Big Huge Games lives again with original founder, mobile strategy

Big Huge Games, known for PC strategy games such as Rise of Nations and the RPG Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, was a casualty of 38 Studios’ financial troubles in 2012 and its bankruptcy in 2013. 38 Studios closed Big Huge Games in 2012 and sold off its properties for $320,000 in December 2013. Turns out, the original Big Huge Games founder, Brian Reynolds, is the one who picked up those IPs. He’s been operating under the studio name SecretNewCo (which really should have been a hint to the rest of us) since 2013, and now Big Huge Games is back with its first game, a mobile, empire-building strategy title called DomiNations. It will be published by Nexon.

Prior to re-launching Big Huge Games, Reynolds was Chief Designer at Zynga, and before that he co-founded Civilization studio Firaxis Games. In between, he helped found Big Huge Games the first time around. Reynolds is now CEO of the shiny, new Big Huge Games.

“We’re honored to continue the legacy of Big Huge Games, which we founded on the concept of making fun, beautiful and innovative gameplay experiences on mobile devices,” Reynolds says in a press release. “Nexon is lending us its proven free-to-play expertise in pursuit of that goal, and we can’t wait to show players what we’ve created together.”

DomiNations allows players to craft empires from the stone age to the space age, with single-player and co-op modes. It’s free and due out on iOS and Android devices in 2015.

Final Fantasy rides a G-Bike onto Japan’s iOS, Android stores

Final Fantasy 7 G-Bike, the mobile adaptation of Final Fantasy 7’s motorcycle combat mini-game, has arrived for Japanese iOS and Android devices, according to Famitsu (as translated by Siliconera). Announced back in June, G-Bike buckles players into the role of FF7 hero Cloud Strife as he heroically destroys taxpayer-funded highways monsters and other bad guys with his trademark Buster Sword.

Those in the West looking to swing bladed objects while riding questionably-safe vehicles at dangerously high speeds will have to wait a bit longer for G-Bike to become available for their devices. Unfortunately, we’re not sure how long, as Square Enix has not revealed a stateside or European launch date.

Hmmm, maybe if we collect enough materia …