Famed 90s and 2000s publisher Acclaim is to make a return to the games industry, and it seems the studio is looking to "resurrect and revitalize" some of its classic IPs.
Per Gematsu, Acclaim's revival will be headed up by industry veteran Alex Josef, who wasn't among the original founders or executives of Acclaim but who has experience publishing thanks to his time with studios like Turnip Boy publisher Graffiti Games, among others.
Josef says bringing back Acclaim is an "honor", and that the new version of the studio has "already signed some incredible indie titles". In addition, Josef says he wants to "resurrect and revitalize [Acclaim's] beloved portfolio" of intellectual properties, although he doesn't say which ones those might be.
Intriguingly, the new Acclaim's advisory board also counts wrestling legend Jeff Jarrett among its ranks. Jarrett's Global Force Entertainment is helping out with the new version of the studio, and Jarrett says resurrecting Acclaim is a chance to impart "passion and love to a new generation" via "great games".
Some of Acclaim's games, including the Turok series and dark action game Shadow Man, have already returned to modern systems in one form or another, so it'll be interesting to see which of Acclaim's properties it's able to "resurrect".
If you're not familiar with Acclaim, it got its start back in the late 80s, going on to become a prolific and fairly successful publisher throughout the 90s and early 2000s.
For many, however, Acclaim is more well-known for its many controversial marketing ideas, including awarding money to parents who named their baby "Turok", trying to buy ad space on tombstones for Shadow Man: 2econd Coming, and offering to pay UK speeding fines when Burnout 2 was released.
Acclaim closed down in 2004 following poor sales, filing for bankruptcy in August that year. The company subsequently sold publishing rights to many of its franchises to other studios.
It remains to be seen what the revived version of Acclaim will do, but it's not the only old-school publishing label to be revived recently.
Back in April last year, Atari announced it would revive the classic Infogrames label, with the studio going on to acquire the rights to the Totally Reliable Delivery Service and Surgeon Simulator brands.
