The Embracer Group has acquired the cross-media IP rights for The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, and other Middle-earth-related works.
As part of its recent flurry of acquisitions, the company confirms it has also acquired Tuxedo Labs and Singtrix.
Freemode will become Embracer's 11th operating group, and will also encapsulate a number of recently announced acquisitions.
Though recent reports have claimed that Eidos Montreal is considering going back to Deus Ex, the studio seems to have other things in the pipeline before that.
Saudi Arabia has been diversifying its economy out of a dependency on oil through its investments in other areas, including video games.
Instead, the money raised by the sale will be used to strengthen the company's core gaming business segment and realign its focus for its overseas consumers.
Dubbed the Embracer Games Archive, the archive already has over 50,000 games, consoles, and accessories. The archives are also accepting contributions.
Tarsier Studios, developer of acclaimed horror platformer series Little Nightmares, seems to be ready to unveil its next title.
Gearbox has nine AAA games in the works, according to parent company Embracer Group, though it's unclear if the games under the Gearbox Publishing label are also included in that number.
"We see a great potential, not only in sequels, but also in remakes, remasters, spinoffs as well as transmedia projects," the company says.
"We're taking our time to make sure we do it right, because this is a game we think could one of the biggest sellers the year that it comes out," says Embracer Group's Matthew Karch.
Embracer Group CEO Lars Wingefors says "a number of external approvals", which potentially includes licensers, are needed to close the transaction.
"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," says Embracer Group CEO Lars...
The Embracer Group reveals that the two latest mainline instalments in the Deus Ex franchise have collectively sold over 12 million copes to date.
The two Marvel games lost Square Enix $200 million in a little under two years and were responsible for the sale of western studios to Embracer, according to an analyst.
The reboot trilogy has sold 38 million across its three games while Lara Croft: Relic Run and Lara Croft: Go had 53 million paid downloads overall.
Studio head David Anfossi says joining the Embracer Group will "take Eidos to the next level and make its talents, the gamers, and you very happy.”
Investments in blockchain, AI and the cloud along with better aligning its Tokyo organization and overseas publishing are some of the reasons.
"We will be continuing this work with them in their next chapter," The Initiative says following Embracer's announcement of the acquisition.
It's also purchasing IPs like Tomb Raider, Deus Ex, Thief, and Legacy of Kain, along with over 50 back-catalogue titles for $300 million.
