The Swedish gaming conglomerate Embracer Group, owner of Tomb Raider and The Lord of the Rings, announced on Monday plans to split into three companies that will separately specialize in AAA games, indie games, mobile games and board games, UNN reports with reference to The Verge.
Details
We are talking about three separate companies engaged in games and entertainment: Asmodee Group, Coffee Stain & Friends and Middle-earth Enterprises & Friends.
According to Embracer, these will be separate listed companies. The move will allow "each organization to better focus on its core strategies and offer more differentiated and clearer shareholder stories to existing and new shareholders.
Embracer Group, known for acquiring the rights to a staggering number of franchises such as Tomb Raider and The Lord of the Rings, is conducting an aggressive "restructuring" after losing a $2 billion partnership deal last year. Since then, the company has shut down several projects and studios, laid off employees around the world, and sold Borderlands developer Gearbox to Take-Two for a fraction of the $1.3 billion it was valued at when it was acquired three years ago.
The three new companies will be divided as follows:
Middle-earth Enterprises & Friends: This company, which will be renamed from Embracer Group, is described as a "creative center in the development and publishing of AAA games" that will retain ownership of Dead Island, Killing Floor, Kingdom Come Deliverance, Tomb Raider, and The Lord of the Rings IPs.
Asmodee Group: a new division that produces and distributes board games. The existing catalog includes such well-known games as Ticket to Ride, 7 Wonders, Azul, CATAN, Dobble, and Exploding Kittens. Asmodee also develops licensed board games based on The Lord of the Rings, Marvel, Game of Thrones, and Star Wars franchises. Embracer expects the spin-off and listing to take place "within 12 months".
Coffee Stain & Friends: described as a "diversified gaming organization" that will focus on indie games, mid-segment games, and free-to-play games. The properties under the management of this new company include Deep Rock Galactic, Goat Simulator, Satisfactory, Wreckfest, Teardown, and Valheim. It is expected that a stock listing will be available in 2025.