CD Projekt and Optimus complete transaction

Poland-based CD Projekt and Optimus S.A. have concluded a deal this week that will see the creator of The Witcher and the owner of the classic games web site Good Old Games get a 23 million dollar injection cash once the deal is complete. As part of the deal CD Projekt will retain control of the company (CD Projekt Group) and gain control of Optimus by acquiring 50 percent of the listed company’s shares. This also makes CD Projekt a publically traded company.

“This transaction represents the full realization of the strategic goals that CD Projekt’s owners set for themselves,” said CDP Investment stockholder Adam Kiciński in a statement of the company’s official web site this morning. “Above all, we will become a publicly listed company, which denotes access to capital. That in turn will spur further company growth. The immediate financing we obtained through the deal will allow us to pursue our operational goals in troubled times. We have gained all this while retaining control of the business, which was essential to us. The added spice of the contract is that we are merging with a corporation that, like CD Projekt, has been at the center of the Polish computer market throughout its history.“

Optimus S.A. is a Warsaw, Poland-based computer company that makes PCs and providing IT solutions for companies. In the 1990s Optimus S.A. was one of the leaders of the Polish computer market.

Tecmo and Koei Agree to Merger Deal

Could Dynasty Warriors: Dead or Alive be looming around the corner? Probably not, but the remote possibility did actually get bumped up a little bit today, as shareholders in both Koei and Tecmo agreed to move forward with a proposed merger deal. It wasn’t a unanimous decision though, as Tecmo’s second largest shareholder, Effissimo Capital Management, opposed to the merger and stated that it may sell off its 18 percent stake in Tecmo as a result.

Barring any unusual surprises, the deal will have Tecmo investors getting 9/10ths of a share in the merged entity for every stock they currently hold, while stockholders on the Koei end will exchange their shares in a straight up one for one trade.

Oddly enough, the marriage between Tecmo and Koei could actually do a lot for both companies. Koei has had a lot of success with its Dynasty Warriors franchise, while Tecmo’s Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive series have always been fan favorites. With the potential for crossover alone, adding Ryu, Kasumi, and Ayane to a new Dynasty Warriors game for example, the combined strength could make a hefty impact on the Japanese game market. Plus, thanks to Tecmo’s success in the Western market, it’s possible that the merger could give Koei a bit of wider appeal to the audience outside of Japan.

The Top 21 News Stories of 2008: 7 - 1

(Contributors: Adam Oldakowski - Managing Director GOG.com, Hal Halpin - ECA President, Tom Ohle - CD Projekt RED, Rich Carlson - Digital Eel, Eric Holmes - Radical Entertainment, and Game Trust members Evan Narcisse, Gus Mastrapa, David Chapman and James Fudge)

Crispy Gamer wraps up its Top 21 News Stories of 2008 with our top 7 news stories. See what stories were the most interesting and had the most impact on the game industry and gamers in 2008. We start with #7 right now.  Also be sure to check out #8 - 14 and #15 - 21, if you haven’t already.

Next: #7 –>

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Take-Two: The Cost of Fighting EA

According to a recent Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Take Two Interactive spent close to 11.1 million dollars to fend off EA’s hostile take-over. Take-Two chairman Strauss Zelnick, who fought hard against being acquired by EA for a good portion of 2008, presided over a large decline in the company’s stock price - well before the economy at large had a chance to put it to its lowest 52 week ever: $8.50. The stock, which rose to nearly $28 a share, fell dramatically after EA gave up on acquiring the company.

Shortly after EA walked away many analysts said that Take-Two had made a mistake. Of course, given the economic climate we are now in, that position is hard to justify: EA has had its own share of hardships recently and has cancelled projects, closed studios and - most recently - laid off over 1000 workers.. If not for the banking and mortgage industries, who knows what state both companies would be in..

CBS Restructuring Leads to GameSpot Casualties

And you thought those argyle socks from grandma were a bad Christmas present. Last week, CBS Interactive gave employees something even worse: an axe, wrapped in a not-so-pretty pink slip.

Layoffs at the media giant affected nearly every division of CBS Interactive, including the company’s video game news outlet, GameSpot. Word of the cuts started rolling in last week, with a number of employees unexpectedly finding themselves out holiday shopping one minute and job hunting the next. While layoffs have been confirmed throughout CBS Interactive and the former CNET Networks divisions, CBS is refusing to release specifics on the number of firings.

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EA Brings The Metal With Brütal Legend

In recent month, publishers everywhere have been picking at the castoffs of the Activision/Blizzard merger. First, THQ snatched up 50 Cent:Blood on the Sand. Then came the news that Atari had gobbled up the rights to both The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena and Ghostbusters. However, one game whose fate was left in limbo was the Double Fine produced, Jack Black starring, heavy metal action game, Brütal Legend. Today, we finally learned its fate.

Earlier this morning, Double Fine and Electronic Arts announced that they have signed an exclusive publishing agreement to bring Brütal Legend to headbanging gamers worldwide next Fall. Crafted by video game icon, Tim Schafer, Brütal Legend tells the tale of Eddie Riggs, played by Jack Black, who somehow gets tossed through time and space (a la Army of Darkness) to a mythical world ruled by Rock n’ Roll.

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Atari Gets ‘Cryptic’ Acquisition

Y’know, maybe it’s just me, but I remember a time not too long ago when Atari seemed to be on life support with Death knocking at the company’s door. Well, I’d love to get some of the vitamins it’s been taking these days, because Atari didn’t just slam the door in Death’s face, but it’s hit the ground running.

First came word that the publisher had picked up two major released in the aftermath of the Activision/Vivendi merger, Ghostbusters and The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena. Now the company has put together a deal to acquire California based MMO developer Cryptic Studios, lock, stock, and barrel.

Cryptic Studios, which first made a name for itself with the superhero themed MMO title,City of Heroes, has been on a major roll recently. The company eventually sold off its stake in City of Heroes to NCsoft, and was on tap to develop a new MMO for the PC and 360 for Microsoft, based off the Marvel Comics stable of characters. Although the Marvel deal fell apart, due to Microsoft and Marvel being unable to agree on the direction of the game, Cryptic decided not to abandon the superhero MMO formula, using its capital to buyout the popular pen and paper role-playing property, Champions, and starting development of the upcoming MMO, Champions Online. And if that wasn’t enough, Cryptic also managed to score itself another big property, with the development of a new MMO based on the Star Trek universe.

According to a statement released today to investors, Infogrames (Atari’s parent company) will shell out an upfront payment of $27.6 million, with an additional estimated “maximum earn-out” totaling another $27.5 million in cash and Infogrames stock. And if that wasn’t enough, there’s also a clause in the deal which could give Cryptic shareholders another $20 million bonus in cash or Infogrames stock if Champions Online and Star Trek Online both outperform an undisclosed target in online revenue for 2010-2011.

“We share a common vision with Atari and their leadership team.” said John Needham, Chief Executive Officer of Cryptic Studios, “With our game development and online platform technology skills, we’re very excited about the opportunities that this unique combination with Atari creates. I am committed to helping Atari grow into a leading online game company and look forward to being part of the team.”

According to David Gardner, CEO of Infogrames, “The acquisition of Cryptic Studios brings to Infogrames an outstanding creative organisation, with a proven track-record of success in the fast-growing MMO category. Cryptic’s success is founded on leading-edge technology and the vision of a seasoned executive management team. I am impressed with the tools and technology that Cryptic has developed to make MMOs less expensive to build. Creating vast worlds and interesting interactions can be very people intensive but with the use of Cryptic’s toolset they have a proven way of cutting average production costs in half. This is exactly the type of company we wanted to acquire in order to build Atari for the 21st century.”