Embracer Group Most of Saber Interactive, known for its Metro series, Gloomhaven and remakes of classic Star Wars titles. The buyer is a group of private investors under the Beacon Interactive umbrella, led by Saber co-founder Matthew Karch.
Embracer said the deal is worth $247 million, but after liabilities are taken into account, it will be worth about $500 million. Bloomberg’s . This is said to be because of Beacon as well as acquiring 4A Games and Zen Studios (developers of the Metro and Zen Pinball series, respectively).
As you can imagine, given these last points, the details of the sale are a bit confusing. Along with 4A and Zen, all Saber-branded studios, Nimble Giant (Star Trek: Infinite), 3D animation studio Digic, support studio Fractured Byte, PR agency Sandbox Strategies, Mad Head Games (), Slipgate Iron Works (Graven), New World Interactive (Insurgency series), and publisher 3D Realms.
Embracer depends on 34 Big Things (Redout), Shake (portable for transition), Snapshot (Phoenix Point) and Aspyr, the team behind the latest remaster of the original Tomb Raider trilogy, and Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection, came out on Thursday. The publisher also maintains Tripwire (Maneater), Beamdog (Mifforce), Tuxedo Laboratories () and Demiurge (Sega Heroes). Embracer-owned publisher Plaion will also retain long-term licensing and publishing rights for PC and console games in the Metro series.
Overall, Beacon covers at least 38 ongoing game development projects, along with some custom engine technology and game tools. Saber said he would save 14 games, including Killing floor 3. according to reporter Stephen TotiloBeacon is hiring 2,950 and Embracer is keeping 800 (for a total of 14,140).
Embracer CEO Lars Vingfors said, “Embracer can now cease all of its operations in Russia based on the board’s previous decision, while retaining many developer jobs under new independent ownership.” “At the same time, we retain key companies, valuable IPs and future publishing rights.”
Embracer bought Saber four years ago for $525 million, and it has incorporated some subsequent acquisitions into the division, including Demiurge and New World Interactive. Since last summer, Embracer has been on a major cost-cutting spree after a year (reported from a group backed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund) collapsed. There is a company closed and this 1387 people in the second half of 2023. It also canceled 29 unannounced games in six months last year. It is believed Transmission (of Borderlands fame) could be .
