Piranha Bytes was founded in 1997, and the studio will probably be closed in 2024: The German gaming studio developed three of the most famous German role-playing game series: Gothic, Risen and ELEX. But that’s apparently over. In the wake of the crisis of the gaming locust “Embracer Group”, the studio is threatened with closure after more than 25 years.
What kind of studio is this? Piranha Bytes were founded in Essen and were known for years for the role-playing game series “Gothic” (2001-2006), which was considered one of the few German game series that could compete internationally.
The studio later developed the action role-playing games Risen 1-3 and ELEX 1 and 2.
Gothic 2: Gold Edition Trailer
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What was the problem? In May 2019, the company THQ Nordic bought the Piranha Bytes development team and the trademark rights. THQ Nordic became the “Embracer Group” in August 2019.
This “Embracer Group” went on a buying spree from 2020 to 2022 and bought up numerous studios and gaming companies, even grabbing GearBox (Borderlands) for $1.3 billion.
The idea was apparently to form a large European gaming group that was “too big to fail”. But due to a change in the economic situation, things no longer looked so rosy in 2023. The company got into financial difficulties and has been considered a problem child in the gaming market ever since.
First overeating, then “shrinking healthily”
In June 2023, Embracer Group announced a “comprehensive restructuring with layoffs.”
In 2023, it was rumored in many places that 2024 would see a rude awakening for the gaming industry, especially for the German gaming market, because many studios here, like Piranha Bytes, had become dependent on the Embracer Group, which was now planning to do so to “save healthily and shrink healthily.”
This crisis now also seems to be affecting Piranha Bytes.
According to sources, Piranha Bytes is on the verge of extinction
What happens to Piranha Bytes? As reported by GameStar, among others, Piranha Bytes appears to be on the verge of closure. There is still no official statement from the Embracer Group, but it seems clear: the studio is threatened with closure:
Sources tell GameStar that Piranha Bytes is about to close. Only the German protection against dismissal seems to be standing in the way of an official closure at the moment.
According to GameStar, the sales flop Elex 2, which fell far short of expectations, was apparently the final nail in the coffin for Piranha Bytes.
This could perhaps be a hope for fans of Gothic:
Gothic robbed me of my youth – now it’s coming as an MMO and that’s the rest for me