NME | Music, Film, TV, Gaming & Pop Culture News
EA has officially completed its $1.2billion acquisition of developer Codemasters.
The US-based publisher confirmed the deal in an official blog post.
“We’re thrilled by this new opportunity to bring you even more racing games, more often,” it reads. “The union also unlocks the potential for us to create new innovative ways to interact with each other and enjoy our passion for racing games together.”
Some fans, however, are not as thrilled about the acquisition. Over on Twitter, many were quick to voice their dismay, and express their fears that Codemasters might meet the same fate as developers like Visceral, Bullfrog and Westwood which shuttered after their buy-outs by EA.
Check out some of the tweets below:
Studio death in t-minus six months…
— Divi (@DiviDivic) February 18, 2021
The kiss of death! pic.twitter.com/s5jwrh9r24
— H. (@SmajleeTweets) February 18, 2021
Dirt 6 – $89.99 CAD
Press Start – LOCKED – $5.99 CAD
Pick Your Car – LOCKED – $5.99 CAD
Pick Your Track – LOCKED – $8.99— Bryan (@HeyNavComm) February 18, 2021
Check it, EA absorbed another dev that used to make decent products and now it’s all downhill
— Brae. (@Braepil) February 18, 2021
— GTAman (@GTAman51) February 18, 2021
While some fans are concerned about Codemasters’ future following the acquisition, those fears may be allayed by the studio’s supposed independent status. EA executive vice president of strategic growth Matt Bilbey has reportedly told IGN that Codemasters’ studios will remain independent.
“We will be treating the Codemasters studios as an independent group for the foreseeable future, giving them all the support they need to deliver their much-loved games and exploring all opportunities for growth as we go,” Bilbey said.
“We’re incredibly excited about what the future holds for them and while they will remain independent, we will be there to pour fuel on their growth capabilities through the power of EA’s distribution.”
On the other hand, some fans remain hopeful and choose to focus on what could be instead. Popular streamer JackFrags, known his FPS content, is hoping for a remake or follow-up to Codemasters’ Operation Flashpoint series of military simulation games. The last instalment of this series was 2011’s Operation Flashpoint: Red River.
Check out his reaction below.
come on pic.twitter.com/7LYN2i1Qk1
— JackFrags (@jackfrags) February 18, 2021
Codemasters’ directors voted to move forward with the sale in January. Just a few months earlier in November, Take-Two Interactive, owner of 2K and Rockstar Games, announced it had reached an agreement with Codemasters’ board. At the time, Take-Two was poised to snap up Codemasters to the tune of nearly $1billion.
Shortly afterward, the board confirmed that it had “withdrawn its recommendation of the Take-Two offer”, and instead backed EA’s eventual acquisition. There was no additional information about why this took place other than EA’s valuation of Codemasters at $1.2billion.
Previously, EA announced it would release new racing games every year following Codemasters’ acquisition. The company already owns popular racing franchises like Need For Speed and Burnout. Codemasters’ resources could be put to use to bring a new title in one of those franchises to life.
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