Gaming

Mergers and Acquisitions in the European Gaming Industry: Recent Development and Future Prospects

Published

2 years ago

April 19, 2023

Reading Time: 4 minutes

The gaming industry has always been a captivating and dynamic sphere, presenting new titles, innovations, and technologies each year. This constant evolution keeps gamers, developers, and investors alert and engaged. However, the past year has been an especially eventful time for gaming studio consolidations. It is safe to assert that we have witnessed a whirlwind of consolidation unlike any other in the past.

The two largest deals in gaming history were disclosed in January 2022. Microsoft made a stunning announcement of its plan to procure Activision Blizzard for a whopping $68.7 billion. Concurrently, Take-Two Interactive declared its intent to acquire Zynga for $12.7 billion. These acquisitions have irrefutably proven to be game-changing moves in the gambling sector.

The acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft is a significant manoeuvre that will result in a gaming powerhouse. Activision Blizzard has created some of the industry’s most outstanding game titles, such as Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Candy Crush Saga. In contrast, Microsoft is the proprietor of Xbox. Together, the two companies can combine their strengths to generate an unparalleled gaming ecosystem.

Moreover, Microsoft will acquire access to Activision Blizzard’s vast array of games, which will undoubtedly fortify its already impressive Game Pass subscription service.

Merger and Acquisition Activities

Here are a few staggering merger and acquisition activities,

Embracer Group acquired Gearbox Entertainment, the developer of Borderlands, for a staggering $1.37 billion. Additionally, it also procured Aspyr, a porting specialist, for $450 million, and Easybrain, a mobile developer, for $765 million.
The European Commission has given its approval to Microsoft’s acquisition of ZeniMax Media, the parent company of well-known game studios such as Doom and Fallout’s Bethesda Softworks. This acquisition has taken Microsoft’s number of 1st party game studios to a whopping 23, cementing its position in the industry.
EA’s acquisition offer of $1.2 billion for Codemasters has been approved by its shareholders, signalling the deal’s finalization.
EA has also purchased Glu Mobile, a mobile game developer, for a considerable enterprise value of $2.1 billion, expanding its mobile gaming portfolio.

Primary Factors Driving the European Gaming Studio Consolidation

Despite the pandemic-fuelled boom in the gaming industry, game development remains a precarious undertaking. User preferences can be unpredictable, development costs have skyrocketed, competition is cutthroat, and creative ideas that seem promising at the outset may become commonplace by the game’s completion.

Even the most successful independent game developers or new online casino websites can face challenges while navigating the industry’s difficult terrain. Two such examples are Gearbox Entertainment Co. and Insomniac Games, which were previously stable but have since been sold in the past two years. Such developments underscore the need for strategic adaptability in a constantly evolving market.

Now, let’s take at the reasons behind this trend.

Investment Companies and Banks Spending Money

The present investment landscape are marked by a surge of funds from banks and investment firms, which has created an overheated investment environment. As we look ahead to 2023, there seems to be no indication that this trend will abate anytime soon.

Bigger Gaming Companies Making Bigger Impacts

In its Q2 2021 earnings report, Microsoft revealed a 51% YoY surge in gaming revenue. The pandemic has caused a spike in consumer spending on video games, resulting in higher revenues for several major gaming companies such as Tencent, Sony, Nintendo EA, L&L Europe Ltd Casinos and Activision Blizzard. This trend is projected to persist as people continue to spend more time at home and explore new sources of entertainment.

Studio Acquisitions Secure Content

Acquiring studios is an effective approach to obtaining content for subscription services. The ownership of original content has consistently proven to be a wise and enduring business strategy, and both Microsoft and EA have wholeheartedly embraced this notion. By acquiring studios, they can secure a steady flow of exclusive content for their respective platforms, ensuring long-term success.

Effects of Merger and Acquisitions

Like every other thing, the effects of everything are multiple and complex. Let’s take a look at a few.

Bigger Gaming Studios Have Resources and Money for Accelerating Growth

When a smaller studio is acquired by a larger one, it often leads to more rapid and frequent game updates than the smaller studio could have achieved independently. It is due to the greater resources and support provided by the acquiring company, including access to a larger team of developers, better technology, and more substantial funding. As a result, the acquired studio can focus on creating high-quality content while benefiting from the infrastructure and expertise of its parent company.

Going Corporate Can Imply Less Creative Freedom

The process of consolidation seems to be mutually beneficial. Acquired companies can ensure their sustainability, while larger studios acquire additional content to satisfy an eager fan base. However, there are also drawbacks to this approach. A market controlled by a small number of dominant companies may lead to limited options, creative stagnation, and increased subscription fees in the long run. It is essential to strike a balance between consolidation and competition to maintain a healthy and thriving gaming industry.

At a creative level, the uniqueness of smaller studios can be quickly eradicated when they are acquired by a larger industry conglomerate. It is precisely this originality that often serves as the most compelling selling point for their devoted fan base. When smaller studios are assimilated into a larger corporate structure, their creative identity may become diluted, and they may lose the qualities that made them exceptional in the first place. As a result, companies must strike a balance between the advantages of consolidation and the importance of preserving the distinctive qualities that made the acquired studio successful.

Independent Gaming Organizations Are Grappling to Stay Afloat

In the not-so-distant past, the gaming industry featured a substantial number of independent studios that could produce successful titles with fewer resources and greater creative freedom. However, when these studios encountered financial challenges and budgetary constraints, a wave of acquisitions led by large corporations became inevitable. The industry’s increasing emphasis on blockbuster titles and high-budget projects has made it increasingly challenging for smaller studios to compete. As a result, only a few powerful players are now dominating the gaming industry.

Author

Bart Crebolder

Bart is the lead content manager for Online Casino Groups.Thanks to his background as a journalist in the iGaming industry is he always first with news about online casinos. Bart is working for almost 10 years in the iGaming industry so you can take his fair casino reviews for granted!

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Gaming

THE BATTLE OF POLYTOPIA RELEASES NEW AQUARION SPECIAL SKIN IN LATEST UPDATE

Published

1 day ago

November 14, 2024

Adrienn Sarkany

Reading Time: < 1 minute

Midjiwan, the award-winning independent studio behind The Battle of Polytopia has today released a new Aquarion Special Skin, additional language options and balance updates to the recently reworked Aquarion tribe. Players will dive deep into the Ritiki Marshlands encountering a lost Aquarion outpost with the new skin known as “The Forgotten”.

Long ago, when the Aquarion Empire vanished beneath the waves. One remote outpost in the swampy atolls lost all contact, leading its inhabitants to believe they were the last of their kind. This forgotten tribe evolved in isolation, adapting to the marshy landscapes with squid-like appendages and unique abilities to command the swamp and its creatures.

Using the unique abilities of “The Forgotten”, players can build on water, summon giant squids, create speed enhancing bubbles, ride crocodiles, tame toads, and traverse their marshy terrains with ease.

In addition, the latest update to the game now offers expanded language options: Hindi, Indonesian, Malay, Polish, Thai, Turkish & Vietnamese.

Christian Lövstedt, CEO of The Battle of Polytopia, commented: “I feel that this skin is one of the best we’ve created and has quickly become my personal favourite. Additionally, we have added Bubble Tech to the Aquarion Waterways, making that tribe even greater. With expanded language options and new gameplay mechanics, we’re inviting players to dive into the rich lore and strategy that make the Battle of Polytopia truly special.”

To celebrate the launch of the new update, Midjiwan hosted an exclusive livestream event, offering fans a unique look behind the scenes, live gameplay, and discussions with the development team – the livestream is available to watch now: The Forgotten livestrea m by Midjiwan.

Conferences in Europe

Gamecity Hamburg connects Decision Makers from International Studios with new “Portside Game Assembly” Conference Format

Published

1 day ago

November 14, 2024

Adrienn Sarkany

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Gamecity Hamburg announces the premiere of the “Portside Game Assembly” (PSGA) for June 27, 2025. The new B2B conference format focuses on networking and the exchange of learnings between leading international indie game studios. Portside Game Assembly enables studio heads and decision-makers to exchange knowledge in a confidential setting in extraordinary locations of Hamburg, around the harbor – and on the water.

“The idea for Portside Game Assembly was born out of conversations with studio heads and managers from Hamburg and around Europe. Anyone navigating an indie studio through the games market benefits greatly from exchanging learnings with other decision-makers facing similar challenges. With a curated guest list and a focus on impulse talks and roundtables, PSGA will offer studio leads contacts and discussions which are highly relevant to their work and current developments in the industry,” explains Margarete Schneider, Project Manager at Gamecity Hamburg.

“The heart of PSGA is the conference, which will be held on a ship sailing through the Hamburg harbor and to which we welcome attendees from all over Europe and beyond. The conference will be complemented by a networking brunch and two evening events, which invite PSGA participants to meet the vibrant and diverse Hamburg games scene,” adds Dennis Schoubye, Head of Gamecity Hamburg.

The conference program for decision-makers at game studios

On June 27, 2025, the first Portside Game Assembly will kick off with a networking brunch.

Afterwards, the studio managers and decision makers will enter the conference ship, which offers three decks for keynote speeches, roundtables and networking, including a cruise through the famous Hamburg harbor.

Studio managers and decision-makers from the following studios are already attending:

bippinbits (Dome Keeper, PVKK: Planetenverteidigungskanonenkommandant) / Germany
Ghost Ship Publishing (Deep Rock Galactic) / Denmark
Indoor Astronaut (Unrailed 1 & 2) / Switzerland
Landfall Games (Content Warning, Totally Accurate Battle Simulator) / Sweden
mooneye studios (Lost Ember) / Germany
Maschinen-Mensch (Curious Expedition 1 & 2, Mother Machine, Codecks) / Germany
Overhype Studios (Battle Brothers, Menace) / Germany
Rockfish Games (Everspace 1 & 2) / Germany
Torpor Games (Suzerain) / Germany

Leads and executives from established indie game studios can register to take part in the Portside Game Assembly via our registration form.

Networking events as part of the Portside Game Assembly

The evening closing event “Games Industry Party” brings conference guests and other members of the games industry together for networking with cool drinks and snacks. Tickets for the Indie Networking Brunch and the Games Industry Party are available separately for non-conference attendees and will go on sale at a later time.

On the evening before, June 26, 2025, there will be an “Opening Mixer” with a panoramic view over Hamburg’s famous St. Pauli district in the Astra Tower, at Bytro Labs office. Portside Game Assembly participants and contacts from the games industry in Hamburg will be invited.

Registration for studios and participants

The conference itself is aimed exclusively at studio managers and decision-makers from internationally successful indie game studios. To enable a curated selection of participants, there will be no direct ticket sales, but studios can register for participation here: registration form.

The conference ticket includes the Opening Mixer event the evening before, access to the Networking Brunch, the main Conference and the Games Industry Party for a total of 189 euros.

Asia

Nazara integrates with ONDC Network to Launch “gCommerce” in India, Unlocking a new era of In-Game Monetization

Published

2 days ago

November 13, 2024

Adrienn Sarkany

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Nazara Technologies Limited, a leading diversified gaming and sports media platform, and Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) are proud to announce their integration to launch “gCommerce” – an innovative in-game monetization platform that seamlessly integrates e-commerce within games.

The integration aims to address a persistent challenge for Indian game developers: low in-app purchase (IAP) conversion rates and poor yields from advertising. Through gCommerce, Nazara and ONDC Network are reimagining game monetization by leveraging India’s thriving e-commerce landscape and providing developers with new, scalable revenue streams.

This strategic integration will allow game developers to monetize through an affiliate revenue-sharing model, earning a commission on every successful transaction initiated by players through the gCommerce platform.

Creating Value for Developers and Gamers

ONDC Network’s expertise in creating an open, interoperable network for digital commerce will enable Nazara’s gCommerce platform to connect with a wide range of sellers across more than 10 categories, ensuring a rich diversity of product offering for gamers. This integration enhances the user experience by allowing them to make informed purchases while they continue their gaming journey.

“We are excited to announce the upcoming launch of gCommerce by Nazara via integration with the ONDC Network, as it represents a significant step forward in our mission to empower game developers with effective and innovative monetization solutions,” said Nitish Mittersain, CEO of Nazara Technologies. “We are not only creating new revenue opportunities for developers but also enriching the overall experience for our gamers.”

T Koshy, CEO of ONDC, added, “Nazara coming on ONDC Network to launch gCommerce is a testament to the versatility of the Network in supporting various industries and use cases. By bringing e-commerce into the gaming ecosystem, we are paving the way for a seamless blend of entertainment and shopping that adds value for players, developers, and the broader digital commerce network.”

The gCommerce platform is currently in soft launch and will be rolled out to game developers starting Q1, FY26.