{{Short description|Defunct American video game developer}} {{Use mdy dates|date=July 2021}} {{Infobox company | name = Vicious Cycle Software | logo = Vicious Cycle Logo.jpg | logo_size = 150px | type = [[Subsidiary]] | key_people = Eric Peterson, Founder/[[President (corporate title)|President]] and [[CEO]]<br />Wayne Harvey, Founder/[[Vice-president|VP]]/[[Chief technology officer|CTO]]<br />Dave Ellis, Founder/[[Game design|Senior Game Designer]], Marc Racine Founder/Production Director, Senior Game Designer Brett Freese | industry = [[Video game industry|Video games]] | products = Vicious Engine | num_employees = | parent = [[D3 Publisher]] (2007–2014)<br />[[Little Orbit]] (2014–2016) | divisions = Monkey Bar Games | foundation = {{start date and age|2000}} in [[Chapel Hill, North Carolina]], U.S. | defunct = {{end date and age|2016|1|31}} | location = [[Morrisville, North Carolina]], U.S. | homepage = {{URL|viciouscycleinc.com}} }}
'''Vicious Cycle Software''' was an American [[video game developer|video game development]] company based in [[Morrisville, North Carolina]].
==History== Vicious Cycle was founded in 2000 by Eric Peterson, Dave Ellis, Marc Racine, and Wayne Harvey after layoffs at the local [[MicroProse]] development studio (then a [[Hasbro Interactive]] studio) forced several game developers into finding other work. Racine resigned as Vice President and Director of Production in the Spring of 2005 to pursue other ventures. Ellis left the company in the Summer of 2000 but returned in 2005 to take a position as a [[game designer]]. Vicious Cycle has released titles for the [[PlayStation 2]], [[Xbox (console)|Xbox]], [[GameCube]], [[Xbox 360]], [[PlayStation 3]], [[Wii]], and [[PlayStation Portable]] systems as well as the [[Microsoft Windows]] platform.
On June 20, 2007, Vicious Cycle was acquired by [[D3 Publisher]] and became a fully-owned subsidiary of their D3 Publisher of America division, a second‐tier subsidiary of D3 Inc.<ref>[http://www.d3i.co.jp/en/pressrelease/2007_pdf/e431120070620001.pdf Press Release: D3 Inc. Acquires Vicious Cycle Software] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927103056/http://www.d3i.co.jp/en/pressrelease/2007_pdf/e431120070620001.pdf |date=September 27, 2007 }} from [[D3 Publisher|D3 website]]</ref> Vicious Cycle released ''[[Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard]]'' for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on February 26, 2009. On October 1, 2009, they announced ''[[Matt Hazard: Blood Bath and Beyond]]'' for [[Xbox LIVE Arcade]] and the [[PlayStation Store]] for winter 2009.<ref>[http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/21108/Matt-Hazard-Blood-Bath-and-Beyond-Coming-to-XBLA/ Press Release Matt Hazard: Blood Bath and Beyond Coming to XBLA] press release from TeamXbox.com</ref>
On September 4, 2014, Vicious Cycle was acquired by [[Little Orbit]].<ref>{{cite press release|title=Little Orbit Acquires Vicious Cycle Software|url=http://www.littleorbit.com/news/little-orbit-acquires-vicious-cycle-software|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151028125326/http://www.littleorbit.com/news/little-orbit-acquires-vicious-cycle-software|publisher=Little Orbit|archive-date=October 28, 2015| access-date=August 1, 2015|date=September 4, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Ohnesorge|first=Lauren|date=September 12, 2014|title=Vicious Cycle Software acquired - again; CEO says it means jobs|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/triangle/blog/techflash/2014/09/vicious-cycle-software-acquired-by-little-orbit.html|access-date=June 10, 2021|website=[[American City Business Journals]]}}</ref> As the final two games (''[[Adventure Time: Finn & Jake Investigations]]'' and ''[[Kung Fu Panda: Showdown of Legendary Legends]]'') neared completion, several rounds of layoffs reduced the studio to a skeleton crew. Vicious Cycle closed its doors permanently on January 31, 2016.
== Technology == In 2005, Vicious Cycle announced the release of their Vicious Engine [[game engine]]. The Vicious Engine was a complete game development [[middleware]] solution for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox, Xbox 360, PlayStation Portable, GameCube, Wii and Microsoft Windows. It was one of the first game engines to offer full support for the PSP and Wii platforms.{{citation needed|date=July 2012}}
The second version of the Vicious Engine, V<sup>e2</sup>, was released on March 25, 2009, at the Game Developers Conference. It specifically featured improvements for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Thompson |first=Michael |date=2009-03-24 |title=Vicious Cycle’s new engine available for licensing |url=https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2009/03/vicious-cycles-new-engine-available-for-licensing/ |access-date=2025-05-21 |website=Ars Technica |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last= |date=2009-06-16 |title=The Top 10 Game Engines No. 9: Vicious Engine 2 |url=https://mcvuk.com/development-news/the-top-10-game-engines-a-no-9-vicious-engine-2/ |access-date=2025-05-21 |work=MCV |language=en |issn=1469-4832}}</ref>
==Games==
{| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year ! Title ! Platform(s) ! Publisher(s) ! Label |- | 2002 | ''[[Robotech: Battlecry]]'' | [[PlayStation 2]], [[GameCube]], [[Xbox (console)|Xbox]] | [[TDK Mediactive]] | rowspan="4" | Vicious Cycle |- | 2003 | ''[[Dinotopia: The Sunstone Odyssey]]'' | [[GameCube]], [[Xbox (console)|Xbox]] | [[TDK Mediactive]], [[Global Star Software]] |- | 2004 | ''[[Robotech: Invasion]]'' | rowspan="2" | [[PlayStation 2]], [[Xbox (console)|Xbox]] | rowspan="3" | [[Global Star Software]] |- | rowspan="2" | 2005 | ''[[Spy vs. Spy (2005 video game)|Spy vs. Spy]]'' |- | ''[[Dora the Explorer: Journey to the Purple Planet]]'' | [[PlayStation 2]], [[GameCube]] | rowspan="3" | Monkey Bar |- | rowspan="2" | 2006 | ''[[Curious George (video game)|Curious George]]'' | [[PlayStation 2]], [[GameCube]], [[Xbox (console)|Xbox]], [[Windows]] | [[Namco|Namco Hometek]], [[Electronic Arts]] |- | ''[[Flushed Away (video game)|Flushed Away]]'' | [[PlayStation 2]], [[GameCube]] | [[D3 Publisher]] |- | rowspan="3" | 2007 | ''[[Marvel Trading Card Game]]'' | [[PlayStation Portable]], [[Windows]] | [[Konami]] | rowspan="3" | Vicious Cycle |- | ''[[Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords]]'' | [[PlayStation Portable]], [[Xbox 360]] | rowspan="5" | [[D3 Publisher]] |- | ''[[Dead Head Fred]]'' | [[PlayStation Portable]] |- | 2008 | ''[[Ben 10: Alien Force (video game)|Ben 10: Alien Force]]'' | [[PlayStation 2]], [[Wii]], [[PlayStation Portable]] | Monkey Bar |- | 2009 | ''[[Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard]]'' | rowspan="2" | [[PlayStation 3]], [[Xbox 360]] | rowspan="2" | Vicious Cycle |- | rowspan="3" | 2010 | ''[[Matt Hazard: Blood Bath and Beyond]]'' |- | ''[[Despicable Me: The Game]]'' | [[PlayStation 2]], [[Wii]], [[PlayStation Portable]] | rowspan="8" | [[D3 Publisher]], [[Bandai Namco Entertainment|Namco Bandai Games]] | rowspan="2" | Monkey Bar |- | ''[[Yogi Bear (film)|Yogi Bear: The Video Game]]'' | [[Wii]] |- | rowspan="2" | 2011 | ''[[Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon]]'' | [[PlayStation 3]], [[Xbox 360]], [[Windows]] | Vicious Cycle |- | rowspan="2" | ''[[Ben 10: Galactic Racing]]'' | [[PlayStation 3]], [[Xbox 360]], [[Wii]], [[Nintendo 3DS]] | rowspan="7" | Monkey Bar |- | rowspan="3" | 2012 | [[PlayStation Vita]] |- | ''[[Madagascar 3: The Video Game]]'' | [[PlayStation 3]], [[Xbox 360]], [[Wii]] |- | ''[[Ben 10: Omniverse (video game)|Ben 10: Omniverse]]'' | rowspan="2" | [[PlayStation 3]], [[Xbox 360]], [[Wii]], [[Wii U]] |- | rowspan="2" | 2013 | ''[[Turbo: Super Stunt Squad]]'' |- | ''[[Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures (video game)|Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures]]'' | [[PlayStation 3]], [[Xbox 360]], [[Wii U]] | [[Bandai Namco Entertainment|Namco Bandai Games]] |- | 2014 | ''[[Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures 2]]'' | [[PlayStation 3]], [[Xbox 360]], [[Wii U]], [[Nintendo 3DS]] | [[Bandai Namco Entertainment|Bandai Namco Games]] |- | rowspan="2" | 2015 | ''[[Adventure Time: Finn & Jake Investigations]]'' | rowspan="2" | [[PlayStation 3]], [[PlayStation 4]], [[Xbox 360]], [[Xbox One]], [[Wii U]], [[Nintendo 3DS]], [[Windows]] | rowspan="2" | Little Orbit | rowspan="2" | Vicious Cycle |- | ''[[Kung Fu Panda: Showdown of Legendary Legends]]''<ref name=PRNiOrbitKicks>{{cite press release|author1=Little Orbit|title=Little Orbit Kicks Off Totally Epic Kung Fu Panda: Showdown of Legendary Legends Video Game|url=http://www.ireachcontent.com/news-releases/little-orbit-kicks-off-totally-epic-kung-fu-panda-showdown-of-legendary-legends-video-game-502402021.html|publisher=PR Newswire iReach|access-date=August 1, 2015|date=May 4, 2015|archive-date=March 24, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170324080736/http://www.ireachcontent.com/news-releases/little-orbit-kicks-off-totally-epic-kung-fu-panda-showdown-of-legendary-legends-video-game-502402021.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> |}
==Monkey Bar Games== {{Infobox company | name = Monkey Bar Games | logo = Monkey Bar Games Logo.jpeg | type = [[Division (business)|Division]] | foundation = {{start date and age|2005}} | defunct = {{end date and age|2016|1|31}} | location_city = [[Chapel Hill, North Carolina]] | location_country = [[United States]] | industry = [[Video game|Software and Programming]] | parent = Vicious Cycle Software }} '''Monkey Bar Games''' was the children's division of Vicious Cycle Software. The label was mainly associated with games based on licensed children's properties.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.viciouscycleinc.com/divisions/division_detail.cfm?ID=2 |title=Monkey Bar Games |access-date=2009-01-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019111515/http://www.viciouscycleinc.com/divisions/division_detail.cfm?ID=2 |archive-date=2013-10-19 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Monkey Bar was formed in November 2005, with ''[[Dora the Explorer: Journey to the Purple Planet]]'' and ''[[Curious George (video game)|Curious George]]'' being the first two titles released under the label.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2005-11-15 |title=Vicious Cycle® Software, Inc. Establishes Monkey Bar Games(tm) |url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/vicious-cycle-software-inc-establishes-monkey-bar-gamestm |access-date=2026-04-23 |website=GamesIndustry.biz |language=en}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
== External links == * [http://www.viciouscycleinc.com/ Vicious Cycle Software official site] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051122180609/http://www.viciouscycleinc.com/ |date=November 22, 2005 }} * [http://www.monkeybargames.com/ Monkey Bar Games official site] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060414170721/http://www.monkeybargames.com/ |date=April 14, 2006 }} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20120415072431/http://www.viciousengine.com/ Vicious Engine official site] *[http://www.mobygames.com/company/vicious-cycle-software-inc Vicious Cycle Software] entry at [[MobyGames]]
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Former Bandai Namco Holdings subsidiaries]] [[Category:Defunct video game companies of the United States]] [[Category:Video game development companies]] [[Category:Video game companies established in 2000]] [[Category:Video game companies disestablished in 2016]] [[Category:Defunct companies based in North Carolina]] [[Category:2000 establishments in North Carolina]] [[Category:2016 disestablishments in North Carolina]]