Microplay Software

Microplay Software

MicroProse was a video game publisher and developer, founded by Wild Bill Stealey and Sid Meier in 1982 as Microprose Software. It developed and published numerous games, many of which are regarded as classics and groundbreaking. In 1993, the company became a subsidiary of Spectrum HoloByte. In 1996 cuts led to Sid Meier, Jeff Briggs and Brian Reynolds leaving and forming Firaxis Games. In 1998, MicroProse had become a wholly owned subsidiary of Hasbro Interactive. In 1999, studios in Alameda and Chapel Hill were closed. In 2001, Hasbro Interactive sold the MicroProse IPs to Infogrames Entertainment, SA and MicroPose ceased to exist for a time. The Chipping Sodbury studio was closed in 2002, followed by the former headquarters in Hunt Valley, Maryland in 2003.

The brand was revived in 2007 when Interactive Game Group acquired it from Atari Interactive, formerly Infogrames. The MicroProse brand was licensed to the Legacy Engineering Group for consumer electronics. As of 2010, the MicroProse brand is currently owned by Cybergun Group, a manufacturer of airsoft gun products, giving them access to officially licensed weapons.