Borderlands Studio Gearbox Software is reportedly working on a deal that could see it sold off to another company. News comes from Kotaku who reached out to Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford, and Embracer Group, following ongoing rumors that the latter might need to sell off the Borderlands studio in the wake of its ongoing financial struggles. While representatives from Embracer Group have yet to respond to Kotaku it was just this week that Mr. Pitchford held a town hall with his staff promising a forthcoming update on the situation and that a decision has been made regarding the studio’s future. Meanwhile, Mr. Pitchford caught word of Kotaku’s coverage and provided the following statement.
Per Kotaku:
“I’m delighted that what we might be up to is interesting enough to people that you want to make a story about us for your readers. I’m honored and humbled that our company is a topic of rumor, speculation, and discussion. As always, we will be thrilled to share whenever we have projects to announce or news to share as we work hard towards our mission to entertain the world.”
If true, Gearbox’s departure from Embracer Group would mark the 2nd in as many days to be announced. It was only just revealed a couple of days ago that Saber Interactive had been purchased from EG by a group of private investors in a deal said to be worth $500 million. Embracer Group’s overextending moves to assimilate the gaming industry could be nearing an end, and perhaps its seemingly never-ending layoff announcements as well. As far as Gearbox is concerned it appears that regardless of the details of what may be in the works, brighter and better days could be ahead given this news, and the recent movie trailer reveal, along with the announcement of its Borderlands Universe plans.
Discussion (4 replies)
Join Discussion →What a mess.
"Uhh ... I quit!"
"No, you were fired."
Sounds like Embracer Group is in a financial bind and needs to sell off assets to get back on even footing. As romantic of a notion as it may seem, and spin it however they may, studios are not necessarily escaping the clutches of their evil overlords. The evil overlords are selling off the assets that bring in the least revenue (or lowest ROI).
Yeah, and depending on who buys who, it could easily be a situation of going from the frying pan to the fire, but in any case I'm hopeful for anyone that can get away from EG. I was impartial about them in the beginning but when the tens of thousands of layoffs and closures began happening I quickly made up my mind. I am aware that the main catalyst for those actions came from when a certain group of investors changed their mind with billions that were being relied upon but it just goes to show what this company was really all about.
If I had $500 mil, I'd take Eidos & Crystal Dynamics off their hands.