The buyer of the studios is Project Golden Arc, a company founded by Arc Games Management, which is financing the deal with XD. Important rights Remnant and Fellowship are excluded from the deal.
According to its own statements, Embracer expects the divestment of Arc Games and Cryptic Studios to generate nearly $30 million after deducting all transaction costs. "This transaction supports our key priorities by strengthening our focus on strategic assets and core IPs in Embracer while improving profitability and free cash flow," says Phil Rogers, CEO of Embracer.
The two studios are being purchased by Project Golden Arc, a company owned by the management of Arc Studios. This is therefore an extended management buyout. The transaction is being financed by XD, a developer and publisher listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
However, various rights are excluded from the sale. For example, the rights to the recently released online game Fellowship remain with Embracer. According to the Swedish group, however, these will be transferred to the Coffe Stain Group, which will spin off from Embracer in December through an IPO.
The publishing rights to the Remnant brand titles have also not been transferred as part of the sale. These remain with Embracer and will be transferred to THQ Nordic in Vienna, which also holds the IP rights.
Arc Games, which was responsible for titles such as Star Trek Online, Neverwinter, and Torchlight in addition to Fellowship and Remnant, will continue to be listed as co-publisher for Remnant: From the Ashes, Remnant II, and Fellowship. Cryptic Studios was involved as a developer for Star Trek Online and Neverwinter.
