THQ Nordic

THQ Nordic GmbH (formerly Nordic Games GmbH) is an Austrian video game publisher based in Vienna. Formed in 2011, it is a publishing subsidiary of Embracer Group. Originally named Nordic Games, as was the parent company, both companies were renamed THQ Nordic in August 2016 after the parent company had acquired the "THQ" trademark in 2014. THQ Nordic's core portfolio comprises assets that were acquired from other developers and publishers, such as from JoWooD Entertainment and its subsidiaries DreamCatcher Interactive and The Adventure Company in 2011, THQ in 2013, and NovaLogic in 2016. THQ Nordic has acquired and established several subsidiary studios, including Black Forest Games, Bugbear Entertainment, Gunfire Games, HandyGames, Piranha Bytes, Purple Lamp, and Rainbow Studios.

THQ Nordic GmbH
FormerlyNordic Games GmbH (2011–2016)
TypeSubsidiary
IndustryVideo games
Founded2011 (2011)
Headquarters,
Austria
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
  • Klemens Kreuzer (CEO)
  • Reinhard Pollice (director of business and product development)
ProductsSee List of THQ Nordic games
RevenueIncrease 161 million[1] (2022)
Number of employees
988[1] (2022)
ParentEmbracer Group
SubsidiariesSee § Subsidiaries
Websitethqnordic.com

History

As Nordic Games GmbH (2011–2016)

Former Nordic Games logo (2011–2016)

Nordic Games GmbH was founded in 2011 as part of the Nordic Games Holding group.[2] Within this group, Nordic Games became a subsidiary of Nordic Games Licensing, which was established in the same year.[3][4] In June 2011, Nordic Games Holding acquired assets from JoWooD and its affiliate companies DreamCatcher Interactive and The Adventure Company, including their brands and products. Nordic Games.[5][6] Several former JoWooD employees were hired by Nordic Games to work on sales of JoWooD's former properties, and Nordic Games Group's former publishing arm, Nordic Games Publishing, was integrated into the new Nordic Games to facilitate operations.[7]

Darksiders is a top product. THQ spent $50m making Darksiders 2 (...) We can produce a product of the same quality but for a lower cost. $50m is ridiculous, I can't afford that. Many of our IPs will only generate $50k a year, but it's still money. Sure, it's amounts that EA and the big guys wouldn't care about, but now we have hundreds of IPs, and in a few years we'll have a few hundred more. It will add up to something much bigger.

Lars Wingefors[8]

In April 2013, Nordic Games acquired all left-over properties from the bankruptcy auctions of American video game publisher THQ for US$4.9 million. Included in the deal were over 150 individual games, including the Darksiders, Red Faction, and MX vs. ATV franchises.[9][10] In June 2013, Nordic Games acquired the Desperados franchise, comprising Desperados: Wanted Dead or Alive and Desperados 2: Cooper's Revenge, as well as the game Silver, from Atari.[11]

In December 2013, Nordic Games launched Grimlore Games, a video game developer composed of former Coreplay employees, based in Munich, Germany.[12][13] In May 2014, Nordic Games acquired the intellectual property for The Moment of Silence, The Mystery of the Druids and Curse of the Ghost Ship, as well as the publishing rights to Overclocked: A History of Violence and 15 Days, from bankrupt German publisher DTP Entertainment.[14]

In July 2015, Nordic Games and developer Piranha Bytes announced ELEX, an original action role-playing game.[15] The following month, Nordic Games acquired a number of franchises from bankrupt German publisher bitComposer Entertainment, including the Jagged Alliance franchise.[16] In February 2016, Nordic Games acquired all intellectual property from Hungarian publisher Digital Reality, including Sine Mora.[17]

As THQ Nordic GmbH (2016–present)

In August 2016, Nordic Games changed its name to THQ Nordic GmbH (alongside Nordic Games Licensing AB, which became THQ Nordic AB), utilising the "THQ" trademark the parent company had acquired in June 2014.[18][19] According to Wingefors and THQ Nordic's Reinhard Pollice, the name change was undergone to capitalise on the good reputation of THQ's past, although they avoided naming the companies just "THQ" to avoid connections to THQ's more recent, troubled history being made.[18] In October 2016, THQ Nordic announced that it had acquired all intellectual property and assets from NovaLogic, including Delta Force.[20] In December 2016, THQ Nordic announced that it had acquired Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy from Mobile Gaming Studios, as well as Legends of War and War Leaders: Clash of Nations from Enigma Software Productions.[21] Sometime in late 2016, THQ Nordic launched Mirage Game Studios in Karlstad, Sweden.[22]

In February 2017, THQ Nordic announced that it, alongside Digital Continue, was developing a remaster of Lock's Quest with a tentative release in April 2017 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.[23] In March 2017, THQ Nordic announced a remastered version of Baja: Edge of Control, titled Baja: Edge of Control HD, a port of De Blob for Microsoft Windows, developed by BlitWorks, and Sine Mora EX, an extended version of Sine Mora, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.[24][25] Later that month, THQ Nordic also acquired the in-development Rad Rodgers, overtaking publishing on behalf of developer Slipgate Studios.[26] In May 2017, THQ Nordic announced a new game, Darksiders III, developed by Gunfire Games, which was composed of former employees from original Darksiders developer Vigil Games.[27] In August 2017, THQ Nordic acquired German developer Black Forest Games for 1.35 million and Swedish developer Pieces Interactive for 2.8 million kr.[28][29] This was followed by the acquisition of Experiment 101, the Swedish developer behind the in-development Biomutant, for 75.3 million kr in November 2017.[30]

In March 2018, after Activision's licence for games on Nickelodeon properties had expired, THQ Nordic announced a partnership with Nickelodeon that would allow them to re-release sixteen Nickelodeon games previously published by THQ.[31] In July 2018, THQ Nordic acquired German mobile game developer-publisher HandyGames for €1 million in cash and a performance-based earn-out of up to €1.5 million.[32][33] In August 2018, THQ Nordic announced that it had acquired the rights to Second Sight and the TimeSplitters franchise from Crytek.[34] In September, THQ Nordic acquired the intellectual property to Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, including the cancelled Project Copernicus, from 38 Studios, as well as Act of War and the Alone in the Dark franchise from Atari.[35][36]

In November 2018, THQ Nordic acquired a 90% stake in Finnish developer Bugbear Entertainment, including all of its intellectual property, for an undisclosed sum, leaving open the option to purchase the remaining 10% at a later point in time.[37] That same month, THQ Nordic acquired the Expeditions franchise, including Expeditions: Conquistador and Expeditions: Viking, and announced that it was working with series creator Logic Artists to develop a third game in the series.[38] In December 2018, THQ Nordic acquired the Carmageddon franchise from Stainless Games, which itself had bought the franchise in 2011.[39]

In January 2019, THQ Nordic acquired the rights to the Outcast franchise from Belgian developer Appeal.[40] In May 2019, the publisher acquired Piranha Bytes.[41] In August 2019, THQ Nordic acquired American developer Gunfire Games, which had worked with THQ Nordic on the release of Darksiders III.[42] Nine Rocks Games, an in-house studio based in Bratislava, Slovakia, and led by David Durcak of DayZ, was established by THQ Nordic in February 2020 to work on "shooter/survival" games.[43]

In May 2020, THQ Nordic and Koch Media, another Embracer Group arm, exchanged several intellectual property rights: THQ Nordic received Risen, Rush for Berlin, Sacred, Second Sight, and Singles: Flirt Up Your Life, while handing off Red Faction and Painkiller to Koch Media's Deep Silver label.[44]

After previously seeking player opinion on a possible Gothic remake as early as 2019,[45] THQ Nordic announced in March 2021 that it had established Alkimia Interactive in Barcelona to lead development on this project.[46]

THQ announced the acquisition of Kaiko, Appeal Studios, and Massive Miniteam (Pulheim-based porting studio) in May 2021, along with the creation of distributor THQ Nordic France SAS and animation technical division Gate 21 d.o.o.[47]

On February 24, 2022, THQNordic announced the acquisition of Frankfurt-based Metricminds, a motion capture and animation studio that has worked on THQNordic games like Destroy All Humans! Remake, Darksiders III and Remnant: From The Ashes.

In June 2023, Campfire Cabal was closed with all its employees being laid off.[48]

Controversy

On 26 February 2019, THQ Nordic's public relations and marketing director, Philipp Brock, and business and product development director Reinhard Pollice, hosted an "Ask Me Anything" (AMA) questions-and-answers session on 8chan, a controversial imageboard website commonly associated with child pornography, racism and hate speech, including the Gamergate controversy.[49] The AMA was announced by Brock through THQ Nordic's Twitter account, and after receiving initial criticism for using the controversial website as host for the AMA, explained that a person named Mark would "take care of the nasty stuff".[50] On 8chan, both Brock and Pollice interacted with users asking about controversial topics, such as "lolis" and "social justice warriors", garnering further criticism.[51]

After widespread criticism, Brock apologised on THQ Nordic's Twitter account, writing that he did not research the site's history and that he did not "condone child pornography, white supremacy, or racism".[52] Lars Wingefors, the co-founder and chief executive officer of THQ Nordic AB, apologised for the event in early March.[53]

Games

Subsidiaries

THQ Nordic operates several development studios, as well as two international distribution arms: THQ Nordic Inc. in the United States (established in 2012) and THQ Nordic Japan KK in Japan (established in 2019).[54]

Name Location Founded Acquired Ref.
Alkimia Interactive Barcelona 2018 [45][55][46]
Appeal Studios Belgium 2018 2021 [47]
Ashborne Games Brno 2020 [56]
Black Forest Games Offenburg July 2012 August 2017 [57][28]
Bugbear Entertainment Helsinki 2000 November 2018 [37]
Experiment 101 Stockholm 2015 November 2017 [30]
Gate21 d.o.o. Sarajevo 2021 [47]
Grimlore Games Munich December 2013 [12]
Gunfire Games Austin, Texas 2014 August 2019 [42]
HandyGames Giebelstadt 2000 July 2018 [32]
Kaiko Frankfurt 2014 2021 [47]
Metricminds Frankfurt 2001 February 2022 [58]
Mirage Game Studios Karlstad 2016 [22]
Nine Rocks Games Bratislava February 2020 [43]
Pieces Interactive Skövde 2007 August 2017 [29]
Piranha Bytes Essen 1997 May 2019 [41]
Pow Wow Entertainment Vienna 2019 August 2020 [59]
Purple Lamp 2018 November 2020 [60]
Rainbow Studios Phoenix, Arizona 2013[lower-alpha 1] [63]
THQ Nordic France SAS Paris 2021 [47]

Former

Name Location Founded Acquired Divested Fate Ref.
Campfire Cabal Copenhagen September 2022 June 2023 Defunct [65][48]
Foxglove Studios Stockholm, Sweden 2016 2019 Sold off [66][67]

Notes

  1. The original incarnation of Rainbow Studios was owned by THQ; it was renamed THQ Digital Studios Phoenix in February 2010 and closed down completely in August 2011.[61][62] After THQ Nordic, then Nordic Games, had acquired the Rainbow Studios-developed MX vs. ATV franchise from THQ's bankruptcy auction, the company opted to resurrect Rainbow Studios that same year in its original location with at least eight former Rainbow Studios staff members.[63][64]

References

  1. "Embracer Annual Report & Sustainability Report 2021-2022" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  2. Cifaldi, Frank (16 August 2011). "Nordic Games Saves JoWood From Insolvency With Acquisition". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 13 May 2014. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  3. "Årsredovisning – Nordic Games Licensing AB" [Annual report – Nordic Games Licensing AB] (PDF) (in Swedish). Embracer Group. 7 June 2016. pp. 2–3. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 December 2021. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
  4. Tach, Dave (22 April 2013). "Who is Nordic Games?". Polygon. Archived from the original on 23 January 2019. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
  5. Martin, Matt (16 August 2011). "Nordic Games acquires JoWood and The Adventure Company". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  6. Leo, Jon (17 August 2011). "Nordic Games Holding acquires JoWood and The Adventure Company". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 6 March 2019. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  7. "Group History". Nordic Games Group. Archived from the original on 31 July 2016.
  8. Calvin, Alex (24 September 2014). "Nordic Games on publishing big IP for less". MCV/Develop. Archived from the original on 18 August 2022. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  9. McWhertor, Michael (22 April 2013). "Nordic Games acquires THQ's Darksiders, Red Faction and more in $4.9M bid". Polygon. Archived from the original on 23 January 2019. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  10. Futter, Mike (23 April 2013). "'We've Been In Conversation With THQ Since January,' Says Nordic Games CEO". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
  11. Sarkar, Samit (24 June 2013). "Nordic Games acquires rights to Atari's Desperados and Silver". Polygon. Archived from the original on 20 June 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  12. Kleffmann, Marcel (24 November 2014). "Grimlore Games entwickelt SpellForce 3" [Grimlore Games develops SpellForce 3]. 4Players (in German). Archived from the original on 26 November 2014. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
  13. Handrahan, Matthew (24 November 2014). "Nordic Games opens new Munich studio". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 20 June 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  14. Suszek, Mike (12 May 2014). "Nordic acquires adventure games from Awesomenauts publisher". Engadget. Archived from the original on 4 January 2017. Retrieved 3 January 2017.
  15. Sarkar, Samit (2 July 2015). "ELEX is the next game from the studio behind Risen". Polygon. Archived from the original on 17 August 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  16. Parfitt, Ben (5 August 2015). "Nordic swoops for BitComposer licenses, including Jagged Alliance". MCV/Develop. Archived from the original on 22 June 2021. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  17. Calvin, Alex (3 February 2016). "Nordic Games buys Digital Reality IP including Sine Mora". MCV/Develop. Archived from the original on 22 June 2021. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  18. Frank, Allegra (16 August 2016). "THQ Nordic is ready to prove itself after a big name change". Polygon. Archived from the original on 27 October 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  19. "THQ Nordic AB (publ) – Interim Report – 1 January—30 September 2016" (PDF). Embracer Group. 25 October 2016. p. 4. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 December 2021. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
  20. Donnelly, Joe (31 October 2016). "THQ Nordic buys Delta Force and the rest of NovaLogic's back catalogue". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 19 July 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  21. Minotti, Mike (5 December 2016). "THQ Nordic acquires more franchises to prepare for the Nintendo Switch". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on 4 February 2018. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  22. Lemne, Bengt (18 January 2017). "THQ Nordic opens a new studio in Sweden". Gamereactor. Archived from the original on 3 May 2019. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
  23. "Cool Nintendo DS game Lock's Quest coming to PC, PS4 and Xbox One". Eurogamer. 17 February 2017. Archived from the original on 31 August 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  24. Miller, Daniel R. (5 March 2017). "Off-road racer Baja: Edge of Control getting an HD remaster". GameZone. Archived from the original on 26 February 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  25. Orry, James (3 March 2017). "de Blob is back with first ever PC release". VideoGamer.com. Archived from the original on 13 June 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  26. Batchelor, James (31 March 2017). "THQ Nordic acquires Slipgate's Rad Rodgers IP". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 25 December 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  27. Pearce, Alanah (2 May 2017). "Darksiders 3 Announced – IGN First". IGN. Archived from the original on 3 May 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  28. "THQ Nordic kauft Black Forest Games" [THQ Nordic buys Black Forest Games]. GamesWirtschaft (in German). 21 August 2017. Archived from the original on 20 June 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  29. Lemne, Bengt (28 August 2017). "THQ Nordic picks up Pieces Interactive". Gamereactor. Archived from the original on 29 August 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  30. Kerr, Chris (17 November 2017). "THQ Nordic acquires Biomutant developer Experiment 101". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 12 May 2018. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
  31. Frank, Allegra (21 March 2018). "Classic Nickelodeon games are returning, thanks to THQ Nordic". Polygon. Archived from the original on 5 November 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  32. McAloon, Alissa (9 July 2018). "THQ Nordic acquires German developer and publisher HandyGames". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 29 May 2019. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  33. "THQ Nordic acquires the German game developer and publisher HandyGames" (PDF). Cision. 9 July 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  34. Khan, Imran (15 August 2018). "THQ Nordic Acquires The Timesplitters And Second Sight Properties". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 5 October 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  35. Good, Owen S. (6 September 2018). "THQ Nordic picks up Kingdoms of Amalur IP from 38 Studios' wreckage". Polygon. Archived from the original on 11 November 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  36. Prescott, Shaun (19 September 2018). "Alone in the Dark is now a THQ Nordic series". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 24 September 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  37. Batchelor, James (14 November 2018). "THQ Nordic acquires Bugbear Entertainment and Coffee Stain studios". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 23 April 2019. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  38. Minotti, Mike (15 November 2018). "THQ Nordic acquires Expeditions series and starts on third game". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on 15 November 2018. Retrieved 15 November 2018.
  39. O'Connor, Alice (3 December 2018). "Smash! Bash! Cash! THQ Nordic buy Carmageddon". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Archived from the original on 23 March 2019. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  40. O'Connor, Alice (10 January 2019). "Cutter paid: THQ Nordic buy Outcast rights". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Archived from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  41. Handrahan, Matthew (22 May 2019). "THQ Nordic acquires Gothic developer Piranha Bytes". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 29 May 2019. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
  42. Romano, Sal (14 August 2019). "THQ Nordic acquires Gunfire Games". Gematsu. Archived from the original on 14 August 2019. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
  43. Romano, Sal (10 February 2020). "THQ Nordic establishes Slovakia-based Nine Rocks Games to develop shooter / survival game". Gematsu. Archived from the original on 14 February 2020. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  44. Wood, Austin (5 May 2020). "Red Faction, Painkiller, Risen and more get closer to home in THQ Nordic and Koch Media IP trade". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on 16 May 2020. Retrieved 15 May 2020.
  45. "Press releases - Is it a Gothic Remake? Not yet, but it can become one: THQ Nordic releases playable prototype on Steam, asks for the player's opinion". Gamasutra. 13 December 2019. Archived from the original on 14 December 2019. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  46. Kerr, Chris (11 March 2021). "THQ Nordic forms Barcelona studio Alkimia to create Gothic Remake". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 11 March 2021. Retrieved 11 March 2021.
  47. Sinclair, Brendan (11 May 2021). "THQ Nordic acquires Kaiko, Appeal, and Massive Miniteam". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 11 May 2021. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  48. "Embracer Group Is Starting to Close Studios After Losing Out on Deal Worth Billions". 4 August 2023. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  49. Klepek, Patrick; Walker, Austin (26 February 2019). "THQ Nordic Held Q&A on a Website Banned for Suspected Child Pornography". Waypoint. Archived from the original on 27 February 2019. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
  50. Phillips, Tom (27 February 2019). ""I do not condone child pornography, white supremacy, or racism"". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 28 February 2019. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
  51. Grayson, Nathan (26 February 2019). "Video Game Publisher Apologizes After Hosting AMA On 8Chan". Kotaku. Archived from the original on 27 February 2019. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
  52. Valentine, Rebekah (26 February 2019). "THQ Nordic holds AMA on imageboard known for child porn". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 6 March 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  53. McWhertor, Michael (4 March 2019). "THQ Nordic CEO apologizes for company's 8chan event". Polygon. Archived from the original on 10 March 2019. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  54. Batchelor, James (21 October 2019). "THQ Nordic expands to Japan". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 21 October 2019. Retrieved 21 October 2019.
  55. "Boletín Oficial Del Registro Mercantil" (PDF). Agencia Estatal Boletín Oficial del Estado. 27 October 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 24 January 2021. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  56. "Embracer Group's Q2 Press Releases" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 November 2020. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  57. Gera, Emily (13 July 2012). "'Gothic 4' developer emerges from insolvency as Black Forest Games". Polygon. Archived from the original on 17 June 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  58. "THQ Nordic acquires animated content studio metricminds". Gematsu. 24 February 2022. Archived from the original on 24 February 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
  59. Kerr, Chris (13 August 2020). "THQ parent company Embracer has purchased Metro dev 4A Games and others". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 15 August 2020. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
  60. "Embracer Group acquires Purple Lamp Studios". Embracer Group. Archived from the original on 19 November 2020. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  61. Corriea, Alexa Ray (20 December 2013). "Nordic Games developing new MX vs. ATV launching early next year". Polygon. Archived from the original on 23 July 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  62. O'Grady, Patrick (16 August 2011). "THQ closing Phoenix game development operations, cutting 48 jobs". The Business Journals. Archived from the original on 29 April 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  63. Crecente, Brian (15 May 2014). "MX vs. ATV Supercross is playable at E3". Polygon. Archived from the original on 23 July 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  64. Sinclair, Brendan (20 December 2013). "Nordic bringing back MX vs. ATV". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 23 July 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  65. Rousseau, Jeffrey (13 September 2022). "THQ Nordic launches new studio Campfire Cabal". GamesIndustry.biz. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  66. Wingefors, Lars (20 April 2018). "THQ Nordic Annual Report 2017" (PDF). Cision. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 May 2018. Retrieved 15 September 2019.
  67. Wingefors, Lars (27 August 2019). "THQ Nordic Annual Report 2018/19" (PDF). Cision. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 September 2019. Retrieved 14 September 2019.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.