Volition Will Now Be A Subsidiary Of Gearbox Entertainment

Like any industry, there is a lot of uncertainty in the gaming industry. Changes happen all the time whether they are concerning a handful of employees or entire studios. Probably no other year has had more shake-up in the industry than in 2022. 

From big acquisitions like the Microsoft-Activision Blizzard deal to smaller changes, a lot of things have happened. Many companies outside the big ones have also gone through a lot of change. One of these companies which are constantly increasing their portfolio is the Embracer Group, which is known for acquiring properties like Lord of The Rings.

The holding group has a myriad of studios and developers under its care ranging from Gearbox Entertainment to THQ Nordic. One of its most important developers is probably Volition, which is the creator of the recent Saints Row reboot. Apparently, this developer is going through a major change within the company.

Major Takeaways:

• Volition is moving from Deep Silver to Gearbox Entertainment. 
• It’s the first time Embracer Group has made such an internal transition.
• The holding company thinks Gearbox has the necessary resources for Volition to make better games.

Volition will be moving from Austrian game developer Deep silver and becoming a part of the Gearbox Entertainment Group. The Embracer Group released this info to the public in their most recent financial reports. Saints Row’s developer will now transition to become a subsidiary of Gearbox Entertainment. 

In the financial report, the Embracer Group talked about how this is the first time such a change has happened. Developers changing parent groups in a holding company isn’t uncommon, but Embracer group has never done it before. While talking about this transfer, the company said:

Going forward, Volition will transition to become part of Gearbox which has all the tools, including an experienced management team in the US, to create future success at Volition.”

So it’s pretty obvious that Embracer sees Volition as a better fit at Gearbox Entertainment and not Deep Silver. The mixed reception to Saints Row might have played a part in this transition. Embracer does seem to think Gearbox will make Volition better so it might have been a key reason.

Volition was previously under the Plaion parent group, of which Deep Silver is a subsidiary. Plaion is based in Germany and Austria while Gearbox Entertainment is an American group. So, it’s pretty obvious that Embracer wants to give Volition more resources in their American subsidiary. 

With how the release of Saints Row went, this is a welcome change from a fan’s perspective. Hopefully, this means that the next Saints Row game Volition develop will not be a mess on launch. But, only time can really answer that question.