Bend Studio celebrates its 30th anniversary with new official merchandise – PlayStation.Blog

This year, we are celebrating an incredible milestone of 30 years at Bend Studio! Time sure does fly by when you’re having fun. Since 1993, we’ve had the privilege to develop video games for three decades in beautiful Central Oregon. From the early days of puzzle games to the iconic Syphon Filter series, Resistance: Retribution, Uncharted: Golden Abyss, and Days Gone, we are motivated to continue the evolution of Bend Studio with our next game to go another 30 years and beyond.

Before we reveal our new official merchandise to celebrate our anniversary, read a few words from various members of our studio that have played a critical role over the years in creating the games we all know and love. To every past and present developer that contributed to a Bend Studio game, thank you for your hard work:

“As we celebrate Bend Studio’s 30th Anniversary, I am filled with a profound sense of accomplishment and pride. Reflecting on the remarkable journey over these past three decades I am truly grateful for the opportunity to witness the growth and success of the studio that has allowed me to work with an incredibly talented cast of team members that have all, in their own individual way, created the formative DNA that is the foundation of Bend Studio today.”

– Christopher Reese, Head of Bend Studio

“From Syphon Filter to Days Gone, Bend Studio has always excelled at creating compelling adventures in realistic worlds.  Bend Studio applied vision, grit, ingenuity, and technical innovation to bring a city to life around the subway station in the original Syphon Filter, and that same alchemy produced an entire ecosystem in Days Gone. I can’t wait for the world to see what this ambitious team has in store for us next.”

– Connie Booth, SVP Head of Internal Production, PlayStation Studios and Executive Producer, Syphon Filter

“As much I love the games that I’ve been fortunate enough to work on, Bend Studio to me has always been about the people I’ve met on this journey.”

– Darren Yager, Manager, Design

“I have been at Bend Studio for 19 years now, and while it has tripled in size, and some of the faces have changed, its strength remains in the talent and passion of its developers. We have accomplished more than anyone could have expected from a team our size, and it’s because we love what we do and we have a fierce desire to make memorable experiences for our players.”

– Darren Chisum, Tech Director, Gameplay

“After shipping titles on PSP, such as Syphon Filter: Logan’s Shadow and Resistance: Retribution, we rose to the challenge of adapting the Uncharted series to PS Vita as a launch title in Japan and the US. Being able to take an iconic franchise to create a new game with new characters on a new platform as a launch title was very rewarding and memorable.”

– Gerald Harrison, Director, Art 

“When I joined the Bend Studio team over 17 years ago, I was moving back to Bend, my home town. I feel lucky to be living in the town where I grew up–to have the privilege of working with such a smart, experienced, and creative team and at the same time being able to ski, bike, and enjoy the quality of life that Bend is famous for.  While developing Days Gone, I’ll never forget the first time I drove the bike along a ridge, stopped, and watched a spectacular sunset over the mountains where I grew up skiing and backpacking–it was a truly incredible experience to recreate the natural beauty out my office windows in a game!”

– John Hoffman, Director, Programming

“Happy 30 years (three decades)! I feel so incredibly honored and proud to be a part of this studio.  I’m looking forward to what we’re going to accomplish and wow the world in the next 30 years. There’s something truly special about Bend Studio and I am truly grateful to be on this journey with our dedicated, passionate, and extremely talented team!”

– Julie O’Leary, Senior Producer

“I feel honored to have spent the last five years at Bend Studio as it holds a special place in my heart, being the first game studio I’ve ever worked at. Everyone here has drive, compassion, and hospitality that has made my move across the country well worth it. Happy 30th Bend! I’m so excited about the direction we’re heading, and I can’t wait to keep growing as a dev here.”

– Laura Reilly, Programmer

“Thank you for celebrating this 30-year milestone with us!  For three decades, Bend Studio has strived to deliver memorable experiences through both thrilling adventures and captivating stories.  Our games represent our commitment through rich worlds, heartfelt characters, and immersive gameplay. As we embark on this next chapter of our journey, we promise to continue pushing the boundaries of gaming, and use our passion and dedication to bring you the best games we can.  Here’s to the exciting adventures that lie ahead!”

– Marlena Hanne, Senior Narrative Designer

“With more than a decade here at Bend, I am extremely humbled by the talent and ability of this team as well as the commitment of the studio leadership and PlayStation to the well-being and happiness of each one of us throughout the years. We are a family that is working towards a unified goal to create rich and rewarding experiences for both our fans and the members of the team. Happy 30th Anniversary to Bend Studio, I can’t imagine being anywhere else and I look forward to the next 30!”

– Nate Weikert, Supervisor, Design

A milestone of this magnitude deserves new official Bend Studio merchandise for our players to rep our new logo for the first time! Good news, it hits the PlayStation Gear Store today!

First, we have an original poster by Oliver Barrett featuring multiple characters across all Bend Studio games. Third person action-adventure games have been the bread and butter for our team across this amazing journey, so what better way to encapsulate our past games than with a poster featuring the characters that impacted us along the way. We are very proud of each game we’ve created during our 30 year journey, and this poster is a perfect way to highlight our games in one epic presentation that represents the history of Bend Studio.

Caption: Print size: 18” x 24”

Our main goal for this poster was to develop a concept that players will want to proudly display in a prominent spot on their wall, while providing that Bend touch. Oliver’s style and approach immediately drew us back to his work to provide a special poster to highlight the 30th Anniversary. If you remember, Oliver was also the one who designed the vinyl cover for the Days Gone – Original Video Game Soundtrack.

You’ll notice Deacon St. John speeding toward us on his Drifter bike with a trail of smoke behind him made up of characters from Syphon Filter, Resistance: Retribution, Uncharted: Golden Abyss, and Days Gone. If you look closely, you may see some nods to our unique location in Bend, Oregon too, but we won’t spoil it yet. On the left-hand side is a subtle timeline including all the games we’ve developed over our 30 years. This is a must-have if you’re a fan of any of our games!

Next up is an original Days Gone t-shirt design created in-house at Bend Studio. This unique design features Deacon St. John on the back of a black t-shirt next to the 30th Anniversary logo all in one slick look. Represent Bend Studio with a red colorway logo stamped on the front! Our new Days Gone t-shirt is a thank you letter to our community for the love and support you have shared for our game since we launched in 2019 on PlayStation 4. Like Deacon and Boozer with their Mongrels cuts, we hope you will wear this shirt with pride!

Pre-orders for both the poster and t-shirt are available today on the PlayStation Gear Store with an expected ship date of July!

If you’re looking to experience some of Bend Studio’s legacy titles to see where it all began, you can play Syphon Filter, Syphon Filter 2, Syphon Filter 3, Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror, and Syphon Filter: Logan’s Shadow on PlayStation Plus via the Classics Catalog right now!

Thank you for 30 years of playing our games and sharing your love for our worlds! Whether you’ve been with us from the Syphon Filter days, or recently joined our community from Days Gone, we hope you will continue to embark on this remarkable journey with us as we head into an exciting future at Bend Studio.

If you pick up the new merchandise we announced today, let us know on Twitter and Instagram by using #Bend30 to join the celebration with us!