Video games is above all else a business. Games are made for a profit, or at the very least are attempted to make a profit, and as such, businesses can go out of business for not making the right moves. This is what happened to long-standing publisher THQ. They filed for bankruptcy in 2012, and had its IPs scattered because of it. The only remnant left of the former company is now THQ Nordic, who has had some success since its birth. And now, it’s trying to get the band back together.
For the company has bought Koch Media. Koch Media is the owner of Deep Silver, Volition Studios, and Dambuster Studios. While that may not meaning anything per se, it’s what these teams has IP wise that makes it interesting. THQ Nordic had the rights to the Red Faction franchise, but the team that made it was Volition. What’s more, Volition also has the rights to Saints Row, which was one of the most successful franchises under THQ.
What’s more, Deep Silver is the team behind the Dead Island and Metro series, and now all those belong to THQ Nordic now. It’s unclear at present whether there will be a “shakeup” via the acquisitions, but, things could certain get bigger and better for those who have been acquired:
“Koch Media has a long history of profitability despite losses incurred from some less successful game releases,” says THQ Nordic CEO, Lars Wingefors.
“THQ Nordic is convinced that the development studios of Deep Silver as part of THQ Nordic will successfully deliver at least four ongoing AAA game projects including Metro Exodus as well as the next Volition Studio AAA release and the next Dambuster Studio AAA release, together with a number of other game development and publishing titles.”
It’s going to be very interesting to see what happens next with all of these teams.
