Embracer to sell Gearbox (Borderlands) to Take-Two (Rockstar and 2K) for $460 million

Embracer continues to sell off assets - just now the Swedish gaming holding confirmed the sale of The Gearbox Entertainment studio to Take-Two Interactive for $460 million. And the entire amount will be paid with recently issued Take-Two shares.

Embracer will sell Gearbox. Buyer - Take-Two

In case you forgot who Take-Two is - it is the owner of Rockstar (Grand Theft Auto, Read Dead, Bully series) and 2K (NBA, Mafia, Bioshock). The agreement to sell Gearbox was reported by Kotaku at the end of February. Take-Two was considered the most likely buyer of Gearbox, since the companies had been collaborating for a long time - with the first being the publisher of Borderlands.

Embracer acquired Gearbox in 2021 - nominally for $1.3 billion, but the Swedish holding actually paid $363 million, and the remaining amount was tied to the achievement of various goals within six years after the deal.

Which studios and games will Take-Two get

Under the terms of the deal, Take-Two will receive Gearbox Software, Gearbox Montreal, and Gearbox Studio Quebec. As for games, the owner of Rockstar will receive the rights to the Borderlands and Tiny Tina's Wonderlands franchises, as well as Risk of Rain, Brothers in Arms, Duke Nukem, and Homeworld.

It was also revealed that Gearbox is currently working on 6 projects, 5 of which are continuations of existing franchises (Borderlands 4, Homeworld, and others) + one completely new IP.

Which studios and games will Embracer retain

Embracer will retain the Gearbox San Francisco publishing house, which will be renamed before the deal closes (1st quarter of the 24/25 financial year ending in June 2024). In addition to the single Gearbox studio, Embracer will retain Cryptic Studios along with Neverwinter Online and Star Trek Online, Lost Boys Interactive, and Captured Dimensions. The rights to publish Remnant, Hyper Light Breaker, and other unannounced projects will also remain.

Just a reminder, Embracer, which not so long ago was actively acquiring video game developers, is currently in a difficult financial situation and is actively restructuring its business - closing studios, laying off people en masse, and canceling games. Earlier, Embracer confirmed the sale of part of the American-Russian Saber Interactive for $247 million - along with the Ukrainian studios 4A Games (creators of Metro) and Fractured Byte.