Venerable games studio Toys for Bob will now be in partnership with Microsoft to develop a future game. The studio is known for working on classic titles such as the Spyro Reignited Trilogy, Crash Bandicoot, and Skylanders. Although more recently the studio was relegated to working as a support team for the Call of Duty franchise, while it was under the Activision umbrella.
Shortly after Microsoft completed its acquisition of Activision, Toys for Bob announced that it was spinning off to become an independent studio. Fans of the studio were concerned because it appeared as if Microsoft wasn’t all that interested in retaining the team. However, this latest announcement proves otherwise.
The announcement of the partnership doesn’t mention any details about the game Toys for Bob will be working on next. The natural assumption is that the studio will be leveraging previous IP, now that Microsoft has ownership. However, it might be that the team will want to work on something completely new and avoid returning to prior franchises.
Even if Toys for Bob ends up working on a new IP, fans can rest assured that it won’t deviate much from the studio’s past work. According to a report in Windows Central, the leadership team at the studio let employees know during a town hall meeting that they want to stay true to their style of game with future projects.
Having a studio such as Toys for Bob find solid footing as an independent entity is a good thing for the game industry. It shows that there’s still room for the types of games the team makes, and that a company like Microsoft believes it’s worth investing in.