Take-Two has purchased Gearbox Entertainment from the Embracer Group for $460 million as the latter has continued its efforts for cost-cutting following a planned $2 billion deal with Saudi Arabia-backed Savvy GamesGroup fell through last year.
The recent sale also comes three years after the Embracer Group bought Gearbox Entertainment in 2021 for $1.3 billion. The decision to sell means that the former no longer owns the latter's development entities, including Gearbox Software, Gearbox Montreal, and Gearbox Studio Quebec.
Take-Two Buys Gearbox Entertainment for $460 Million
(Photo : Take-Two / Screenshot taken from official website)
This is also true for the company's franchises, such as Borderlands/Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, Homeworld, Risk of Rain, Brothers in Arms, and Duke Nukem. These assets will now be acquired by Take-Two, which is the owner of Rockstar Games and 2K, among many other labels.
The closure of the transaction is expected to take place in fiscal year Q1 2024/25, pending customary regulatory approvals. Take-Two recently issued a press release where Gearbox confirmed that it already has six titles in the works, according to GameInformer.
Those games include five sequels, two of which are from the Borderlands and Homeworld franchises. Furthermore, the press release announced a new IP in development. However, the Embracer Group does retain other branches/subsidiaries of Gearbox despite the sale.
This includes Gearbox Publishing San Francisco, which is soon to be renamed, which has publishing rights to the Remnant franchise, Hyper Light Breaker, and other upcoming titles that have not yet been announced to the public.
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Furthermore, the Embracer Group is keeping Cryptic Studios, which is responsible for Neverwinter Online and Star Trek Online, Lost Boys Interactive, and Captured Dimensions. The press release noted that these companies will be "welcomed and integrated into other parts of Embracer Group in the coming period."
Take-Two's purchase of Gearbox comes as the two companies have had a long-standing relationship. The former has served as the publisher of the Borderlands franchise via its 2K label. The firms have also partnered on an upcoming Borderlands film as well as Gearbox's 2016 Battleborn, said IGN.
Cost-Cutting Efforts
For some time now, the Embracer Group has been gradually shedding several studios, the most recent of which was Saber Interactive. It has also made numerous cuts such as the closure of Saints Row developer Volution, the cancellation of an unannounced Deus Ex game, and the layoffs of more than 900 workers.
Following the announcement of the purchase, Gearbox has already started laying off some of its staff. Some of these include senior user research investigator Jewels Verne and PR manager Jennifer Locke.
While layoffs are a common thing to see after a merger between different companies, they are most usually seen after a few weeks or months from the deal itself, not a few hours after the closure of the agreement. After the purchase, Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford said that it was the "best possible scenario" for the studio.
He added that the new arrangement will ensure that the experiences that they have in development at Gearbox will be the best they can possibly be, according to GameDeveloper.
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