Studio Map
Last updated: May 13, 2026
Overview
This is the comprehensive index of every game-development studio represented in the Sierra extended catalogue — Sierra’s own internal studios, the studios Sierra acquired, the partner studios Sierra funded and published, alumni-founded studios that continued the Sierra design tradition, and the fan-developer studios that have produced remakes and spiritual successors. Each entry summarizes founding/closure, current status, parent company, location, and the studios’ Sierra-era and post-Sierra credits.
Used together with Corporate Lineage and the per-studio Developer pages, this gives a single-page answer to questions like “Which studios contributed to the Sierra catalogue, and when were they each active?”
Sierra-internal studios
Studio Founded Status HQ Notes On-Line Systems 1979 Renamed 1982 → Sierra On-Line Simi Valley → Oakhurst, CA Founding entity; published Mystery House, Hi-Res Adventures Sierra On-Line 1982 Acquired by CUC 1996, mothballed 2008 Oakhurst, CA Main brand; King’s Quest, Space Quest, etc. Yosemite Entertainment 1998 Closed 2001 Bellevue, WA Bellevue-based successor after Oakhurst closure; SWAT 3, Half-Life Counter-Strike Sierra Attractions 1996 (label) Folded into Sierra Studios — Casino/casual sub-label Sierra Studios 1995 (label) Folded into Vivendi/Activision — Mid-tier mainstream label
Acquired studios
Studio Founded Acquired Status HQ Notable Games Dynamix 1984 1990 Closed 2001 Eugene, OR Stellar 7, Red Baron, Aces, 3D Ultra, Heart of China, Willy Beamish, Tribes, Starsiege Bright Star Technology 1990 1992 Folded into Sierra Bellevue, WA Alphabet Blocks, Ready Set Read, Talking Tutor series Coktel Vision 1985 1993 Discontinued late 1990s Paris, France Gobliiins, Inca, Lost in Time, Bizarre Adventures of Woodruff Impressions Games 1989 1995 Closed 2004 Cambridge, UK / Boston, MA Caesar, Pharaoh, Zeus, Emperor, Lords of the Realm Papyrus Design Group 1987 1995 Closed 2004 Watertown, MA NASCAR Racing series, IndyCar Racing, Grand Prix Legends Synergistic Software 1978 1996 Closed 1999 Bellevue, WA Conan, War in Middle Earth, Birthright Knowledge Adventure 1991 1996 (via CUC) Active (as JumpStart) Glendale, CA JumpStart educational series, Adi/Adibou (with Coktel) Berkeley Systems 1987 1997 (via CUC) Folded into Sierra Berkeley, CA After Dark screensavers
Partner / funded studios (Sierra published, retained creative independence)
Studio Founded Sierra relationship Status Notable Sierra-era games Valve Corporation 1996 Sierra-published 1998-2003 Active (independent) Half-Life, Half-Life expansions, Counter-Strike, Day of Defeat Relic Entertainment 1997 Sierra-published 1999-2003 Active (independent since 2024) Homeworld, Homeworld: Cataclysm, Homeworld 2 Monolith Productions 1994 Sierra-published 1998-2003 Active (Warner Bros. since 2004) No One Lives Forever, Blood 2, Tron 2.0, FEAR Gearbox Software 1999 Sierra-published 1999-2001 Active Half-Life: Opposing Force, Blue Shift Game Arts 1985 (Japan) Sierra-localized 1988-1990 Active Silpheed (1988), Zeliard (1990) Evryware ? Sierra-published 1988-1989 Closed Manhunter NY, Manhunter SF Headgate Studios 1993 Sierra-published various Closed 2009 Various Sierra Sports titles Barking Dog Studios 1998 Co-developed with Relic Closed 2005 Homeworld: Cataclysm Stainless Steel Studios 1997 Sierra-published Closed 2005 Empire Earth Massive Entertainment 1997 Sierra-published Active (Ubisoft) Ground Control series Jeff Tunnell Productions 1995 Internal sub-label of Dynamix Folded 3D Ultra series founding entries
Post-acquisition (Sierra-developed during CUC/Vivendi era)
Studio Founded Sierra relationship Status Notes Tilted Mill Entertainment 2002 Sierra-published 2004-2006 Closed 2015 Caesar IV, Children of the Nile BreakAway Games 1995 Sierra-co-developed Active Emperor: Rise of the Middle Kingdom Encore Software 1995 Sierra-licensed mid-2000s onward Closed Hoyle Casino annual entries 2007-2016
Alumni studios (founded by ex-Sierra staff)
Studio Founded Founders Status Notable games Pinkerton Road 2012 Jane Jensen , Robert Holmes Active Gabriel Knight 20th Anniversary, Moebius, Gray Matter Phoenix Online Studios 2003 Cesar Bittar Active The Silver Lining (fan KQ), Mage’s Initiation, Cognition Phoenix Online Publishing 2013 Cesar Bittar Active Publishing label, includes Cognition, Mage’s Initiation, Asylum Hero-U (Transolar Games) 2012 Lori Ann Cole , Corey Cole Active Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption, Summer Daze Two Guys From Andromeda 2012 Mark Crowe , Scott Murphy Active SpaceVenture (2022) Replay Games 2010 Paul Trowe Active LSL: Reloaded (with Al Lowe involvement) Assemble Entertainment 2016 — Active (German publisher with LSL license) LSL: Wet Dreams Don’t Dry, Wet Dreams Dry Twice Wide Screen Games (France) — Pierre Gilhodes (Coktel alumnus)Active Gobliiins 4, 5, 6 Blackbird Interactive 2010 Ex-Relic Entertainment staff Active (independent) Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak, Homeworld 3, Hardspace: Shipbreaker
Fan / community studios (Sierra remakes and spiritual successors)
Licensed remake studios
Studio Founded Project Notes The Odd Gentlemen 2008 King’s Quest (2015) Activision-licensed franchise reboot Triskell Interactive — Pharaoh: A New Era (2023) Dotemu-licensed remake Wizarbox 2002 Gray Matter (2010) Co-developed with Pinkerton Road Sproing Interactive Media — Geometry Wars 3 (2014 Sierra digital imprint)
See Also
Corporate Lineage — Ownership chain across the Sierra brandTimeline 1980-1999 — Studio founding/acquisition dates in chronological contextBibliography — Verification sources for studio claimsIndividual Developer pages — Linked from each studio above
References 