Crytek spent over half a million bucks to make sure the Homefront IP stuck around after the collapse of THQ and now has the potential to do anything with it - a position Crytek general manager of games Nick Button-Brown says will allow developer Crytek UK to finish its work for the sequel to Kaos Studios' 2011 game.
"The worst case scenario for us was that this situation meant that all that work just ended up being thrown into the bin, so we wanted to buy the IP to make sure the team can finish off the game they wish to make," Button-Brown said. He added that "it's now beneficial for us to have control over the IP's destiny," noting earlier in the VG 24/7 interview that current Homefront 2 progress is "great" and that the "last milestone was excellent."
Button-Brown also noted that such control would allow the developer to "be a little more open" about the game's development "than if we were working with a publisher," yet he would not comment on how this acquisition changes potential launch timing for Homefront 2. Previously, THQ pegged Homefront 2 for launch during the company's fiscal 2014, ranging between April 2013 and March 2014 - Button-Brown dodged the question on current launch timing, replying that Crytek "might change the release date that we haven't announced, and move this to another release date we won't announce yet either."
With a separate process slated to happen in the coming weeks that would see THQ's back catalog landing in the hands of bidders, indie studio teamPixel took to Indiegogo to crowdsource the funds to bid on one of the forlorn properties: Homeworld. The team's goal is to bring Homeworld to GoG and Steam, launch a mobile version of the spacefaring RTS called Homeworld Touch and develop Homeworld 3. To be clear, teamPixel already began work on its own space RTS that is inspired by the Homeworld brand, so Homeworld Touch would become an "official version" of sorts, should the company manage to buy the IP.
The studio's lofty aspirations start with a significant crowd-funding goal: teamPixel hopes to raise $50,000 by Thursday, February 7 in order to acquire the property. Former Homeworld developer Relic were purchased by Sega during THQ's auction process. Relic teased the development of Homeworld 3 in November 2008, though nothing came to fruition.
#stickjockey
If there's truth in advertising, then three weeks ago, 2K Sports was looking at changing its name to the singular form. Major League Baseball 2K was justifiably believed to be a dead series; the company had canceled online support for legacy titles like All-Pro Football 2K8, College Hoops 2K8 and Top Spin 4. Outside of NBA 2K—formidable though it is—the label was looking at no other presence in sports publishing for the foreseeable future. More »
#thq
THQ is no more. Some gathered their personal effects, and some—like Neal Pabon here—poured out a 40 in memory of THQ. For the record: it's a Saints Row 1 beer bottle. Which is to say, it's old. One can only wonder what that guy about 49 seconds in tastes, eww. More »
#saintsrow
If there's one defining item of the Saints Row series, it's the fact you can use an enormous dildo as a weapon. THQ has had a replica prop made up for a while now, but with the publisher closing down, there was a very real risk that it would end up in a bin or, worse, at an auction. More »
#thq
This afternoon, THQ CEO Brian Farrell and president Jason Rubin met with about a hundred of their staff at corporate headquarters in southern California. More »
#saintsrow
Koch Media owns publisher Deep Silver (Dead Island). It now owns both the Saints Row and Metro franchises, along with the studios that made them. Fans have every right to be cautious about a management change, but while Koch said in a media release earlier today it "will roll out future plans for each franchise in the coming months", Deep Silver has since tweeted the following: More »
#homeworld
It's easy to have lost sight of it amongst the more contemporary series flying off to new owners today, but for me, one of the most important prizes up for grabs in the great THQ auction was the fate of the Homeworld series, which even ten years since its last release remains one of the most beloved and respected PC properties of all time. More »
#thq
For all intents it happened late last year, but today the results of an auction called it: THQ, formerly one of the biggest video game publishers in the world, is no more. More »
#darksiders
One of the sad and somewhat odd outcomes of today's big auction of top games and studios from game publisher THQ is that no one—not EA, not Activision, not Take Two, not Bethesda, not Ubisoft... no one—made a bid for the action-game series Darksiders and Vigil, the studio that made those games. More »
Koch Media/Deep Silver has officially announced that it has secured the intellectual property rights for two THQ franchises: Saints Row and Metro. It has also obtained Volition, the Chicago-based development studio.
"These franchises hold a special place in the hearts and minds of anyone who loves exceptional video games," said Deep Silver COO Geoff Mulligan. "We're thrilled to usher in a new era for these franchises and are proud to welcome the visionaries and talented forces at Volition on board."
Although Deep Silver doesn't mention the cost of these acquisitions, the Saints Row IP and Volition Studio sold for $22.3 million, according to documents obtained by Joystiq, while the rights to Metro 2033 and upcoming sequel Metro: Last Light sold for $5.9 million. Deep Silver will elaborate upon future plans for each franchise in the coming months.
On January 18, South Park Digital Studios filed a preliminary objection to THQ's proposed sale of South Park: The Stick of Truth. THQ and South Park Studios entered into a Deal Memo, granting THQ use of certain South Park trademarks and copyrights, on June 29, 2011. THQ filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on December 19 and is being auctioned off today, January 22, at 3 p.m. EST.
In an objection filed in Delaware bankruptcy court, South Park Studios claims that the Deal Memo does not allow other parties use of the South Park IP, and even if the game does end up at a different company, THQ owes South Park Studios at least $2.275 million. South Park Studios "also reserves the right to exercise its option to acquire from THQ all elements of the games and related products under the Deal Memo."
THQ filed a reply on January 21, requesting that the court overrule the objection and allow the sale to continue, though says it is working toward a consensual resolution with South Park Studios. THQ argues that the license is exclusive and therefore transferable as THQ sees fit. As for the $2.275 million, THQ is "evaluating the amount that South Park asserts is owing" and plans to work with South Park Studios to resolve the issue.
All bids in the THQ bankruptcy sale were due by 9 a.m. EST today and the auction begins at 3 p.m. Hearing on the sale takes place tomorrow, January 23, at 9:30 a.m., with the closing on January 24. THQ will only sell assets individually if it receives bids of more than $60 million (plus a $10 million note) that Clearlake Capital Group is offering for the entire company. The auction has attracted the attention of EA, Warner Bros., Double Fine and others.
THQ is at it again on Amazon, this week offering a bundle of 19 game downloads for $25, including Darksiders 1 and 2, Metro 2033, Red Faction Armageddon and Guerrilla, Saints Row 2 and The Third, and four Warhammer 40,000 games. This THQ Mega Pack normally runs $50, putting it at half off now through January 26. Buying the games individually would run into the hundreds of dollars.
Last week Amazon hosted the Tantalizing THQ Medley, which was six games for $12. The THQ Mega Pack includes all if the games in the Tantalizing bundle except for S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl. It's like a message from on high - buy some THQ games already.
See below for the entire list of games included in the THQ Mega Pack.
#metrolastlight
GameStop pulled Metro: Last Light from its Impulse digital download service, telling GameSpot that the uncertain fate of its publisher, THQ, is the reason. More »
#thq
A bankruptcy judge yesterday did not approve the bidding procedures THQ proposed in selling off its assets, which THQ's creditors had complained was rigged to sell the whole thing to a private equity firm for $60 million. Now comes a report that Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment is an interested buyer. More »
#thq
Creditors don't expect to get everything they're owed when a company enters any form of bankruptcy, but THQ's say they're getting screwed in the publisher's arrangement to sell off its assets and start over. Three creditors have filed objections, reports Gamasutra, and so has the government trustee overseeing the bankruptcy. More »
#stickjockey
2K Sports hasn't said specifically when its infamous exclusive pact with Major League Baseball ends, but it's a good bet that day comes on Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013. More »
#warhammer
It's a strange thing, the video game industry. The people who publish big games will sometimes cancel, move, or overhaul them entirely. Nothing wrong with any of that, but one big problem is that along the way, some of those publishers will clam up. They'll refuse to give straight answers or talk about their plans. More »
No, "Everything Darksiders" isn't the name of a new apocalypse-themed cookbook from THQ, although that would be pretty sweet. What we're saying, if you'd listen for five minutes, is that Darksiders, Darksiders 2 and 11 pieces of Darksiders 2 DLC can all be purchased from Amazon as a Darksiders Franchise Pack for $13.19.
There is a catch of course, which is that the pack is A) download only and 2) PC only, so anyone without Windows and some phat pipes is in for a struggle. For everyone else though, this sale could at least facilitate an ironic way to ride out Friday's end of the world.
#thq
THQ has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. More »
Called it: there was no way the Humble Bundle was going to prevent bankruptcy. This is only Chapter 11, though; THQ will still be in business, so no need to worry.
#thq
Jason Rubin, the president of beleaguered publisher THQ, has penned a plain and, for the average consumer/fan, incredibly helpful summary of just what happened to his company today. More »
According to a statement released this morning, THQ has entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement with affiliates of investment firm Clearlake Capital Group "to acquire substantially all of the assets of THQ's operating business, including THQ's four owned studios and games in development.
#patricedesilets
THQ's bankruptcy filing confirms what we already knew: the company is working on two new games titled or codenamed Evolve and 1666. The latter is under the helm of Patrice Désilets, best known as the creator of Assassin's Creed. More »
#crime
New York State, whose "Operation Game Over" earlier this year banned more than 3,500 registered sex offenders from services like Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network, has booted another 2,100 from online gaming after bringing THQ, Funcom and NCSoft to the cause. More »
After the THQ bundle recently brought in over $5 million (split between THQ, charity donations, and "tips" to the bundle's organizers), the company's president Jason Rubin admits that he's looking at possible markets differently lately. Rubin's Twitter account says he "got the Linux message loud and clear" from the bundle, and he later told Polygon that "the message I took away from a large number of tweets and comments around the THQ Humble Bundle sale is that there are vibrant communities of gamers using other operating systems besides the dominant ones, and a company like THQ should not overlook them."
In other words, there's opportunity for THQ in selling computer games outside of the standard Windows ecosystem. Rubin has no plans yet, but he says the analysis has started, and the company is "committed to look at anything that makes sense" in terms of releasing titles on platforms other than simply Windows. In the past, THQ has released Mac versions of its Company of Heroes series through a third-party publisher, but it sounds like Rubin is considering a more widespread solution for cross-platform releases after this feedback. He says THQ should have more to announce soon.
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