Is Embracer Group's acquisition spree a failure? Latest rumor suggests new studio targeted after Volition

Embracer Group has previously made headlines for various acclaimed studio acquisitions, but fans have scrutinized their recent actions. According to a new rumor, they might be in for more heat soon. According to Reuters, the major European publisher may be looking to sell the Borderlands studio off to interested third parties.

This rumor comes after their latest internal restructuring, which resulted in Saints Row developer Volition being dissolved. With Embracer Group looking to clear up its massive debts, this may not bode well for other teams under the publisher either.

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What does Gearbox Entertainment being put up for sale mean for Embracer Group's future?

The report comes from three sources close to Reuters. If true, this means another major third-party publisher will end up buying the American company and its subsidiaries in the future. This comes after Embracer Group acquired them in 2021 for about $1.4 billion.

So, it seems to be a short-lived change for the studio known for the iconic Borderlands series. At the very least, it is better than the fate met by Volition. The Saints Row developer recently went defunct after the publisher announced a restructuring to mitigate its massive debt. The studio's latest Saints Row reboot was wildly controversial among fans and did not sell well enough.

This move may have contributed to Volition's closure. But why did it happen to begin with? Over the past few years, Embracer Group has been going on an industry-wide studio acquisition spree and ended up buying many major game studios. These also include Tomb Raider developers Crystal Dynamics and Deus Ex developers Eidos.

In short, they own over 100 developers and employ about 15,000 individuals. However, one of their deals valued at around $2 billion fell through. The publisher now finds itself in debt. Making up for the loss has resulted in many project shutdowns, layoffs, and, in Volition's case, studio closure. While Gearbox is not in that position, it still begs the question of what lies in the future for Embracer-owned developers.

Will we see further axing of projects and studios? This would mean many under-the-radar franchises would be in jeopardy, like Shadow Warrior under PLAION, who now manages Saints Row as well. While the publisher has promised the GTA-inspired series will have a future under new teams, whether this pays off remains to be seen.

Even if things end up trudging along smoothly from here onwards, it will be an uneasy experience for fans of these IPs. As for Gearbox, it would not be surprising to see publisher Take-Two Interactive snatch them up as their 2K Games subsidiary has been co-managing the Borderlands IP since its inception.