Toys for Bob announced on February 29th that it has become independent from its parent company, Activision. Foreign media outlet Bloomberg also reported that Saber Interactive will leave its parent company Embracer Group and become a private company. As the industry continues to see layoffs and studio closures, some companies are starting to move away from their parent companies.
Toys for Bob is an American developer. Founded in 1989 and acquired by Crystal Dynamics in 1993. After becoming independent in 2000, it became a studio under Activision in 2005. Under Activision, the company has developed the action ADV game series “Skylanders”, starting with “Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure”, which features “Spyro the Dragon”. He was also in charge of the development of “Crash Bandicoot 4: The Multiverse” released in 2020.
Today, February 29th, Toys for Bob representatives Paul Yan and Avery Lodato announced that they have become independent from Activision.Reportdid. From now on, the company plans to return to its roots as a small but nimble studio, and is also starting to develop new works. Although Toys for Bob will be independent from Activision, the company and Microsoft, which is now its parent company, have been very supportive of Toys for Bob’s independence. The company is also reportedly considering the possibility of a partnership with Microsoft.
In January, Microsoft announced that it would lay off 1,900 employees from its Xbox division, Activision Blizzard, and ZeniMax Media.San Francisco ChronicleAccording to the paper, 86 staff members at Toys for Bob were also targeted. The studio became independent after undergoing large-scale layoffs due to parent company policy.
“Crash Bandicoot 4 Demote Multiverse”
In addition to this matter, there were also reports today regarding the “separation from the parent company” of two game companies under the Embracer Group. In June 2023, Embracer Group announced a reorganization program with a shift from its traditional business strategy. The company aims to reduce business risks and improve profitability, and has been closing or selling studios under its umbrella.
This time overseas mediaBloombergU.S. developer and publisher Saber Interactive is leaving its parent company Embracer Group and becoming a private company after receiving a $500 million (approximately 75 billion yen) investment from a group of private investors, according to anonymous sources. It is expected that this will happen.
andMy cityhas reported that Gearbox Entertainment (hereinafter referred to as Gearbox) is also close to leaving the group. Last year, it was reported that Embracer Group was considering selling the studio. According to an email allegedly sent to employees by Gearbox’s CCO, Dan Hewitt, at the time, there were discussions about transferring the company to another company or becoming independent (see related article).
According to Kotaku, Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford told employees that “a decision has been made regarding the future of the studio.” Details will be announced to employees in March, and it appears that the company is getting close to selling it to another company or becoming independent.
According to the magazine, Gearbox has decided to shelve several new projects in 2023 due to a lack of budget from Embracer Group, and will focus on the next Borderlands game. Also last year, Volition, which was part of Gearbox, was shut down due to Embracer Group’s reorganization program (see related article). Gearbox seems to have been influenced by the group’s policies since becoming part of the group.
『Borderlands 3』
Since the beginning of this year, there has been a series of news of layoffs and studio closures in the game industry, and some studios have been forced to make the difficult decision to layoffs based on decisions made by their parent companies. For example, on February 27, Sony Interactive Entertainment announced that it would begin cutting approximately 900 people, or approximately 8% of its workforce. This applies to employees around the world, including those at PlayStation Studios. Insomniac Games said in a statement that it regrets the layoffs, calling it “an unprecedented moment for the studio.”was tellingIn addition, London Studio was closed. While the industry as a whole is suffering, some companies, like Toys for Bob, have chosen to become independent from their parent companies.
