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View Full Version : VU Games acquires Swordfish Studios

Wsv771
06-15-2005, 06:15 AM
http://www.gamercentric.com/index.php?page=viewnews&id=3384

Vivendi Universal Games has acquired independent game developer Swordfish Studios, according to an announcement by the company this morning. Known as one of the more highly regarded European developers, and more recently for Cold Winter, Swordfish has earned a number of industry awards, such as the 2004 Developer of the Year by the Independent Game Developers Association and the "Best U.K. Studio" at the Developer Industry Excellence Awards. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
Klade
06-15-2005, 06:43 AM
And another one bites the dust?
Varsity
06-15-2005, 06:48 AM
From self-publisher (as Rage) to owned-by publisher. :/
Rommel
06-15-2005, 07:11 AM
Never heard of Cold Winter. What else did they do?
StoneGut
06-15-2005, 07:17 AM
Cold Winter was a really good FPS for the PS2 released back in the middle of May. It didn't receive much attention (so I thought) but it played very well. Defentially worth a rental or 12.
eatme
06-15-2005, 09:05 AM
Ouch. To sell to VUG, you're clueless, desperate, or planning on bailing as soon as the check hits your account. Their troubles over the last few years are well-known, and they're most definitely NOT a company anyone wants to sell to right now. It'd be like selling to Atari.
Heretic Machine
06-15-2005, 09:22 AM
Ya, well most of the time the people in a position to sell do leave their companies afterwards. It's a pretty selfish move... but also highly profitable.
BloodAngel
06-15-2005, 09:37 AM
Ouch. To sell to VUG, you're clueless, desperate, or planning on bailing as soon as the check hits your account. Their troubles over the last few years are well-known, and they're most definitely NOT a company anyone wants to sell to right now. It'd be like selling to Atari.


Is that why Blizzard sold out to Vu? :rolleyes:
eatme
06-15-2005, 10:16 AM
1. That was a few years ago.
2. It was for 700 mil-- the people who got a cut never have to work again.
3. Blizzard is hemorrhaging employees, and has probably peaked. People are seeing how their employees got burned on WoW compensation. It's gonna be difficult for them to attract top talent any more.
Rommel
06-16-2005, 06:52 AM
People are seeing how their employees got burned on WoW compensation.

How did they get burned?
woodentaco
06-16-2005, 08:58 AM
I always hear about who you don't want to sell to, but are there any companies you do want to sell to? I don't mean this offensively at all; I'm really just curious.
eatme
06-16-2005, 09:49 AM
How did they get burned?

25 got laid off right after release, and most people didn't get bonuses because, you know, the servers were expensive and stuff. Never mind making what's sure to be the most profitable MMO of all time....

There's a reason so many ex-WoW devs are now working for NCSoft.
eatme
06-16-2005, 09:51 AM
I always hear about who you don't want to sell to, but are there any companies you do want to sell to? I don't mean this offensively at all; I'm really just curious.

Well, you always lose a lot of control, so you just have to weigh that against how much money you're getting, how much security, and so on. Every publisher has its down sides to varying degrees.

I hear Activision is nice to work with, so they'd probably be a good choice if you're planning on selling your game company sometime soon. :)