Black Pearl Software

Background

Black Pearl Software was one of the early publishing brands for THQ, mainly publishing sports games. It was founded in early 1993 and THQ acquired it months later. In late 1996/early 1997, it was discontinued and folded into THQ.

Contents

1st Logo (November 1993-November 1996)	2nd Logo (October 1995-October 1996)	3rd Logo (July-December 1996)

1st Logo (November 1993-November 1996)

Visuals: On a black background, a purple image of a pearl can be seen (which looks more like a crescent moon). Under it is "BLACK PEARL" in a funky crystallized font with "SOFTWARE, INC." in a sans-serif font below it.

Variants:

On the SNES version of Total Carnage, the pearl is shown on the right of the text and the logo is in a light purple-blue gradient color. Under the logo is "PRESENTS".
On the Genesis version of Time Killers and a Genesis prototype of Time Trax, the byline "A subsidiary of T•HQ,Inc." is shown below the logo. Plus, "SOFTWARE" is white and spaced to fit the width of "BLACK PEARL".
On the Genesis prototype of Akira, the pearl spins around.
On the Genesis version of SeaQuest DSV, "SOFTWARE" is absent.
On the Genesis version of Bass Masters Classics, the logo is shown on a wooden sign with "PRESENTS" below it against a water background. Under it is the copyright information.
On the Game Boy and Game Gear versions of Urban Strike and the Game Gear version of Jungle Strike, "SOFTWARE, INC." is replaced with simply "SOFTWARE".
On TierTex games for Game Boy (Including Madden '97 and NBA Live '96) and the Game Gear version of Madden '96, the pearl from the 2nd logo replaces this pearl.

Technique: Sprite animated graphics.

Audio: None or the opening theme of the game.

Audio Variant: On the Genesis prototype of Akira, a droning sound is heard.

Availability: Can be seen on Black Pearl games through the era.

2nd Logo (October 1995-October 1996)

Visuals: On a watery blue background, there is a dark turquoise pearl with "BLACK PEARL" in the same font as before, but larger, sharper, and in a white-light blue gradient color. Under it is "SOFTWARE" in the same font and style as before.

Variants:

Sometimes, the background is plain black.
On Mohawk and Headphone Jack, the logo is on a swirly rainbow background. Next to it is the Solid Software logo.
On the Game Boy and Game Gear versions of FIFA Soccer '96, the logo is completely purple.
On the Game Boy version of NHL '96, "SOFTWARE" is absent. Plus, the logo is smaller. When playing the game on Super Game Boy, the logo is sepia-toned.
On the Game Boy versions of PGA Tour '96 and Shaq Fu, the byline "A DIVISION OF T•HQ, INC." is shown below the logo.

Technique: Sprite animated graphics.

Audio: None or the opening theme. Ön Mohawk and Headphone Jack, a suspenseful note is heard.

Availability: Once again, appears on Black Pearl games through the era, including The Mask for Super NES.

3rd Logo (July-December 1996)

Visuals: Just the same logo as before but in 3D, but with some differences. The pearl is purple, "BLACK PEARL" is all light blue and looks clearer to read, and "SOFTWARE" is in a different font in spaced-out letters.

Technique: Sprite animated graphics.

Audio: None.

Availability: Appears on Bass Masters Classic Pro Edition for Genesis and SNES, and the SNES versions of College Football USA '97, NHL '97 and SimCity 2000.