Saber Interactive, the development studio behind NBA Playgrounds and NBA2K Playgrounds 2, has been acquired by the parent company of THQ Nordic.
Embracer Group announced the acquisition on Wednesday in a deal worth $525 million. The deal will see $150-million paid up front with the other $375-million being paid out over a three-year period.
The company is expected to remain an autonomous studio, but will become the fifth subsidiary of Embracer Group.
Saber Interactive was founded in 2001, and is known for games like Quake Champions, World War Z, and the Nintendo Switch port of The Witcher 3. The NBA Playgrounds franchise was the company’s first foray into the sports market, and it has been met with middle-of-the-pack reviews.
As far the future of the series, the NBA Playgrounds franchise was acquired by 2K back in 2018. With that transition, it had been expected that any future releases in the series would be developed in-house under the 2K Sports license.
SGO has reached out to both 2K and Saber Interactive regarding the future of the NBA Playgrounds franchise, and will update the story should more information be provided.
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