Take-Two Interactive mentioned in November 2024 that it had offered Private Division, the “high-end indie” publishing label it launched in 2017, to an undisclosed purchaser, together with “considerably all of Private Division’s stay and unreleased titles.” The id of the customer was not revealed, however a brand new Bloomberg report (by way of Game Developer) says the division’s “video games and franchises” will probably be taken over by former staff of Annapurna Interactive, the gaming-focused subsidiary of Annapurna Pictures that collapsed in September 2024 after its complete workers and senior management staff resigned.
The former Annapurna Interactive staff weren’t the consumers of Private Division themselves, in response to the Bloomberg report: Haveli Investments, a personal fairness agency, made the acquisition and subsequently did a cope with the ex-Annapurna staffers to take management of the video games. It sounds just like the Private Division label is not going to be retained, because the newly-formed firm doesn’t but have a reputation, and among the roughly 20 staff of Private Division will probably be laid off.
Annapurna Interactive was based in 2016 and shortly established a fame for publishing offbeat however wonderful video games together with Kentucky Route Zero, Outer Wilds, Sayonara Wild Hearts, What Remains of Edith Finch, Telling Lies, Neon White, and Stray. But the workers resigned wholesale final 12 months after a management shakeup and the collapse of negotiations to spin the division off right into a standalone firm. Annapurna Interactive continues to function underneath new management and workers.
As for Private Division, it apparently simply wasn’t large enough for Take-Two Interactive to hassle with. Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick mentioned Private Division’s greatest video games “weren’t massive within the context of our core mental properties at 2K and Rockstar” when the sale was revealed, which was not an excellent match for Take-Two’s standing as “being a top-ten participant.”
The Bloomberg report says the brand new firm will take management of video games together with Tales of the Shire, which is ready to launch on March 25, and possibly extra curiously, the Kerbal Space Program collection. Kerbal Space Program 2 was anticipated to be Private Division’s flagship sport when it launched into early entry in 2023, however it flopped badly and hasn’t been up to date since June 2024, main many to imagine it has been deserted.
I’ve reached out to Haveli Investments for remark and can replace if I obtain a reply.
