SilverBack Studios launches from the ashes of Acclaim UK

A new development studio has been launched in Manchester to work on one of Acclaim's most promising titles - with former employees of the firm's Manchester studio re-commencing work on Interview With A Made Man.

The new company, SilverBack Studios, is being funded by development funding group Fund4Games, which acquired the rights to Interview... and other titles from Acclaim's receivers, and has also acquired the development hardware which was being used to create the game.

The studio is bring fronted by Jon Oldham, a veteran of Team 17, Ocean and Infogrames, and employs 15 of Acclaim Manchester's former staff. It expects to release Interview..., a gangster title with a storyline by author David Fisher, in 2006.

"The support SilverBack has been given has been phenomenal and we are very optimistic about the future," enthused Oldham. "At a time when so many Northern-based developers are going to the wall, it makes a welcome change that some of the most talented programmers and artists the region has to offer get a chance to showcase their talents again."

The firm is expected to enter discussions with publishers for Interview With a Made Man in the coming months.