Blackbird was founded in 2007 by former members of Relic Entertainment and EA Canada. CEO Rob Cunningham and chief creative officer Jon Aaron Kambeitz had also been founding members of Relic, and had been on the development team for the 1999 RTSHomeworld and its 2003 sequel, Homeworld 2.[2] In 2010, after beginning operations, Blackbird began working on a game they considered a "spiritual successor" to Homeworld, entitled Hardware: Shipbreakers. The studio entered into negotiations with THQ, which controlled Relic, for adapting their original game into a Homeworld game, but were unable to secure access to the intellectual property.[3]
THQ went bankrupt in April 2013, and sold off its assets at auction. Blackbird and Gearbox Software were among the bidders for the IP rights to Homeworld; Gearbox won the auction at $1.35 million.[4] Gearbox allowed Blackbird to use the Homeworld IP and invested in the Hardware: Shipbreakers project, which was renamed Homeworld: Shipbreakers in September 2013.[3][5] In December 2015, it was officially announced for release as Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak; it was released on January 20, 2016.[6]
In August 2019, Blackbird announced that it had begun development of a new Homeworld title, Homeworld 3, as a direct sequel to Homeworld 2 released in 2003.[9] As of the announcement date, the game was still in pre-production stages, and a tentative release date of late 2022 was given. Many key developers of the first two Homeworld games will return to lead the development of Homeworld 3, including Blackbird CEO Rob Cunningham and Homeworld soundtrack composer Paul Ruskay.[10]
In November 2019, Blackbird announced that it had been involved in the development of Minecraft Earth.[11]
Blackbird revived the Shipbreaker name and concept with the space salvage simulator Hardspace: Shipbreaker, which was released in early access on June 16, 2020.[12]
From September to December 2021, Blackbird trialed the four-day work week with two of its teams, one of which was the team behind Shipbreaker. The trial was a success, with the majority of developers surveyed stating that it improved their work-life balance, wellness, and ability to complete work.[13] The studio intends to implement the four-day work week across all of its teams, beginning in April 2022.[14]
Citing the cancellation of several unannounced projects, Blackbird Interactive laid off 41 employees in August 2023.[15] In February 2024, Homeworld 3 was delayed from March 8 to May 13 in order to incorporate player feedback from the game's demo release. That same month, another round of layoffs took place.[16][17]
