It's been a little while since we checked in on Embracer Group, and with the publishing giant having posted its Q2 financial results, now seems as good a time as any. Despite cutting thousands of jobs and attempting to right the ship, Embracer reports significant declines across the board, with the all-important PC/console games segment performing especially poorly.
GamesIndustry.biz pored over the data, and for the six-month period ending 30th September 2024, Embracer's net sales were down 23% year-on-year. This pain is particularly acute in the PC/console games segment, which generated $432 million, down 40% compared to last year.
The firm's employment numbers make for some unhappy reading, too; Embracer employs 6,250 developers, down from 10,654 in Q2 of 2023. Embracer's total headcount currently sits at 10,450 (again, down from 15,701 this time last year). The publisher is hopeful that Warhorse Studios' eagerly anticipated and recently delayed RPG sequel Kingdom Come: Deliverance II will be a strong seller for the company, out on 11th February 2025.
Do you think we will see Embracer emerge from its current financial woes, having learned how to better manage its portfolio? Does Kingdom Come: Deliverance II have the potential to turn the firm's fortunes around? Let us know in the comments section below.
[source gamesindustry.biz]
Comments 25
Maybe they should try cutting off those with higher salaries. Like the useless executives.
The entire embracer strategy seems asinine from the outside. Just waiting for them to unveil their genius plan behind their insane pace of acquisitions.
They're just another cancer in the gaming industry. Hopefully they will be gone soon. The whole industry needs a serious pruning to get to basics and just making good games without interference from idiots.
Out of all companies that would cause serious irreversible damage to the gaming industry, I've gotta admit, the spiritual successor to THQ wouldn't have been one of my guesses.
No matter how confusing embracer groups acquisition spree was I hope they can right the ship at some point.
My guess is that some crafty market researchers cooked the books with covid numbers and sold the greedy executives on a self-imploding plan. Just too bad so many people have to pay for shortsighted leaders.
As for Kingdom Come 2 - I'm sure it'll it'll sell well, exceeding it's predecessor handedly. But, as much as love the original, I'm uncertain it will bring in the amount of cash Embracer would need. Would love to be proven wrong. 🤞
They’re parasites, injecting cash to generate false hope in their acquired devs only to f*ck up when the $2 billion Saudi blood money deal fell through and now good people are being screwed over.
Fire all the executives and managers! Scumbags! 🔥😡 Solidarity! ✊
This is why the entire gaming industry must become unionized. No better example than the Embracer catastrophe. 🤦♂️
The fat cats got too greedy and now the low level people are paying with their jobs.
It's a shame that these articles are becoming more common nowadays ☹️
Further job cuts incoming for lower level employees whilst executives get a fat bonus for a new yacht
Ironically one of the studios they divested, Saber, had a big hit this year in Space Marine 2. I think it’s bigger than any game Embracer have released so far.
23 % negative's still better than 1023 % negative xD I'd give 'em some time. If they're still failing this time next year THEN I'll write them off^^ still looking forward to one or two games from them
That is why Sony does not buy every studio and it still screws up sometimes. There goes a lot of money in keeping studios running.
They bought up a load of gaming's most middling franchises and studios in an effort to build an empire and it is failing.
Who'd have thought?
Kingdom Come deliverence was a good game let down by poor technicals and bugs, along with a few questionable design choices - lets hope they have have learned their lesson, or they may end up disappointed.
Hardly surprising. Entertainment is a results led business and what successes have they had? Far too few, meanwhile every day their studios are making games they spend a LOT of money.
Wait, you mean buying every studio you can and expecting pure profit ISN’T a sure way to success?
My god, whodathunkit?
@EVIL-C …how would unionization have prevented the current situation?
I believe that Kingdom Come 2 will be a great game but does anyone think it's going to meet the expectation for sales that Embracer is hoping for??
EDIT: Maybe I am wrong, the first game has sold over 8 million! I knew it was successful but didn't realize that successful.
@LuXifer that's not what happened. The Embracer debacle has been well documented and it wasn't due to inflated covid numbers. It was due to a pipe dream of billions being invested by the Saudi's that did not happen. They put the cart before the horse on this one and a ton of people paid for it with their jobs.
I ended up loving Kingdom Come Deliverance but I still think its appeal is niche. It's not going to save them financially.
@JuiceboxMeister Thanks for the info, yeah sounds like stupid leadership in a nutshell. I mean, I've got a tip that a horse in a race MIGHT win so I'll spend all the money my family needs for food and roof. Just might pay off you know. 😋
hopefully DECA will be fine. cryptic transferred development of star trek online to them and as a 7 year veteran of that game I dont want it to shut down.
But this is the reason they cut the jobs in the first place! It's only us learning about poor sales now; Embracer knew all along and they cut the jobs to compensate.
@nessisonett exactly this. Their tactic was buy,buy, buy then ride the wave and sell themselves for 2 billion to a Saudi investment group. There was no long term strategy of actually developing games.
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