play businesses, announced on 22 April 2005 that it had acquired Strategy First from the bankruptcy proceedings. The company contributed in cash and 400,000 shares of
common stock
Common stock is a form of corporate equity ownership, a type of security. The terms voting share and ordinary share are also used frequently outside of the United States. They are known as equity shares or ordinary shares in the UK and other Com ...
to Strategy First's creditors, while also assuming of Strategy First's existing debt. Clive Kabatznik, the
chief executive officer
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 ...
(CEO) of Silverstar Holdings, stated that the company intended to use Strategy First as a niche publisher, in parallel to its other recent acquisition,
Empire Interactive
Empire Interactive was a British video game developer and Video game publisher, publisher based in London. Founded in 1987 by Ian Higgins and Simon Jeffrey, it was acquired by Silverstar Holdings in 2006 and went out of business in 2009.
His ...
, which Kabatznik described as a "more fully fledged publisher". In April 2005, Strategy First acquired and absorbed all assets of
Santa Rosa, California
Santa Rosa (Spanish language, Spanish for "Rose of Lima, Saint Rose") is a city and the county seat of Sonoma County, California, Sonoma County, in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, Bay Area ...
-based developer
Malfador Machinations
Malfador Machinations was a small game company based in Santa Rosa, California. They were best known for their ''Space Empires'' series.
Brief history
Malfador Machinations was created by Aaron Hall to publish '' Space Empires II'', the sequel ...
. That company's
president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
and CEO, Aaron Hall, joined Strategy First's management team as a result.
In March 2009, Silverstar Holdings was delisted from the
NASDAQ
The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...
stock exchange. Subsequently, Empire Interactive was put into
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative assistant, Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an admini ...
in May, with 49 out of 55 positions terminated.
Games
References
{{Authority control
External links
Official website
1988 establishments in Quebec
Canadian companies established in 1988
Companies based in Montreal
Video game companies established in 1988
Video game companies of Canada
Video game publishers
Video game publishing brands
Video game development companies