‘The Lord Of The Rings’ Owner Embracer To Split Business Into Three

[ The company that owns IP rights to the Lord of the Rings franchise is dividing its business. Embracer Group has unveiled plans to split into three operations: games publisher Asmodee Group, indie gaming label Coffee Stain & Friends and Middle-earth Enterprises & Friends, which will house the Lord of the Rings and Tomb Raider … Read more

Take-Two Buys Gearbox Entertainment From Embracer For $460 Million

[ Video game publisher Take-Two Interactive Software has acquired Gearbox Entertainment, the company behind the Borderlands franchise, for $460 million in an all-stock deal with Embracer, the latest big deal in the video game business. The deal comes as Lionsgate is releasing Eli Roth’s theatrical adaptation of Borderlands in August. Take-Two said it expects the transaction … Read more

Xbox and Embracer’s layoff explanations aren’t good enough

[ Image used with permission by copyright holder The wave of layoffs that has happened over the past year in the video game industry is well-documented. Some of the biggest culprits are Embracer Group, which has laid off nearly 1,400 workers across several of its studios since the start of a restructuring program last July, … Read more

What the video game industry’s layoff wave means for you

[ Blizzard Entertainment Layoffs have unfortunately become a nearly nonstop occurrence in the video game industry over the past year. In 2023, over 10,000 workers at game studios lost their jobs, according to data from Game Industry Layoffs. In January 2024 alone, Kotaku reports that over 6,000 developers have already been laid off. Layoffs at … Read more

These news stories shaped the video game industry in 2023

[ 2023 was a roller coaster for the video games industry. On the software side, it was a historic year for new releases. We got everything from big success stories like Baldur’s Gate 3 and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom to memorable indies in Venba and Chants of Sennaar. But from the … Read more

We predicted 2023 gaming trends in 2022. Here’s what we got right

[ At the end of every year, there’s one article I always look forward to writing. I try to put the “Trends” in Digital Trends” by predicting where gaming is headed in the coming year. It’s a fun thought experiment that puts my expertise to the test as I try to pull together narratives and … Read more

The video game industry flew too close to the sun in 2023

[ Deep Silver For several years, some relevant mergers, acquisitions, or studio formations were happening in the video game industry every month. Companies like Microsoft, Sony, and Embracer Group went on shopping sprees, and studios many of us never expected to be acquired, like ZeniMax Media, Bungie, and Gearbox Entertainment, were respectively bought up. These … Read more