A Bloomberg Report says Swedish holding company Embracer Group has closed a deal worth up to $500 million to sell its Saber Interactive division to a group of private investors. According to the report, the deal will make Saber Interactive a private company with around 3,500 employees.
Embracer bought Saber Interactive in 2020 at the height of its wave of acquisitions. It was designated the fifth operational group under Embracer's Corporate structure and currently serves as the parent company of numerous other studios, including 4A Games, Aspyr, Beamdog, New World Interactive, Slipgate Ironworks and Tripwire.
But Embracer ran into trouble in May 2023 when a $2 billion investment deal, reportedly with Saudi Arabia's Savvy Games Group, fell through. Since then, the company has laid off hundreds of employees and closed several studios, in some cases — such as with Timesplitter's studio Free Radical Design — after failing to find potential new owners.
While no specific studios were mentioned, Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors hinted that deals were in the works in its most recent quarterly financial report. “Embracer still has several larger structured divestiture processes underway that could strengthen our balance sheet and further reduce capital expenditures [capital expenditure]said Wingefors. “The processes are at a mature stage.”
Regrettably, he also pointed to possible further layoffs at companies that are ultimately sold: “Some companies may initiate restructuring before a divestment is announced.”
Saber is currently working on some high-profile but seemingly difficult games: a remake of Knights of the Old Republic, which Bloomberg says is still in development, although information is lacking as it was “delayed indefinitely” in 2022, and Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, which was delayed in November 2023 to the second half of 2024, a delay that could potentially be up to a full year.
Embracer is also reportedly looking to sell at least one other major studio, Gearbox, which it acquired in 2021 in a deal worth up to $1.3 billion. However, there was no public movement on this front Kotaku reported today that a sale is nearing completion.
It's not clear whether Saber Interactive's sale will include some or all of the studios the company currently controls as part of Embracer, although the Bloomberg report says the deal includes an option for other studios to participate in the sale. Embracer and Saber Interactive declined to comment.
