After Killing TimeSplitters, Embracer Wants Someone Else to

Two years ago, Embracer Group shut down Free Radical Design and killed the TimeSplitters reboot its original creators were building. It closed Volition, the studio behind Saints Row. It reportedly cancelled a new Deus Ex that Eidos Montreal had been working on. Now, according to an official announcement on its website, Embracer wants external developers to pick up those exact same franchises and do something with them.

The vehicle for this is Fellowship Entertainment, a new company Embracer plans to spin off and list on Nasdaq Stockholm in 2027. Fellowship will be an IP-focused entity built around Embracer's most valuable properties, including The Lord of the Rings, Tomb Raider, and The Hobbit. It will house studios like Crystal Dynamics, Eidos Montreal, Warhorse Studios, 4A Games, Gunfire Games, and Flying Wild Hog, among others. Crucially, it will also contain a dedicated IP licensing division designed to generate revenue by farming out franchises to outside partners.

In a letter to investors, Embracer founder and chair Lars Wingefors spelled out which dormant IPs Fellowship would "more actively be exploring" for external partnerships: Saints Row, Legacy of Kain, Deus Ex, Red Faction, The Mask, Thief, and TimeSplitters. The irony is suffocating. These aren't franchises that faded naturally. Embracer actively killed the studios and projects that were trying to bring them back, then sat on the corpses for two years before deciding someone else should have a go.

The Receipts

Free Radical Design, reformed specifically to make a new TimeSplitters with key original members including founders Steve Ellis and David Doak, was shut down in December 2023 during Embracer's restructuring spree. Volition, the studio that made every Saints Row game, was closed that same year after the 2022 reboot underperformed. And Eidos Montreal, which is still around, reportedly had its in-development Deus Ex project cancelled in 2024. Deus Ex lead actor Elias Toufexis didn't mince words about it. In a post on X earlier this year, he wrote: "...no Deus Ex because the people in charge are psychopaths."

I can't blame him for the frustration. Embracer bought these studios and IPs, stripped them for parts when the money got tight, and is now essentially admitting it can't do anything with what's left. The licensing play is a tacit confession that Embracer's own restructuring gutted its ability to develop these games internally. Framing it as a strategic pivot doesn't change what it actually is.

The remaining Embracer entity, which keeps the name, will hold THQ Nordic and its 35 subsidiary studios, Aspyr, Limited Run Games, Milestone, Tripwire, and others. IPs staying on that side include Gothic, Destroy All Humans!, Kingdom of Amalur, and Wreckfest. Fellowship, meanwhile, will also push forward on its bigger active franchises. Kingdom Come: Deliverance developer Warhorse has confirmed it's working on a Lord of the Rings RPG alongside a new Kingdom Come game. Crystal Dynamics has two Tomb Raider titles in development. Dead Island 3 and Metro 2039 are both confirmed.

Whether any outside studio actually picks up Deus Ex or TimeSplitters and delivers something worthwhile is a completely open question. Licensing deals take time, and there's no guarantee the right developer gets matched with the right franchise. But at least these IPs aren't just rotting in a vault anymore. Embracer CEO Phil Rogers said the split is about building "a more disciplined group" with "transparency and execution." The execution part is what got these franchises into this mess in the first place, so I'll believe it when the games actually ship.