Editing Digital Anvil (section)

== History ==
Digital Anvil was founded in 1996 by [[Chris Roberts (video game developer)|Chris Roberts]], Erin Roberts, Tony Zurovec, Marten Davies, Craig Cox, John Miles, Eric Peterson, and Robert Rodriguez. The name derived from the team's idea to provide "hard work and high tech".<ref name="GameSpy">{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespy.com/articles/697/697083p9.html |title=GameSpy Retro: Developer Origins, Page 9 of 19 |first=John |last=Keefer |date=March 31, 2006 |website=[[GameSpy]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070609133006/http://www.gamespy.com/articles/697/697083p9.html |archive-date=June 9, 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Digital Anvil offered profit-related pay to encourage creative drive and give employees a sense of ownership in the company.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=The Great Escape |magazine=[[Next Generation (magazine)|Next Generation]] |issue=34|publisher=[[Imagine Media]] |date=October 1997|page=44}}</ref>

Digital Anvil was purchased by [[Microsoft]] on December 5, 2000.<ref>{{cite web |title=Microsoft to Acquire Digital Anvil |work=Austin Business Journal |date=5 Dec 2000 |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/stories/2000/12/04/daily9.html |access-date=20 May 2019}}</ref> One of the consequences of Digital Anvil's purchase was a reshuffling of titles being developed. ''[[Conquest: Frontier Wars]]'' and ''Loose Cannon'' were dropped by the company, eventually being picked up by [[Ubisoft]]. ''Conquest'' was released in 2001. Many of the Digital Anvil staff working on ''Loose Cannon'' were reassigned to the company's flagship ''Freelancer''. ''[[Brute Force (video game)|Brute Force]]'' (still unannounced at the time) was switched from a computer game to an [[Xbox (console)|Xbox]] exclusive. Of all the projects being produced, only ''Freelancer'' escaped major change. Co-founder Chris Roberts left the company after the Microsoft takeover, but he still worked as a consultant on ''Freelancer''. Digital Anvil also worked on the visual effects of the 1999 film ''[[Wing Commander (film)|Wing Commander]]''.<ref>{{Citation |title=Wing Commander (1999) - IMDb |url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0131646/reference |access-date=2023-06-29}}</ref>

For the next year, Digital Anvil was mostly silent, and many wondered whether any games from the company would see the light of day. Then, in 2001, Digital Anvil revealed a lighter ''Freelancer'' to the press. Although some of the more ambitious elements were dropped, this act proved ''Freelancer'' was not vaporware. In March 2003, ''Freelancer'' was released and immediately became one of the month's top-selling games. In May of the same year, Digital Anvil released ''Brute Force'' for the Xbox. The game also did quite well, setting first-month sales records for Xbox games. In November 2005, Microsoft redeployed the developer's employees to its [[Microsoft Studios]] headquarters. Digital Anvil was officially dissolved on January 31, 2006.<ref name="GameSpy" /><ref>{{cite web |first=Tor |last=Thorsen |url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/6140687.html |title=Digital Anvil melted down |website=[[GameSpot]] |publisher=[[CBS Interactive]] |date=December 1, 2005 |access-date=May 20, 2019}}</ref>

Hartman, the studio head of Digital Anvil at the time of its closure, was moved from Austin to Redmond as head of [[Turn 10 Studios]], authors of the ''[[Forza (series)|Forza Motorsport]]'' franchise.<ref name="Hartman" />