THQ has faced its fair share of financial problems recently, and now the company has filed for bankruptcy in the face of such dire straits.
The publisher will sell the majority of its US assets – including its publishing operation and four studios – to an investment firm called Clearlake Capital Group. Foreign operations were not included in the bankruptcy filing.
The sale of THQ’s assets is part of a “stalking horse bidder” deal, which essentially means Clearlake Capital Group acts as a middleman. The investment firm will test market interest in THQ, so the once-thriving videogame company is not completely dead in the water at this point.
According to Gamasutra, an unnamed investor working through Clearlake Capital Group will continue to fund the development of THQ’s games in the amount of $50 million. In addition, a series of codenamed projects were revealed in the company’s bankruptcy filings.
Among those projects is a title from Vigil Games, makers of the Darksiders franchise. The only information given about the potential release was the working title of “Crawler.” Other projects mentioned in the filing are “Evolve” (Turtle Rock Studios), “Atlas” (Relic Entertainment), and “1666” (THQ Montreal).
THQ President Jason Rubin posted a message on the company’s website regarding the recent news. He stressed that bankruptcy does not mean the end for THQ and highlighted the company’s goals.
“Rest assured that the goal throughout the sale process has been to preserve our teams and our products,” he said. “So no matter what the outcome in 30 days, as long as we have accomplished this goal, I will be satisfied.”
So gamers looking forward to upcoming titles like Company of Heroes 2 and South Park: The Stick of Truth can still keep those games on their radars. Only time will tell whether the future for THQ extends beyond those releases.
[MCV]
[Polygon]
