WayForward

WayForward Technologies, Inc. is an American independent video game developer and publisher based in Valencia, California. Founded in March 1990 by technology entrepreneur Voldi Way, WayForward started by developing games for consoles such as the Super NES and Genesis, as well as TV games and PC educational software. In 1997, they relaunched their video games arm, placing the company as a contractor for publishers and working on a variety of licensed assets.

For the fictional company, see Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency.
WayForward Technologies, Inc.
Private
IndustryVideo games
FoundedMarch 1990 (1990-03)
FounderVoldi Way
Headquarters
Valencia, California
,
United States
Key people
Voldi Way (CEO)[1][2] [lower-alpha 1]
Matt Bozon
Products
Websitewayforward.com

The company has created a variety of original game properties such as their flagship Shantae series, including the first title in the series which appeared on the Game Boy Color and was published by Capcom. WayForward Technologies has since worked on games for the Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS and PlayStation Vita handheld consoles, WiiWare games for Nintendo's Wii and Wii U, and Nintendo Switch consoles, games for personal computer, mobile phones, and other licensed titles for PlayStation Network, Xbox Live Arcade, and Apple Arcade.

History

WayForward Technologies was founded in 1990 by Voldi Way as an independent videogame design company, following on from a previous company he started that specialised in software for sheet metal fabrication.[3] Early on, the company focused on producing software for the Super NES, Genesis, Game Gear and Game Boy Color. They also branched out into educational computer games for the Personal Computer and Leapster.[3] During this time, many of the staff were doing other jobs in order to support their ambition to become game developers.[4]

In 1994, WayForward Technologies entered into a partnership with American Education Publishing in order to focus on developing further educational computer games.[5] The partnership was successful, with the company winning awards for innovation at the 1995 Consumer Electronics Show. During this time, WayForward focused on licensed assets such as the Muppets for their educational games.[4]

WayForward restarted their videogame development business in April 1997, working as a "developer for hire" by providing services to software publishers.[3] John Beck, CEO, stated that by providing services on small projects the company has managed to remain a stable level of work. In mid-2002, WayForward released their first internally developed game based on their own intellectual property called Shantae. While it achieved critical acclaim, it was one of the last games to be released for the Game Boy Color and as a result only enjoyed limited success.[3]

When Nintendo announced the dual-screen handheld console that became the Nintendo DS in early 2004, WayForward began examining the various options the new console offered. Work started on a sequel to Shantae using the two screens. Despite presenting the concepts to a number of publishers, they were ultimately unsuccessful at securing a deal.[4] Because of the large number of Shantae related assets that were produced, including 3D models, WayForward frequently uses them when trying out new technology or development platforms.[3] Later in 2004, the company was contracted by THQ to produce a new chat game called Ping Pals for the Nintendo DS. Despite the tight timescales involved in developing the game, WayForward used the opportunity to obtain development kits for the platform.[4] The game was received unfavourably by the majority of critics and gained only a single positive review.[6] In 2006, the company produced and released Justice League Heroes: The Flash just as the Game Boy Advance was reaching the end of its commercial life cycle, which met with largely positive reviews.[7] Since then, WayForward has gone on to develop further titles for the Nintendo DS. Looney Tunes: Duck Amuck, based on the 1951 Warner Bros. cartoon Duck Amuck was highly anticipated[8] at the E3 trade show but also received mixed reviews upon release.[9]

On February 19, 2008, John Beck and Matt Bozon were speakers at the Independent Games Summit, part of the 2008 Game Developers Conference, discussing a range of issues facing independent games companies.[10] LIT was announced on March 5, 2008 and was released on February 9, 2009 for the WiiWare online shop platform.[11] A new game in the Shantae series was also considered for the platform.[12]

According to the Spring 2009 entry of the Shantae Fan Club online newsletter, WayForward introduced a new character named Alta, who is a pink-haired girl that wields a scepter. She represented a brand-new original franchise. This was revealed on March 9, 2009 to be a DSiWare exclusive game called Mighty Flip Champs!. WayForward would create Mighty Milky Way, another puzzle platformer with a new character named Luna. Its sequel, Mighty Switch Force!, was released exclusively on the 3DS eShop on December 22, 2011, with a sequel two years later called Mighty Switch Force! 2 on the Nintendo 3DS' eShop.

Adventure Time: Hey Ice King! Why'd You Steal Our Garbage?! was released on November 20, 2012. A sequel, Explore the Dungeon Because I Don't Know!, as well as a Regular Show video game, Mordecai and Rigby in 8-Bit Land, were released in 2013.[13] A sequel to Mighty Switch Force! was released on June 13, 2013.[14] A new Shantae game was revealed via Nintendo Power,[15] Shantae and the Pirate's Curse, which was released on October 23, 2014 on the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U eShop. Another game in the series, Shantae: Half-Genie Hero, was crowdfunded via Kickstarter and released in December 2016.[16] On April Fool's Day 2013, Wayforward made a fake announcement for a game called Cat Girl Without Salad! Fans responded positively to the game's concept, leading WayForward to later develop it into a full title, which was released via a Humble Bundle in June 2016.[17][18][19]

Gameography
YearTitlePlatforms
1992[20] FunPack PC
1994 Mickey's Ultimate Challenge (credited as Designer Software) Genesis, Super NES, Game Boy, Game Gear, Master System
1997 Star Warped PC
1998 FunPack 3D PC
Casper: Animated Activity Center[21] PC
Microshaft Winblows 98 PC
Outburst PC
1999 The Land Before Time: Preschool Adventure PC
Xtreme Sports Arcade: Summer Edition PC
2000 Xtreme Sports Game Boy Color
Bear in the Big Blue House: Bear’s Sense of Adventure PC
Delirium PC
Sabrina: The Animated Series: Zapped! Game Boy Color
2001 Sabrina: The Animated Series: Spooked! Game Boy Color
Pearl Harbor: Defend the Fleet PC
Wendy: Every Witch Way Game Boy Color
WWF Betrayal Game Boy Color
2002 Shantae Game Boy Color
The Scorpion King: Sword of Osiris Game Boy Advance
Godzilla: Domination Game Boy Advance
2003 Rescue Heroes: Billy Blazes Game Boy Advance
Nickelodeon Toon Twister 3D PC
2004 The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie Game Boy Advance
Ping Pals Nintendo DS
2005 Sigma Star Saga Game Boy Advance
SpongeBob SquarePants: Lights, Camera, Pants! Game Boy Advance
Tak: The Great Juju Challenge Game Boy Advance
Barbie and the Magic of Pegasus Game Boy Advance
2006 X-Men: The Official Game Game Boy Advance
Unfabulous! Game Boy Advance
Justice League Heroes: The Flash Game Boy Advance
American Dragon: Jake Long – Attack of the Dark Dragon Nintendo DS
American Dragon: Jake Long – Rise of the Huntsclan Game Boy Advance
SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS
Barbie in the 12 Dancing Princesses Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS
2007 Looney Tunes: Duck Amuck Nintendo DS
Shrek: Ogres & Dronkeys Nintendo DS
Contra 4 Nintendo DS
2008 Space Chimps Nintendo DS
2009 LIT WiiWare, iOS, Android, PC
Mighty Flip Champs! DSiWare
A Boy and His Blob Wii, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Xbox One, PC, iOS, Android
Where the Wild Things Are Nintendo DS
2010 Galactic Taz Ball Nintendo DS
Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem Nintendo DS
Batman: The Brave and the Bold – The Videogame Nintendo DS, Wii
Shantae: Risky's Revenge DSiWare, iOS, PlayStation 4, PC, Wii U
2011 SpongeBob SquigglePants Nintendo 3DS, Wii
Centipede: Infestation Nintendo 3DS, Wii
Thor: God of Thunder[22] Nintendo DS
Mighty Milky Way[23] DSiWare
Mighty Flip Champs! DX PlayStation Minis
BloodRayne: Betrayal[24] Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC
Aliens: Infestation[25] Nintendo DS
Mighty Switch Force! [26] Nintendo 3DS
Happy Feet Two: The Video Game Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS
2012 Hotel Transylvania Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS
Double Dragon Neon Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC
Silent Hill: Book of Memories[27] PlayStation Vita
Adventure Time: Hey Ice King! Why'd You Steal Our Garbage?! [28] Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS
Mighty Switch Force! Hyper Drive Edition Wii U, PC
2013 The Smurfs 2: The Video Game PlayStation 3, Wii, WiiU, Xbox 360
DuckTales: Remastered[29] Wii U, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC, iOS, Android, Windows Phone
Regular Show: Mordecai and Rigby in 8-Bit Land Nintendo 3DS
Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I Don't Know![30] Wii U, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC, Nintendo 3DS
Mighty Switch Force! 2 Wii U, Nintendo 3DS
2014 Drawn to Life iOS
Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark[31] Nintendo 3DS
Shantae and the Pirate's Curse[32] Wii U, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo 3DS, PC, Amazon Fire TV, Nintendo Switch
Adventure Time: The Secret of the Nameless Kingdom[16] PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, Xbox 360, Nintendo 3DS, Microsoft Windows
Wonder Momo: Typhoon Booster Nvidia Shield, Mac OS
Scooby Doo! & Looney Tunes Cartoon Universe: Adventure PC, Nintendo 3DS
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Danger of the Ooze PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo 3DS
2015 Mighty Switch Force! Hose It Down! iOS, PC
Watch Quest! Heroes of Time Apple Watch
Til Morning's Light iOS, Fire OS
Adventure Time: Puzzle Quest iOS, Android
Mighty Switch Force! Academy PC
Goosebumps: The Game PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Nintendo 3DS, PC,[33] Nintendo Switch
Marvel Puzzle Quest PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Descendants iOS, Android
2016 Cat Girl Without Salad! PC, Nintendo Switch
Shantae: Half-Genie Hero[16] Wii U, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch
2017 The Mummy Demastered PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch
2019 Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night[34] (with Artplay and 505 Games) PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch
Spidersaurs[35] Apple Arcade
Mighty Switch Force! Collection[36] PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch
Shantae and the Seven Sirens[37][38] PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, Apple Arcade
River City Girls[39] (with Arc System Works) PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch
2020 Vitamin Connection[40] Nintendo Switch
Trollhunters: Defenders of Arcadia[41] PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch
Bakugan: Champions of Vestroia Nintendo Switch
gollark: I mean, why do they need 60GB of assets or whatever?
gollark: Giant expensive ultra-realistic games generally *aren't* available on Linux, but I don't like those.
gollark: I've got Factorio, KSP, some Civilization games, Poly Bridge, Stellaris, Universe Sandbox and Slay the Spire.
gollark: A surprising amount of Steam games are available, though.
gollark: You can also play exciting open-source games like Minetest, Dwarf Fortress and OpenTTD.

References
  1. Credited as "Tyrannical Overlord" in all WayForward game credits.
  1. https://www.engadget.com/2009/06/12/interview-wayforwards-voldi-way-talks-blobs-shantae-and-stre/
  2. https://www.gameinformer.com/2019/04/19/wayforward-and-arc-system-works-announce-female-follow-up-to-river-city-ransom
  3. Brandon Sheffield (2004-11-17). "WayForward To The Handheld Future". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 2008-06-22. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  4. Stephen Totilo (2007-08-21). "The Flop That Inspired 'Contra 4' And 'Duck Amuck'". MTV. Archived from the original on 2009-03-12. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  5. "WayForward Technologies – The Company". WayForward Technologies. Archived from the original on 2008-02-06. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  6. Geoffery Winter. "Ping Pals". Nintendojo. Archived from the original on 2006-11-14. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  7. "Justice League Heroes: The Flash". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 2008-05-16. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
  8. Guy Cocker (2007-07-13). "E3 '07: Duck Amuck Impressions". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2009-03-14. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  9. "Looney Tunes: Duck Amuck". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 2009-03-12. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  10. "Games Developers Conference – Independent Games Summit". CMP Media. Archived from the original on 2008-03-12. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  11. Damien McFerran (2008-03-06). "WayForward Developing Exclusive Horror Puzzle Title for WiiWare". WiiWare World. Archived from the original on 2008-05-18. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  12. James Ransom-Wiley (2008-02-22). "GDC08: Shantae summoned for WiiWare". Joystiq. Archived from the original on 2008-02-25. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  13. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-09-09. Retrieved 2014-07-11.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  14. Jonathan Holmes (2013-02-24). "Mighty Switch Force 2 announced for 3DS!-Sup, Holmes?". Destructoid. Archived from the original on 2016-10-01. Retrieved 2017-09-11.
  15. Caz (7 November 2012). "Shantae 3 for 3DS Announced! (SPREAD THE NEWS!)". Archived from the original on 2016-03-06. Retrieved 2016-12-02 – via YouTube.
  16. WayForward (2013-09-04). "Shantae: Half-Genie Hero". Kickstarter. Archived from the original on 2013-09-06. Retrieved 2013-09-04.
  17. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2017-01-04. Retrieved 2017-01-03.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  18. Frank, Allegra (May 28, 2016). "A classic WayForward Technologies April Fools' joke is becoming an actual game". Polygon. Archived from the original on 2016-05-27. Retrieved May 28, 2016.
  19. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2017-01-04. Retrieved 2017-01-03.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  20. https://twitter.com/WayForward/status/1235626345058562049
  21. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2018-11-30. Retrieved 2018-03-14.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  22. Richard George. "Thor: God of Thunder Review – Nintendo DS Review at IGN". Au.ds.ign.com. Archived from the original on 2011-05-16. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
  23. "Mighty Milky Way is your new planet-hopping puzzle game". Destructoid. Archived from the original on 2012-07-10. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
  24. "BloodRayne: Betrayal | Majesco Ent". Bloodraynebetrayal.com. Archived from the original on 2012-03-24. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
  25. Dutton, Fred (2011-05-25). "Aliens: Infestation outed by ratings board News • News •". Eurogamer.net. Archived from the original on 2012-07-25. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
  26. "Mighty Switch Force – Coming to the 3DS eShop". Nintendocharged.com. Archived from the original on 2012-03-25. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
  27. Kietzmann, Ludwig (2011-06-10). "Silent Hill: Book of Memories developed by WayForward". Joystiq. Archived from the original on 2012-07-15. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
  28. "Adventure Time Heading to Nintendo DS Later This Year – News". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on 2013-11-05. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
  29. Amini, Tina. "Capcom Is Bringing DuckTales Back". Archived from the original on 2013-03-25. Retrieved 2013-03-22.
  30. "New Adventure Time game announced for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U, PC, and 3DS; Regular Show game for 3DS". Gematsu. 2013-05-14. Archived from the original on 2013-06-07. Retrieved 2013-05-14.
  31. Brenna Hillier (2014-02-16). "Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark announced". vg247. Archived from the original on 2014-02-25. Retrieved 2014-02-16.
  32. "Latest Nintendo Power cover reveals Shantae and the Pirate's Curse". GoNintendo. 2012-11-06. Archived from the original on 2012-11-11. Retrieved 2012-11-06.
  33. "Goosebumps: The Game Coming to PS4, PS3 October 13th". Archived from the original on 2015-12-03. Retrieved 2015-10-07.
  34. Grubb, Jeff (November 29, 2018). "Bloodstained gets support from the 2D experts at WayForward". Venture Beat. Archived from the original on November 30, 2018. Retrieved November 29, 2018.
  35. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2019-04-09. Retrieved 2019-03-26.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  36. "Mighty Switch Force! Collection announced for PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC". Gematsu. Archived from the original on 2019-07-27. Retrieved 2019-07-27.
  37. Moyse, Chris (2019-03-25). "Shantae returns in an all new adventure later this year". Destructoid. Enthusiast Gaming. Archived from the original on 2019-03-26. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  38. https://wayforward.com/wayforward-reveals-official-title-and-new-details-for-shantae-and-the-seven-sirens/
  39. "Archived copy". Retrieved 2019-07-03.
  40. https://wayforward.com/wayforward-announces-vitamin-connection-for-switch/
  41. https://www.nintendo-insider.com/wayforward-developed-dreamworks-trollhunters-defenders-of-arcadia-hits-nintendo-switch-this-september/
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