Indie team The Outsiders and publisher Funcom have been working together on the upcoming rhythm first person shooter Metal: Hellsinger for some time already, and now, they’ve confirmed that their partnership has been made much more permanent, with The Outsiders having been acquired by Funcom.
“The amount of talent, creativity, and originality The Outsiders bring to the industry is incredible, and we’re very excited to be part of their journey going forward,” says Funcom CEO Rui Casais. “This partnership will also allow Funcom to tap into the immense talent pool in Sweden. Their main focus will still be Metal: Hellsinger, but the new arrangement will make it easier for our teams support each other’s projects.”
Meanwhile, The Outsiders co-founder David Goldfarb – who has previously worked on games such as Payday 2 and Battlefield: Bad Company 2 – is just as thrilled about the acquisition. He says: “It’s definitely rare in the game industry to work with partners who are as level-headed, honest, and open as they have been with us throughout the development of Metal: Hellsinger. We feel really lucky to be able to join Funcom and deepen this already great connection while continuing to grow The Outsiders in new and exciting directions.”
It’s also been confirmed that The Outsiders is going to expand with more recruits, to aid in the development of Metal: Hellsinger and future projects beyond that.
Meanwhile, Funcom has also announced it’s going to open up a new studio in Bucharest, Romania, which will focus primarily on quality assurance. “The Romanian gaming scene is flourishing, and Bucharest in particular is home to many talented people in the tech and gaming industry,” says Casais. “With our continued growth and increased level of ambition, assuring that we have top quality QA is of the utmost importance. We are therefore very excited to be able to expand to this region with one of the most crucial parts of the development process and we are even planning on adding more functions to this studio over time.”
Metal: Hellsinger is due out some time this year for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, Xbox One, and PC. An exact release date hasn’t yet been announced.