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FoxNext

FoxNext, LLC was a virtual reality and theme park unit of 20th Century Fox, now known as 20th Century Studios. It was established in 2017 prior to Disney's acquisition of Fox and operated under the Disney Parks, Experiences and Products unit of The Walt Disney Company. It handled the development and publishing of virtual reality and augmented reality titles, as well as the development of 20th Century Studios's theme and amusement parks. The division's president was Salil Mehta, a former executive from NBCUniversal and The Walt Disney Company, who has been with Fox since 2013 and later returned to Disney after Disney acquired Fox in 2019 until on January 23, 2020, when the company's gaming assets were sold to Scopely.[1][2]

For the defunct Portugal television station, see Fox Next.

Company type

January 18, 2017 (2017-01-18)

January 23, 2020 (2020-01-23)

Closed by Disney; gaming assets sold to Scopely

Worldwide

  • Salil Mehta (president)
  • James Finn (executive vice President, head of marketing)

www.foxnext.com (archived in April 29, 2019) (now deleted)

History[edit]

Formation[edit]

FoxNext was formed on January 18, 2017, with the announcement of Salil Mehta as division president transferring from his prior post as president of content management for Twentieth Century Fox Film. The division president would answer to chairman and CEO of Fox Networks Group, and chairman and CEO of Twentieth Century Fox Film, who at the time were Peter Rice and Stacey Snider, respectively. The two video gaming units responsible for The Simpsons: Tapped Out mobile game, Fox Digital Entertainment, and the Alien: Isolation console/PC game would become a single unit under FoxNext. The division also gain the over site of the existing 20th Century Fox World theme park project under development as part of its location-based entertainment business[1] transferred from Fox Consumer Products.[3]


FoxNext on January 19, 2017, announced a VR slate with Chris Milk's and former Googler Aaron Koblin's Within VR company, which was founded in 2014 as VRSE with funding from Fox, Legendary Pictures and others. This slate, which would be available via the Within app, included another ”Planet of the Apes”, original works from Milk, Spike Jonze and Megan Ellison and Annapurna Pictures.[4] On June 6, 2017, it acquired Aftershock Studios (formerly Kabam's Los Angeles and San Francisco studios) with Aftershock head Aaron Loeb becoming president of studios for FoxNext Games.[5]


On June 1, 2017, FoxNext announced that veteran marketing executive James Finn has been named executive VP and head of marketing for FoxNext.[6] FoxNext added Marc Zachary as FoxNext Destinations' senior vice president of business development.[7]


On July 27, 2017, FoxNext Games announced that they were developing an action/RPG multiplayer mobile game, Marvel Strike Force, in conjunction with Marvel Entertainment and Aftershock Studios on the Marvel Universe.[8][9] Released on March 28, 2018, Marvel Strike Force brought in $150 million in revenue over its first year.[10]


FoxNext also published game by other studios including Futurama: Worlds of Tomorrow (2017) and The X-Files: Deep State (2018).[10] The games division formed in March 2018 Fogbank Entertainment in San Francisco splitting them off from Aftershock Studios.[11]


FoxNext acquired in January 2018 Cold Iron Studios from Perfect World Entertainment games publisher.[12] On April 26, 2018, FoxNext opened its first virtual-reality experience location-based, “Alien: Descent”, at The Outlets at Orange mall in Orange County, California.[13]


On 29 April 2018, the Dubai park was put on indefinite hold by the Al Ahli Group amid concerns that there was a "serious supply" of theme parks in Dubai.[14] In late 2018 Genting Malaysia and FoxNext started legal actions against each other over 20th Century Fox World delays.[15] The two parties settled out of court in July 2019.[16]


FoxNext indicated on February 7, 2019, the opening of a development fund to assist indie developers with resources and support. Altered Matter's Etherborn game is the first to join FoxNext Games indie games portfolio.[17]

Sale of assets to Scopely[edit]

FoxNext was one of the properties acquired by The Walt Disney Company upon its acquisition of 21st Century Fox. In September 2019, Disney indicated it was looking to sell or shuttering parts of FoxNext.[18] In the past Disney, led by CEO Bob Iger, has eliminated in-house video game development and relying on third-parties to develop games based on its IP, after shutting down Disney Interactive Studios back in 2016.[19] Disney sold the FoxNext Games division, which included FoxNext Games Los Angeles, Cold Iron Studios and Aftershock, to mobile game developer Scopely in January 2020 for an undisclosed amount; Scopely stated it later plans to divest itself of Cold Iron Studios as they develop games for consoles and personal computers. The deal includes most of the IP developed by the studios excluding properties specifically owned by Fox distinct from the Disney acquisition.[2][20] Fogbank Entertainment was shuttered later in January 2020.[11]

[2]

FoxNext Destinations

[22]

FoxNext VR Studio

20th Century Fox World (Malaysia)

– planned location in Dubai that began development in 2015,[29][30] but the project was later put on indefinite hold in 2018.[14]

20th Century Fox World (Dubai)

20th Century Fox World (South Korea)

(April 3, 2018) game for Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and PlayStation VR; inherited from Fox Innovation Lab with Imaginati Studio as producer[32]

Crisis on the Planet of the Apes VR

"Alien: Descent" (April 26, 2018) location base experience at The Outlets, Orange mall, Orange County, California.

[13]

Fox Innovation Lab was the source for the division's VR subdivision with its "The Martian VR Experience" 2016 released[4] which was had a low review and highly discounted later.[13] In January 2017 at CES, Fox Innovation Lab announced a "Planet of the Apes" VR experience with Imaginati Studio as producer.[4][31]

Marvel Strike Force mobile game (March 2018) FoxNext Games LA

[13]

mobile game (June 29, 2017) TinyCo (Jam City), Groening and his Curiosity Co. and animation studio Rough Draft Studios[33]

Futurama: Worlds of Tomorrow

The X-Files: Deep State mystery-investigation puzzle game (February 6, 2018) Estonia-based game studio Creative Mobile

[34]

Alien: Blackout mobile game (January 2019) D3 Go!, Rival Games

[35]

Storyscape - Fogbank Entertainment

- Triband

What the Golf

Fox Interactive (sold to Vivendi Universal Games in 2003) was 20th Century Fox's first video game division when it was founded in 1994 by former Time Warner Interactive executive Ted Hoff. Fox Digital Entertainment would be the second Fox video game division when it was founded in 2010, but it solely focused on making games for mobile devices.

Official website