Pandemic Studios

Background
Pandemic Studios, LLC was an American game developer founded in 1998 by ex-Activision employees Josh Resnick and Andrew Goldman. While originally founded in Los Angeles, California, a satellite studio opened in Brisbane, Australia in 2000. The studio was eventually bought by Electronic Arts along with BioWare (who they had allianced with) on January 7, 2008 - but subsequently shut down in late 2009 following completion of The Saboteur and EA's cutting of 1,500 jobs at its studios. While a core IP team to manage the Pandemic brand and franchises was subsequently established within EA, it has remained dormant since. Pandemic was best known for the Mercenaries and Destroy All Humans! series, in addition to the original Star Wars: Battlefront series.

1st Logo (December 30, 1999-2005)
Nicknames: "The Gas Mask", "Pandemic Mask", "Fear Itself"

Logo: On a black background, we see several film scratches and other artifacts flicker around, the word 'FEAR' in a grungy font briefly visible. A gray box consisting of a gas mask above and 'PANDEMIC' in Gill Sans below, a small trademark 'TM' symbol above. The film artifacts dissapear and the logo becomes yellow and black, with the url www.pandemicstudios.com appearing below.

Variants:


 * A shortened version exists, which starts when Roosevelt's speech begins and omits the url.
 * A still version appears on Mercenaries and Star Wars: Battlefront (2005).

FX/SFX: Static noise and objects flickering.

Music/Sounds: Static screeches and what sounds like someone calling for help, combined with an audio clip of Franklin D. Roosevelt's first inaugural speech during the Great Depression - "...that the only thing we have to fear is, fear itself.". The word 'FEAR' flashes on screen along with the speech.

Availability: Uncommon. Was seen on Pandemic's earlier games, starting with Battlezone II: Combat Commander.

Editor's Note: None.

2nd Logo (June 1, 2004, March 28, 2006)
Nicknames: "The Gas Mask II", "Pandemic Mask II", "Fear Itself II"

Logo: We see a heavily distorted TV broadcast with a lot of white noise and flickering, briefly showing the gas mask logo from the previous logo, until the whole Pandemic logo is seen and becomes colored, now shinier and having a backdrop effect. The trademark sign has also been replaced by a registered trademark (®) symbol. The gas-mask begins flickering, until the whole logo appears and becomes colored. Then it flickers and ends.

FX/SFX: The broadcast and noise effects.

Music/Sounds: More static noise effects, with the same audio clip of Roosevelt's speech, albeit heavily distorted.

Availability: Seen on Full Spectrum Warrior and its sequel Full Spectrum Warrior: Ten Hammers.

Editor's Note: None.

3rd Logo (June 21, 2005)
Nicknames: "The Gas Mask III", "Pandemic Mask III", "Pandemicolor"

Logo: The words "FILMED IN" appear flickering within static, following by "PANDEMICOLOR" in the center, which looks somewhat like the Cinemascope logo. Then we abruptly cut to the Pandemic logo.

FX/SFX: The flickering words.

Music/Sounds: Radio noise, which segues to a choir, which abruptly ends when the Pandemic logo appears.

Availability: Seen on ''Destroy All Humans! (2005)''

Editor's Note: None.

4th Logo (October 17, 2006)
Nicknames: "The Gas Mask IV", "Pandemic Mask IV"

Logo: We see an alien saucer fly over a rocky landscape surrounded in water, which is revealed to be in the shape of the gas mask as the camera views the top of it. The 'PANDEMIC' text appears below as it and the gas back are completely black, with a yellow box in the background. The yellow closes in around the logo as it moves back, forming its usual look.

FX/SFX: The whole animation.

Music/Sounds: A tense orchestral theme, which raises in pitch as the logo appears.

Availability: Seen on ''Destroy All Humans! 2 (2006)''.

Editor's Note: None.

5th Logo (August 31, 2008)
Nicknames: "The Gas Mask V", "Pandemic Mask V"

Logo: On a black background, we see a rusted circle with the gas mask inside. Several firearms are sticking out of the circumference of the circle, and the words 'PANDEMIC' and 'STUDIOS' are seen on either side.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Seen on Mercenaries 2: World In Flames for PlayStation 2.

Editor's Note: None.

6th Logo (August 31, 2008)
Nicknames: "The Gas Mask VI", "Pandemic Mask VI"

Logo: A yellow grenade falls down onto a dark background with faint outlines of a building behind it. More grenades pile on top of it as the background is fully revealed, some palm trees also visible. The grenades explode, demolishing the front of the building, leaving the Pandemic logo in its place as a helicopter flies by.

FX/SFX: The grenades and the explosion, CGI.

Music/Sounds: The sounds of the grenades falling, the explosion, and the helicopter.

Availability: Seen on Mercenaries 2: World In Flames for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC.

Editor's Note: None.

7th Logo (January 13, 2009)
Nicknames: "The Gas Mask VII", "Pandemic Mask VII"

Logo: We see an axe get thrown into a close-up of a yellow gate. After, a whole bunch of axes are thrown at the gate until it's almost completely covered, and we can see the surrounding stone walls. After a brief pause, yet another axe hits the gate, making it and the surrounding wall collapse, revealing the Pandemic logo behind it on a metal surface. A final axe is thrown at the logo, but bounces off.

FX/SFX: The axes being thrown, the wall and gate collapsing.

Music/Sounds: Axe-throws as the gate is impaled, the wall collapsing, a droning noise as the logo is revealed, and a metal clunk when the last axe hits it.

Availability: Seen on The Lord of the Rings: Conquest for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC.

Editor's Note: None.

8th Logo (January 13, 2009)
Nicknames: "The Gas Mask VIII", "Pandemic Mask VIII"

Logo: We see the logo from before (without its box) in white flicker around on a brown background with film scratches appearing across, similar to the 1st logo.

FX/SFX: The flickering.

Music/Sounds: The sound of a film projector.

Availability: Seen on The Lord of the Rings: Conquest for Nintendo DS.

Editor's Note: None.

9th Logo (November 19, 2009)
Nicknames: "The Gas Mask IX", "Pandemic Mask IX"

Logo: Panning down from the game's EA logo on a brown, crumpled-paper surface, a thick black line paints itself downward, with two other red lines coming from the left and right. The top line, coming from the left, contains the gas mask inside, and the smaller bottom line, coming from the right, houses the 'PANDEMIC' text, and splatters when it finishes painting. An intricate pattern appears behind the mask, and the right side of the box containing 'PANDEMIC' splatters.

FX/SFX: The movement of surface and red bands.

Music/Sounds: Gunfire heard when the logo forms.

Availability: Seen on The Saboteur.

Editor's Note: None.