Developed by Gearbox Software, Borderlands spinoff Tiny Tina's Wonderlands has seen notable success following its release nearly a month ago. Amidst this success, Gearbox Software reports that the company will be acquiring the project's co-developer, Lost Boys Interactive for an undisclosed amount.
Launched in 2017 by several industry veterans, Lost Boys Interactive kicked off as a remote-first studio with offices in Madison, Wisconsin and Austin, Texas. The studio has worked on a few of the most recognizable franchises such as Call of Duty, PlayerUnknown’s Battle Grounds, and most recently, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands. Following the announcement from Gearbox Software, the studio will likely take on more ambitious projects in the coming future,
According to the press release, the purchase will see Gearbox Software add more than 220 team members to the company, increasing the Borderlands developer's own headcount to approximately 1,300. The announcement further states that Lost Boys will continue to operate as an independent studio under Gearbox while working along with the company on full development projects. Accordingly, Lost Boys CEO Shaun Nivens will report to Gearbox Software president Steve Jones.
Lost Boys Interactive is currently in a period of expansion with the studio looking at hitting 350 team members by 2024. The Gearbox acquisition could mean this expansion effort may get accelerated. Last year, Gearbox Software itself was merged with the Embracer Group valued at a whopping $1.3 billion and the purchase of Lost Boys appears to fall in line with the Embracer's own acquisition ambitions. Recently, the group stated that Embracer hopes to expand its $8.1 billion buying spree and that it plans on buying more game companies. As of now, Embracer's acquisitions have resulted in the group heading over 150 games in development.
While it's unclear what specific projects Lost Boys will work on following the purchase. Although Gearbox co-founder Randy Pitchford expressed the excitement about the possibility of having "an immediate and positive impact on the games secretly in development at Gearbox Software." Last year, Pitchford also indicated that Gearbox may start taking on riskier games and that the studio is planning on new IPs that other publishers might not have necessarily gone ahead with. So far, the company's primary focus appears to be the Borderlands franchise, especially with Tiny Tina's recent update alongside DLC and the Tales from the Borderlands sequel announcement. Regardless, it will be interesting to see how this pans out for both Gearbox Software and Lost Boys Interactive, along with what fans of Gearbox's games could expect.
Source: Gearbox Software
