Embracer Group continues its expansion by entering into an agreement to acquire several studios and IPs from Square Enix. The list includes Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics and Deus Ex maker Eidos Montreal.
The purchase price amounts to €300 million on a cash and debt free basis, the Swedish holding company announced today. The deal is expected to close before September 2022.
“We recognize the fantastic IP, world class creative talent, and track record of excellence that have been demonstrated time and again over the past decades,” Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors said in a statement. “It has been a great pleasure meeting the leadership teams and discussing future plans for how they can realize their ambitions and become a great part of Embracer.”
With this acquisition, Embracer Group will add a team of around 1100 employees across Square Enix Montreal (known for mobile games in the Go series), Crystal Dynamics (Tomb Raider), and Eidos Montreal (Deus Ex and Guardians of the Galaxy).
On top of that, Embracer will also receive rights to IPs like Thief and Legacy of Kain, as well as the back catalogue of more than 50 titles.
When the deal is closed, the US will become the Swedish holding company’s number one country by number of game developers, with Canada being the second. This will bring Embracer’s total headcount to over 14,000 employees across 124 studios.