Braintree Software was a development studio based in Tyler, Texas. Braintree were notable for having a majority female staff, a rarity in the mainstream gaming industry at the time.
Braintree began life in 1981 as a small home computer game developer under the name Software Solutions, producing strategy games and business simulators, mainly for the Apple ][. Thanks to strong sales, the company rebranded as SoftSoul for better recognition and moved on to produce educational games and titles for the Atari 2600, though wound up getting hit by the Video Game Crash of 1984. In 1989, the company was resurrected after merging with Federal Systems and pooling their respective resources. The new company was named Braintree Software and intended to continue with its line of educational titles, but wound up turning their aim toward the mainstream market.
Braintree developed titles for the SEGA Genesis, outsourcing development for Super Nintendo Entertainment System ports to Sculptured Software. Braintree initially began with two titles for the SEGA Genesis and Super Nintendo Entertainment System, both of which were published by Sony Imagesoft. Later in 1994 the company developed a version of Zany Golf for fifth generation consoles in association with Electronic Arts Canada. In 1996, the company agreed to a buyout from Caspian Entertainment, with them bringing on owners of animation production company Fusebox Studios and Digital Station to produce cutscenes. In 2001, the company agreed to an exclusivity agreement with Microsoft to produce games for the XBOX, though the deal was lightened after the company rejected Braintree’s pitch for a console mascot; as part of the deal, Braintree would develop titles for the XBOX, albeit original titles, whereas licensed titles can be made for other platforms at the behest of the license owners.
Braintree would work on licenses for Justice League Unlimited, Scooby-Doo, Invader Zim, CatDog, Spy Kids and had even landed a deal with SEGA to produce a remake of Knuckles' Chaotix. The CatDog title was met with trouble due to licensing concerns; Nickelodeon had formed a longterm partnership with THQ to publish games based on their properties, while Atari would acquire the CatDog license due to the company's previous incarnations (Hasbro Interactive and Infogrames) publishing titles prominently featuring the characters. The deal would be settled however, with THQ earning publishing rights to other consoles while Atari would distribute the XBOX version solely. A GameCube port would be commissioned to High Voltage Software.
Overtime, the Invader Zim and CatDog titles would be cancelled due to their licensors not deeming them to be relevant enough to their brand, along with individual concerns; Nickelodeon expressed concerns over having titles released exclusively for the XBOX, a console they deemed to be more appealing to a much older demographic than their usual aim. The prospect of splitting revenue with two publishers on the XBOX version was also a contributing factor to the game's cancellation.
Knuckles' Chaotix was poised as a potential spin-off series to Sonic the Hedgehog, produced exclusively for the XBOX. Development was handled by Braintree in association with Visual Concepts. THQ initially signed on for international distribution, but became the game's co-publisher as SEGA wanted to prioritize mainstream Sonic titles. The game would use characters from the original 32X title while including characters from Archie Comic's Sonic the Hedgehog series. This led to threats of legal action by former Archie comics writer Ken Penders and the game getting cancelled.
Braintree would file for bankruptcy in 2006 following a failed lawsuit between them and SEGA over contractual issues.
Games[]
| Name | Publisher | Platform | Year | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green Jean | Sony Imagesoft | SEGA Genesis, SNES, SEGA CD | 1994 | SNES port by Sculptured Software. |
| Nature's Calling | SEGA Genesis, SNES | SNES port by Sculptured Software. Developed in association with Alexandria, Inc. and Mustard & Associates | ||
| Zany Golf Expanded | Electronic Arts | 3DO, PC, PlayStation, SEGA Saturn | Co-Developed by Electronic Arts Canada. Console ports by Gray Matter. | |
| Green Jean 2: Enter the Nega-Jean | GT Interactive | SEGA Saturn, PlayStation, SEGA Dreamcast | 1997 | Saturn conversion by Probe Entertainment. Dreamcast version by Runecraft. |
| Nickelodeon Trivia Party | Hasbro Interactive | PlayStation, PC, Mac | 2000 | Console port, original version by KnowWonder. |
| Green Jean (2002) | Sierra Entertainment | XBOX, GameCube | 2002 | GameCube port by Coyote Developments. |
| Kangaroo: Journey to Monkey Kingdom | Atari | GameCube port by Coyote Developments. Developed in association with Argonaut Software. | ||
| Scooby Doo: The First Mystery | THQ | XBOX | 2003 | N/A |
| Spy Kids: Game Over | GameCube, XBOX, PlayStation 2, PC, Game Boy Advance, Tapwave Zodiac, N-Gage | XBOX version only. | ||
| Justice League Unlimited | Midway Games | GameCube, XBOX | 2005 | XBOX version only, GameCube port by Avalanche Software. |
| Unreleased | ||||
| CatDog: Dog the Mighty Rises | Atari/THQ | XBOX, GameCube | Cancelled by Nickelodeon due to low license relevance and a potential royalty split between publishers. The GameCube port was published exclusively by THQ and developed by High Voltage Software. Completed in 2002. | |
| Invader Zim | THQ | XBOX | Cancelled by Nickelodeon due to low license relevance. Completed in early 2003. | |
| Knuckles Chaotix | SEGA/THQ | Co-developed by Ritual Entertainment, Nerve Software and Piranha Games. Cancelled due to legal issues. | ||