EA acquires Titanfall studio Respawn Entertainment for as much as $455 million
EA has just announced it has purchased Respawn Entertainment for over $400 million after outbidding South Korean publisher, Nexon. EA now owns the rights of Titanfall developer.
Respawn Entertainment is an American video game development studio founded by Jason West and Vince Zampella, who created and were responsible for the development of the Call of Duty franchise at Infinity Ward before 2010.
“We started Respawn with the goal to create a studio with some of the best talent in the industry, and to be a top developer of innovative games,” said Vince Zampella, CEO of Respawn Entertainment in a press release. “We felt that now was the time to join an industry leader that brings the resources and support we need for long term success, while still keeping our culture and creative freedom. EA has been a great partner over the years with Titanfall and Titanfall 2, and we’re excited to combine our strengths. This is a great next step for Respawn, EA, and our players.”
“We’ve seen firsthand the world-class caliber of Respawn as a development studio with incredible vision, deep talent and an inspiring creative mindset,” said Andrew Wilson, CEO of Electronic Arts. “Our longtime partnership is grounded in a shared desire to push the boundaries and deliver extraordinary and innovative new experiences for players around the world. Together, we’ve brought this to life in the Titanfall franchise, and now with the Respawn team joining EA, we have exciting plans to accomplish even more amazing things in the future.
As per the agreement, EA will buy Respawn for $151 million in cash, and up to $164 million in long-term equity over the next four years. Respawn will receive bonuses for achieving “certain performance milestones” for some of its upcoming titles through the end of 2022. These bonuses are tied directly to Metacritic scores for the studio’s in-development Star Wars game and the unannounced Titanfall 3. EA’s acquisition of Respawn is expected to be finalized by the end of 2017 or sometime shortly thereafter.”
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