The Embracer Group has announced the acquisition of Crystal Dynamics, Eidos Montreal, and Square Enix Montreal, along with a bunch of major IPs attached to those studios like Tomb Raider, Deus Ex, Legacy of Kain, and more. Given the magnitude of the acquisition, it’s no surprise that it’s generated as much conversation as it has since its announcement yesterday, and a big part of that conversation has entailed speculation as to what the future holds for those studios and properties.
According to the Embracer Group, the studios are working on a number of major upcoming games. Speaking during a recent presentation and Q&A with investors, the company’s CEO Lars Wingefors said that the studios have a “very interesting pipeline” of upcoming games currently in the works, which includes games based on “beloved franchises” as well as new IPs- which, of course, includes the recently announced new Tomb Raider game.
“Obviously, we are super excited about the new Tomb Raider game,” Wingefors said. “[But] it’s not only Tomb Raider. It’s also a number of very sizable AAA experiences in the pipeline, both based on beloved franchises that we will own as well as original IPs. It’s a very interesting pipeline.”
Wingefors added, however, that while the next couple of years won’t see any major new releases from studios like Eidos Montreal and Crystal Dynamics – given the fact that their projects are in early production – the future beyond that should be marked by exciting releases from those teams.
“The pipeline is generally broader beyond these two years,” he said. “There will be a few years now where there will not be as many big new games coming out, but there will be some amazing things coming through these studios looking further ahead.”
In the same presentation, Eidos Montreal studio head David Anfossi also confirmed that the studio has multiple games in the works, all of which are being built on Unreal Engine 5. Of course, Deus Ex fans will be desperately hoping for a new instalment, and based on the recently revealed collective sales figures for its last two mainline releases, Embracer will likely also want to tap into the franchise’s potential.
Again, though, it’s unlikely that we’ll be hearing about those games in concrete fashion anytime soon, so all we can do for now is wait and watch- and keep your fingers crossed that at least one of those new games is Deus Ex.
