The gaming industry is bigger than ever. In the UK, it’s worth a staggering £5.11bn a year and it’s growing rapidly. There are countless video game production companies, including the likes of Sony, Nintendo and Rockstar, but did you know that 10% of the UK’s games development talent is based right here in Yorkshire.
In this round-up, we’re taking a look at 5 of the biggest games to come from Yorkshire-based companies.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
Vice City Stories is another controversial title from Rockstar Games
Rockstar Leeds were responsible for a number of titles in the Grand Theft Auto “City Stories” series. The strand of the infamous Grand Theft Auto franchise was created specifically for the PlayStation Portable. The games were received well by critics and fans across the world. As well as Vice City Stories, they also produced Liberty City Stories and Chinatown Wars for the GTA franchise.
Worms: Armageddon
Worms: Armageddon comes from Team17, who are based in Wakefield. They created the Worms franchise, which catapulted them to the forefront of the gaming scene in the late 90s. The company have developed many successful games, including the fantastic Superfrog. Worms is now available on Steam.
LittleBigPlanet 3
LittleBigPlanet 3 is a puzzle-platformer game which released on PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. It was created by Sumo Digital, who are based in Sheffield. The unique gameplay attracted positive reviews. Interestingly the game is narrated by Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie.
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed
Published on Playstation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii U in November 2012, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is another title from Sheffield-based company Sumo Digital. The game was received well by critics and holds a Metacritic rating of 82, and 8.16 from IGN who described it as “a bright, handsome and thoroughly enjoyable ride.”
Manhunt 2 – PSP edition
Released on Playstation 2 in October 2007, Manhunt 2’s PSP (Playstation Portable) version was developed by Rockstar Leeds. It was met with controversy upon its release and made headlines at the time because of its “twisted storyline” and gory gameplay. However, it received a great reception from fans and was ranked 1st in Gameranx list of the “Top 25 Goriest Games of all Time” as well as being nominated for GameSpy’s 2007 Game of the Year.
