Disney digs up Turok

After a busy April, a month that saw the acquisition of developer Avalanche and the formation of a new internal development studio, Buena Vista Games today said it has acquired the rights to Turok from Classic Media, the owner of the comic book series of the same name.

While Turok's main claim to fame was a string of first-person shooters from the now-defunct publisher Acclaim, the character was actually created in 1954 by Matthew H. Murphy. Turok started out as a normal game hunter, but stumbled upon a hidden valley filled with dinosaurs and saber-toothed tigers.

Buena Vista Games plans on reenergizing the Turok franchise, which hasn't seen a new game since 2002's Turok: Evolution. While BV Games didn't officially name any release date or consoles for a new Turok game, it did say it plans "to publish games for multiple console and handheld game platforms, including the next-generation successors."

New Turok titles will be looked after by the recently formed Propaganda Games. The Vancouver-based studio is composed of a bevy of ex-Electronic Arts employees. Propaganda Games is headed by Josh Holmes, Howard Donaldson, Daryl Anselmo, and Jorge Freitas. Donaldson was EA Canada's CFO for seven years, while Holmes, Freitas, and Anselmo worked on the NBA Street and Def Jam series. The studio is less than a month old, and this is the first announcement involving the 30-person team since its creation on April 19.

"Through compelling new technology, game design and graphics, it is our goal to take the Turok franchise to new heights," said Holmes, vice president and general manager at Propaganda.