Deep Silver Volition

Background

Deep Silver Volition Inc. (originally established as Volition Inc.) is an American video game developer founded in November 1996 after the splitting of Parallax Software (the creators of the Descent series), with their Champaign, Illinois office becoming "Volition" and their Ann Arbor, Michigan office becoming "Outrage Games"; both companies shared assets including technology and the PXO online matchmaking service. In its early years, the studio was best known for the FreeSpace series. Volition and PXO were acquired by THQ in September 2000, and later by German-Austrian congolomerate Koch Media in early 2013, following THQ's bankruptcy and the cancellation of InSane, a joint project between Volition and director Guillermo Del Toro. Following the acquisition, Volition was made part of Deep Silver and was renamed to its current name. Volition is nowadays best known for the Saints Row and Red Faction series, the latter of which was sold off to Nordic Games in April 2013, but was regained in February 2018 with the acquisition of Koch Media by THQ Nordic. The studio developed two less successful games with 2017's Agents of Mayhem and the 2022 Saints Row reboot. In November 2022, following the poor critical performance of the reboot, Volition was transferred to Gearbox Entertainment, another company under Embracer Group.

(March 19, 1998-)

Standard logo

Descent: FreeSpace - The Great War
FreeSpace 2
Summoner II
Red Faction II
The Punisher
Saints Row
Saints Row II
Red Faction: Guerrilla
Red Faction: Armageddon
Saints Row: The Third
Saints Row IV
Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell

Logo: On a black background, a shadowed, menacing white face appears from the darkness, turning to face us. A flash occurs, and the face becomes 2D, with a large black "V" appearing behind it with a white outline. The logo moves back as the text "volition" in a grungy white font appears below, and a trademark "TM" sign beside it.

Variants:

Beginning in 2013 with Saints Row IV, the "V" behind the face is thinner, and the "volition" text is changed to a cleaner, simpler font.
Descent: FreeSpace - The Great War (1998): The logo is superimposed over the opening movie, slowly zooming back. The "V" is over a black box outline, with a thick header on top reading "volition, inc."
FreeSpace 2 (1999): Same as the previous variant, except only the "V" appears at first, with the box appearing behind it after, this time simply reading "volition".
Red Faction (2001): After the standard animation, the face disappears and is replaced by a similar face wearing a hard hat. The logo becomes dark red.
Summoner II (2002): After the standard animation, a magical aura appears around the face, which gains Medusa-like hair.
Red Faction II (2002): The face rapidly zooms out until it reaches the "V" upon which it explodes, with the face of a dictator (likely meant to represent that of Chancellor Sopot from the game) showing up in the center afterwards.
The Punisher (2004): The Punisher's skull emblem flashes before the face appears and is immediately shot in the forehead, followed by more gunshots until it falls off from the "V". The text below reads "volition, inc.", with a registered trademark "®" symbol after "volition".
Saints Row (2006): An outline of the face shines before the logo appears, plated in metal. "Volition Inc" fades in written with the same font as that of the Saints Row logo (with a red gothic design behind everything), and sparkles at the end.
Saints Row II (2008): The logo appears in various graffiti styles until the standard logo flashes in, with "volition" to the left and "inc" to the right. The logo disappears into static.
Red Faction: Guerrilla (2009): We pan over the surface of Mars through a camera view, which moves erratically before we see a face-shaped formation, which crossfades to the "V" as the background blurs to white. The result looks similar to the Descent: FreeSpace variant.
Red Faction: Armageddon (2011): The logo from before emerges from the right on a white background, only to be blasted to bits by a laser beam. Its debris subsequently reforms into the game's logo.
Saints Row: The Third (2011): The logo is seen as an ornament on top of a purple car. The name "volition" is on the ornament's base.
Saints Row IV (2013): On a black background, purple-and-blue colored faces of several of the Saints flash and glitch in and out of the screen before the "V" appears and moves to the center of the screen, with the company name fading in below.
Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell (2015): The logo appears on a fiery background with flying sparks in a rusted, worn-out texture.

Technique: The CGI used to light the face as it centers screen, as well as the near-sudden flash.

Music/Sounds: An ominous choir, followed by a sudden bang as soon as it flashes.

Music/Sounds Variants:

Red Faction II: An explosion sound as the face slams into the "V", and an electricity-like sound as the company name appears.
Summoner II: A mystic, magic sound as the face changes into Medusa.
The Punisher: Gunshots.
Saints Row: A high-pitched noise for the formation and sparkling sounds for the sparkles on "Volition Inc".
Saints Row II: Hip-hop music, followed by flickering noises and static.
Red Faction: Guerrilla: The camera rapidly focusing, as we hear an unintelligible voice, and a loud droning noise as the logo appears.
Red Faction: Armageddon: The sounds of the laser blasting the logo.
Saints Row: The Third: Car engine noises.
Saints Row IV: Some dramatic music along with glitching sound effects as the faces appear.
Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell: A slamming noise as the logo appears.

Availability: Common. Seen on games by the studio, such as FreeSpace, Red Faction and Saints Row.

Legacy: This logo is a favorite among fans of Red Faction and Saints Row.