4J Studios


4J Studios Limited is a British video game developer based in Dundee, Scotland. It has a second office located in East Linton. Founded in April 2005 by VIS Entertainment alumni Chris van der Kuyl, Paddy Burns and Frank Arnot, the company is best known for porting Minecraft to consoles and handheld platforms.

History

4J Studios was founded by Chris van der Kuyl, Paddy Burns and Frank Arnot on 19 April 2005, twelve days after van der Kuyl's previous video game venture, VIS Entertainment, entered into administration. All three were previously employed by that company, of which van der Kuyl as president and chief executive officer.
On 13 November 2012, co-founder and studio director Arnot announced that he had left 4J Studios to found Stormcloud Games, another video game developer, alongside co-workers Andy West and Pat McGovern. In March 2018, 4J Studios invested a "six-figure sum" in Puny Astronaut, a Dundee-based developer founded by Abertay University alumni. 4J Studios' van der Kuyl and Burns subsequently joined that company's board of directors, of which van der Kuyl also became their chairman.

Games developed

YearTitlePlatformPublisher
2005Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred ChampionshipsPlayStation 2, XboxBethesda Softworks
2006'PlayStation 2Bethesda Softworks
2006' PlayStation 3Bethesda Softworks
2007'PlayStation 2, WiiBethesda Softworks
2008AMF Bowling Pinbusters!Nintendo DSVir2L Studios
2008' PlayStation 3Codemasters
2008Ducati MotoNintendo DSVir2L Studios
2008Banjo-Kazooie Xbox 360Microsoft Game Studios
2009Banjo-Tooie Xbox 360Microsoft Game Studios
2009WuggleiOS4J Studios
2009Texas WuggleiOS4J Studios
2010Perfect Dark Xbox 360Microsoft Game Studios
2012'Xbox 360Microsoft Studios
2013'PlayStation 3Sony Computer Entertainment
2014'Xbox OneMicrosoft Studios
2014'PlayStation 4Sony Computer Entertainment
2014'PlayStation VitaSony Computer Entertainment
2015'Wii UMojang
2017Nintendo SwitchMojang