Gearbox Entertainment has enjoyed great success in recent years, particularly with the “Borderlands” series. Now the company, which is still owned by the Embracer Group, is about to be sold to Take-Two.
The Embracer Group has in recent weeks more than 1000 positions canceled and several studios also added to the sales list. After last already Saber Interactive from the parent company, the confirmation regarding Gearbox Entertainment now follows. A month ago, colleagues at Kotaku reported that a deal regarding the studio was about to close before graduation would stand. Now the parties involved have announced an agreement.
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Today we received the message (via BusinessWire), that Take-Two Interactive (“Grand Theft Auto” franchise) has reached an agreement with Embracer Group and wants to take over Gearbox Entertainment. The purchase is made with an amount of $460 million quantified. Full closing of the deal is expected in the first quarter of fiscal year 2025 (ending June 30, 2024), including regulatory approval.
Gearbox trademarks become the property of Take-Two
Take-Two expects the Gearbox takeover to further deepen the successful relationship with the “Borderlands” development studio. Go beyond the studio's brands, which in addition to “Borderlands” also includes “Brothers in Arms”, “Duke Nukem” and “Tiny Tina's Wonderlands”, became the property of Take-Two. The same applies to all upcoming brands that the team will develop in the future.
Currently at Gearbox Entertainment six projects are in different stages of development. Five titles are said to be sequels to well-known brands, two of which are games related to “Borderlands” and “Homeworld”. Meanwhile, a project should belong to a completely new IP. Furthermore, Take-Two is convinced that there are further options to invest in new productions or expand existing brands.
Borderlands soon on the big screen – Here you can see the first trailer for the film:
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Company management is enthusiastic about the approaching deal
Of course, the management teams of the two companies also commented on the expected takeover. Strauss Zelnick, CEO and Chairman of Take-Two, describes the pending deal as one “exciting moment” for the company. It is an opportunity to further strengthen “our industry-leading creative talent and our portfolio of proprietary intellectual property.” Zelnick particularly highlights the “iconic Borderlands franchise”.
“This combination improves the financial profile of our existing projects with Gearbox and provides us with the opportunity to increase our long-term growth by the entire resources from Take-Two for all of Gearbox’s exciting initiatives,” explains the Take-Two CEO.
“Joining forces with Take-Two Interactive and 2K will help Gearbox the next level to achieve,” explains Randy Pitchford, founder and CEO of Gearbox Entertainment. In addition, both companies have “repeatedly demonstrated their commitment to our engine of creativity, happiness and profit” in the past. […] I’m incredibly excited about what we can achieve now that we’re completely aligned.”
How will Gearbox Entertainment be integrated into Take-Two's corporate structures? According to the report, Gearbox will operate as a company within 2K. The management of the studio remains in the hands of Randy Pitchford. This includes the Gearbox studios in Frisco, Texas, Montreal, Canada, and Quebec City, Canada.
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