Western Technologies Inc.
From Sega Retro
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| Western Technologies | ||
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| Founded: 1978-09-19[1] | ||
| Merged into: Wanderlust Interactive (1997-02) | ||
Headquarters:
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Western Technologies, Inc. was an American video game development tool designer and game developer, most notable for producing the pioneering Vectrex and Microvision systems. It also operated a separate development subdivision, Adrenalin Entertainment.[2]
Company
Founded in September 1978[1], Western Technologies was an early pioneer in development tools for video game systems. Founded by American engineer Jay Smith (owner of Smith Engineering, a company consisting of only himself and used to patent his designs), Western Technologies first achieved success with their creation of the pioneering Vectrex and Microvision game systems, and additionally, found a niche developing audio applications and sound algorithms for early speech synthesis in a variety of software.
Initially, the company developed games for Western Technologies would later enter into a contract with Sega of America to produce portions of the Western development kit for the 16-bit Sega Genesis[3], and are also believed to have been responsible for production of the system's first-party light gun, the Sega Menacer.[3] Western also collaborated with third-party companies to develop original games for peripherals like the HeartBeat Catalyst, and even opened a separate game development division in September 1994, Adrenalin Entertainment.[2]
Western Technologies and Adrenalin Entertainment were acquired by Wanderlust Interactive in February 1997. In May of the following year, Wanderlust renamed itself Adrenalin Interactive to capitalize on the brand's greater recognition with customers. Ultimately, the new Adrenalin was unable to remain profitable, and was forced to declare bankruptcy sometime in the second quarter of 2000.