Plans are to keep the Liverpool, England studio completely intact, along with its 160 staff members. They’ll continue to operate as a fully-owned subsidiary of Activision, and retain the Bizarre name. Games which are already complete or near launch such as PGR4, The Club and Geometry Wars Galaxies will be unaffected by the change.

According to Activision CEO Robert Kotick “Bizarre Creations is the leading independent developer with a proven track record in developing highly successful and influential original properties, especially in the racing field. They are one of the most innovative and creative studios in the industry, and we are very excited to welcome this talented creative team to Activision.”

Bizarre had already started to create versions of its popular Geometry Wars series for other platforms. The way I see it, this means that we’ll start seeing more of their titles pop up on other consoles too. They’re already “off to the races” (pun intended) developing a new racing game, along with a character game for Activision. Let’s hope that Activision really sticks to their word and keeps this talented development shop intact. I’ve seen enough mergers in my time to know that’s not always the case.

[via NEXT Generation]

If you’re a Nintendo fan, you’ll now be able to get in on the action. Sierra Entertainment today announced that Geometry Wars: Galaxies, a follow up to the frantic 2D game is coming for the Nintendo Wii and DS. Both the Wii version and the DS version will take advantage of the unique control schemes of each device. There will also be bonus unlockable content when you link up your Wii and DS via Wi-Fi.

In addition to a variety of new levels, the game will include a full remake of the Xbox 360 classic. The new game will also feature battle and co-op multiplayer modes, which I can’t wait to check out.

While the original series was developed by Bizarre Creations, the port is being developed by KUJU Entertainment, who’s also working on the highly anticipated PSP 2D/3D platformer, Crush. Geometry Wars: Galaxies should be available for both Nintendo systems sometime this fall.