Remedy Entertainment has partnered with Annapurna Pictures, parent company of game publisher Annapurna Interactive. The deal will help the Finnish studio bring Control 2 to market.
Control
Remedy and Annapurna announced the partnership on August 29. Here are the key details:
- Annapurna will finance 50% of the development budget for Control 2 (the exact figure remains undisclosed);
- Remedy will self-publish the game: once Control 2 launches and recoups its initial investment, the studio will be entitled to a “greater revenue share” from sales;
- In return, Annapurna will receive the rights to producing films, TV shows, and selected audiovisual products based on the Control and Alan Wake franchises (the company will have a greater revenue share from these products);
- Remedy will retain the full IP rights for Control and Alan Wake.
“This agreement will ensure we can develop Control 2 into the best game possible, allow us to move into self-publishing for selected titles and expand our franchises to other mediums,” Remedy CEO Tero Virtala said in a statement.
The first Control game had a budget of €30 million and was financed 50/50 by Remedy and Digital Bros. The Finnish studio was entitled to 45% of the game’s net revenue.
In 2023, Digital Bros. said the initial investment in Control 2 amounted to €50 million. The total budget may have changed since then, especially given that Remedy acquired the full rights to the Control IP from Digital Bros. and its subsidiary 505 Games earlier this year.
As of June 30, 2024, Control 2 was in the production readiness stage, in which the company defines the needed tools, establishes the core team (50-70 developers), and finalizes the production plan. In its latest financial report, Remedy noted that it reached an “important milestone in delivering a build of the game that showcased several important features in playable form.”
Control 1 became a huge success for the studio, selling over 4 million copies globally and surpassing 19 million players in five years. In February 2024, Remedy announced that the game has generated €100 million in net revenue.