Embracer laments polarising Saints Row launch, teases "transformative" licensing deal
As has become par for the course, Embracer's latest fiscal report is littered with fresh details about the Swedish conglomerate's perpetually expanding game business.
For starters, the company said it has struck a "transformative partnership and licensing deal" with several industry partners that covers a range of large-budget upcoming games over the next six years.
The holding company, which owns the likes of Gearbox and THQ Nordic, expects the deal to close during the current fiscal year and says it will "improve predictability, lower business risk and provide a positive impact on our cash flow and profits."
Notably, Embracer believes the deal will also enable further investments that allow it to make more games based on both established and new franchises.
Embracer was also candid about the performance of the Saints Row reboot, which launched on August 23, 2022, and according to the company has "performed in line with management expectations in the quarter."
Despite that, Embracer said the title didn't meet its full expectations and "left the fanbase partially polarised." Seemingly as a result of those growing pains, Saints Row developer Volition will now transition away from current parent company Deep Silver to become part of Gearbox, which Embracer says "has all the tools, including an experienced management team in the US, to create future success at Volition."
"This is the first internal group transfer where we transfer a major studio between operative groups, but it is not necessarily the last," added the company.
Speaking more broadly about its business, Embracer said the board of directors has decided to launch a special review of its business to navigate "new market conditions" caused by ongoing geopolitical and
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