The creators of Expeditions, SnowRunner, Dakar Desert Rally and more will now be part of Beacon Interactive.
Images: Saber/Beacon/Embracer
Embracer Group’s days of purchasing studios, publishers and franchises like they were on a buy-on-get-on-free deal are seemingly long gone. Following a restructuring plan – read, redundancies – it has now divested most of its interest in Saber Interactive.
Announced this morning (14th March 2024) Saber’s original co-founder Matthew Karch will now purchase most assets from Embracer for $247 million, now as director of Beacon Interactive.
This includes all Saber-branded studios. Consequently, the recently released Expeditions: A MudRunner Game, plus SnowRunner and Dakar Desert Rally, now sit under new, but familiar, ownership.
Dakar Desert Rally, by Saber Porto, was released in October 2022. Despite showing early promise, subsequent updates, features and DLC were slow to arrive. Support was formerly ended in January, only for it to be reinstated days later to fix several bugs with the USA Tour DLC.
SnowRunner, however, has been a runaway success, selling over 12 million units. Earlier this year, it was announced that a fourth year of DLC was on the way, despite the overlap with the studio’s newest title, Expeditions.
Namely, Italian studio 34 Big Things. It was responsible for futuristic racing games Redout and Redout 2 and is currently working on an as-yet-unveiled “AA game” based upon a “controversial and iconic IP”, according to Lars Wingefors, co-founder and Group CEO of Embracer.
Tuxedo Labs (Teardown), Tripwire (Road Redemption) and Demiurge (Rocket League Side Swipe) have also been split from Saber and remain under Embracer’s stewardship.
Other racing game properties still under the group include THQ Nordic, where Rainbow Studios (MX vs ATV Legends) and Bugbear Entertainment (Wreckfest) sit, and Plaion, where Milestone resides (Hot Wheels, Ride, MotoGP).
“I am pleased that we have found a win-win solution for Embracer and the parts of Saber that now will leave us,” said Wingefors.
“This transaction puts both companies in a stronger position to thrive going forward. Embracer is now able to discontinue all operations in Russia, according to a previous board decision, while safeguarding many developer jobs under new independent ownership.”
“This divestment leaves both parties in much better positions to grow our respective businesses,” said Matthew Karch.
“I will continue to remain a large, long-term shareholder of Embracer and we will remain partners on several ongoing and future projects. This transaction also safeguards the livelihoods of hundreds of professionals, many of whom I have worked with for over two decades.”
Which of Saber Interactive/Porto’s recent driving games have you enjoyed the most? Expeditions, SnowRunner or Dakar? Let us know in the comments below or via X: @OverTake_gg.
Images: Saber/Beacon/Embracer
Embracer Group’s days of purchasing studios, publishers and franchises like they were on a buy-on-get-on-free deal are seemingly long gone. Following a restructuring plan – read, redundancies – it has now divested most of its interest in Saber Interactive.
Announced this morning (14th March 2024) Saber’s original co-founder Matthew Karch will now purchase most assets from Embracer for $247 million, now as director of Beacon Interactive.
This includes all Saber-branded studios. Consequently, the recently released Expeditions: A MudRunner Game, plus SnowRunner and Dakar Desert Rally, now sit under new, but familiar, ownership.
Dakar Desert Rally, by Saber Porto, was released in October 2022. Despite showing early promise, subsequent updates, features and DLC were slow to arrive. Support was formerly ended in January, only for it to be reinstated days later to fix several bugs with the USA Tour DLC.
SnowRunner, however, has been a runaway success, selling over 12 million units. Earlier this year, it was announced that a fourth year of DLC was on the way, despite the overlap with the studio’s newest title, Expeditions.
Redout Developer Remains
The Swedish conglomerate, however, will hold back what it described as a handful of “cash-flow positive” projects.Namely, Italian studio 34 Big Things. It was responsible for futuristic racing games Redout and Redout 2 and is currently working on an as-yet-unveiled “AA game” based upon a “controversial and iconic IP”, according to Lars Wingefors, co-founder and Group CEO of Embracer.
Tuxedo Labs (Teardown), Tripwire (Road Redemption) and Demiurge (Rocket League Side Swipe) have also been split from Saber and remain under Embracer’s stewardship.
Other racing game properties still under the group include THQ Nordic, where Rainbow Studios (MX vs ATV Legends) and Bugbear Entertainment (Wreckfest) sit, and Plaion, where Milestone resides (Hot Wheels, Ride, MotoGP).
“I am pleased that we have found a win-win solution for Embracer and the parts of Saber that now will leave us,” said Wingefors.
“This transaction puts both companies in a stronger position to thrive going forward. Embracer is now able to discontinue all operations in Russia, according to a previous board decision, while safeguarding many developer jobs under new independent ownership.”
“This divestment leaves both parties in much better positions to grow our respective businesses,” said Matthew Karch.
“I will continue to remain a large, long-term shareholder of Embracer and we will remain partners on several ongoing and future projects. This transaction also safeguards the livelihoods of hundreds of professionals, many of whom I have worked with for over two decades.”
Which of Saber Interactive/Porto’s recent driving games have you enjoyed the most? Expeditions, SnowRunner or Dakar? Let us know in the comments below or via X: @OverTake_gg.
