Rebellion is one of the largest indie studios in Europe, and today they've grown a bit bigger by acquiring The Bitmap Brothers. The late '80s/early '90s dev team is best known for creating franchises such as Xenon, Z: Steel Soldiers, Speedball, and Chaos Engine.
Though gamers of a certain age may not be familiar with The Bitmap Brothers, Rebellion was very excited to share the news and become the "custodians of this great name."
Rebellion CEO Jason Kingsley had this to say:
We’re delighted with the addition of The Bitmap Brothers to the ever-growing Rebellion portfolio.The Bitmap Brothers are renowned for making great games and for bringing gaming into the mainstream with inimitable style. We’ve known Mike Montgomery for many years, and we’re honoured by the faith and trust that he has shown in us by passing on the torch. We’ll strive to be vigilant custodians of one of gaming’s great names.”
The Bitmap Brothers was founded in 1987 and went on to self-publish their games after stints with Image Works and Konami. Their most recent game came in 2012 as a sequel to their mid-nineties blood sport series, Speedball.
Meanwhile, Rebellion is best known for their work on series like Sniper Elite, Zombie Army, and their newest IP Strange Brigade. Each of those series is a third-person shooter, often with an emphasis on co-op. The studio was born in 1992 and has also worked on series like Alien Vs. Predator. Currently, they're working toward new releases of Evil Genius 2 for PC as well as Zombie Army 4 for Xbox One, PS4, and the Epic Store on PC.
Rebellion has not revealed any specific games they plan to revive, only that their plan is to make new games based on The Bitmap Brothers' "beloved licenses" which were once housed on old PCs and consoles like the Amiga. Given that both studios are well-versed in shooters, self-publishing, and surviving for decades in the industry, the acquisition makes a lot of sense.
