Please support Game Informer. Print magazine subscriptions are less than $2 per issue
Digital Extremes: No Changes To Leadership Following Majority Acquisition By Chinese Firms
Digital Extremes, the developer of Warframe and The Darkness II, has announced that a majority of its outstanding shares have been acquired by two Chinese firms. Multi Dynamic Games Inc. (a subsidiary of Sumpo Food Holdings Limited) and Perfect Online Holding Limited (a subsidiary of Star Trek Online publisher Perfect World) will purchase 61 percent of Digital Extremes.
The deal comes with a commitment to bring Warframe to Chinese consoles. Perfect World, which will own 3 percent of the company following the close of the deal, is also bringing Cryptic’s Neverwinter to Chinese Xbox Ones.
In a post on the official forums, game director Steve Sinclair addressed concerns and lays out how the deal will impact the company and Warframe. “For me, it’s business as usual, with zero changes in DE management and no outside interference whatsoever,” he writes. “For you, I hope you read the deal and realize it’s not the doomsday scenario you may fear. I hope you agree to at least wait and see what it means and I hope you engage with us and our community on what is important to you as a player as Warframe and Digital Extremes grows from this partnership.”
Sinclair also says the deal will provide new resources that will improve and grow the game. The deal is worth $73.2 million, $69.6 million of which is to be paid by Multi Dynamic Games. The remaining $3.6 million is attributable to Perfect Online.
[Source: Digital Extremes (1), (2), Warframe Forums via Gamasutra]
Our Take
As we’ve seen many times this year, with Oculus, Twitch, and Mojang, buyouts are scary for fans. The most reasonable approach is to keep playing until and unless things change under new corporate leadership. As a fan, there is no sense in panicking about worst case scenarios that may never come to pass.
I’d like to ask you to support Game Informer’s continued coverage of games with a subscription. For less than two dollars per issue, we mail you a full year of 10 print magazines, each with cover stories and preview features filled with exclusive details about the most exciting upcoming games. We profile and interview game creators. We look back on the rich history of gaming, and we celebrate what’s next.
Here on the website, we offer much of our content for free, including game reviews, daily news, videos, event coverage, and more – all with minimal ads.
We do so with a small editorial team, alongside contributing paid writers from around the world – over 65 individuals from 9 countries around the world, just in the last couple of years.
It’s not possible without support.
In a time when game makers and games coverage have faced hard struggles and layoffs, the future of this 30+ year magazine and community is at risk. Our new standalone magazine subscription is the number one way you can keep us alive – and we believe you’ll get a pretty fantastic gaming magazine in your mailbox every few weeks for your trouble.
Thank you.
