Jump to content

Private Division

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Private Division
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryVideo games
FoundedDecember 14, 2017;6 years ago(2017-12-14)
Founders
  • Michael Worosz
  • Allen Murray
Headquarters
New York City
,
US
Number of locations
4 offices (2018)
Key people
  • Michael Worosz
  • (head of label)
  • Allen Murray
  • (VP of production)
  • Tom Bass
  • (VP of marketing)
ParentTake-Two Interactive
Websiteprivatedivision.com

Private Divisionis an Americanvideo game publisherbased inNew York City.The company was founded byTake-Two Interactiveand announced in December 2017. Private Division funds and publishesindie gamesdeveloped by small to mid-sized studios. This includes taking overKerbal Space Programpublishing and releasing titles fromObsidian Entertainment,Panache Digital Games,and V1 Interactive.[1]

In addition to offices within Take-Two's headquarters in New York City, Private Division also has offices inSeattle,Las VegasandMunich.[2]Private Division is Take-Two Interactive's third publishing label, followingRockstar Gamesand2K.[3]

History[edit]

Take-Two's prior publishing model has been focused on its two internally-owned labels,Rockstar Gameswhich is used for itsaction-adventure gameslikeGrand Theft Auto,and its 2K label that includes2K Gamesand2K Sportsfor other games. All such games are developed principally through internal development studios or from large third-partytriple-Astudios (such asFiraxis GameswithCivilization IVorGearbox Softwarefor theBorderlandsseries).

Take-Two formed Private Division as a new publishing label to help smaller and independent studios. The label looks to provide funding and publishing for "triple-I" games such asNinja Theory'sHellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice,those that fell into the middle ground between triple-A games by large studios, andindie gamescreated by relatively new and small indie studios. The formation of Private Division was led by Take-Two's head of corporate development and independent publishing Michael Worosz. Worosz, in evaluating potential games to publish under Take-Two's name, found a number of mid-sized studios founded by developers that had prior triple-A development experience but wanted to create less ambitious games. Worosz learned that these studios struggled with funding, as they did not fit into the types of studios backed by indie game publishers likeDevolver Digital,and their projects were too large to be backed through self-funding orcrowdfunding.[4]About two and a half years prior to the label's announcement Worosz pitched the idea of Private Division to Take-Two's CEO Strauss Zelnick, who greenlit the creation of the label and they hired Allen Murray in late 2015 to run the production side, begin recruiting developers and build their team and infrastructure.[5]The label aids in the development process and works with the developer to create project timelines and milestones, and will help the publish and distribute the games when completed, but does not seek to own theintellectual propertyof the developers.[5]

With the label's formation on December 14, 2017, Take-Two announced four games already in the works to be published under the label:The Outer WorldsfromObsidian Entertainment,Darkborn(originally as working titleProject Wight) from The Outsiders,Disintegrationfrom V1 Interactive, andAncestors: The Humankind OdysseyfromPanache Digital Games.Additionally,Kerbal Space Program,acquired earlier by Take-Two fromSquad,will be re-published under the Private Division label.[6][5]In the case ofDarkborn,some time in 2018, Private Division and The Outsiders decided to go separate ways, with Private Division stating that they continued to support The Outsiders for several months after the termination of the contract.[7]

In February 2020, Take-Two established a yet-named studio within Private Division located at Seattle for development ofKerbal Space Program 2,later named Intercept Games, with several ofStar Theory Gamesstaff, including Jeremy Ables and Nate Simpson, joining the new studio.[8][9]

In July 2020, Private Division announced publishing deals withMoon Studios,League of GeeksandRoll7for yet-unannounced games.[10][11]Later, in November 2021, Private Division acquired Roll7.[12]The game with League of Geeks was cancelled during theCOVID-19 pandemic.[13]

In March 2022, Private Division announced publishing deals with four more studios:Die Gute Fabrik,Evening Star, Piccolo Studio and Yellow Brick Games.[14]In August, the company announced a partnership withWētā Workshopto publish a game in theMiddle-Earthfranchise. The game was revealed to beTales of the Shireand is scheduled to release in the second half of 2024.[15][16]In December, Private Division announced a publishing deal withBloober Teamto release asurvival horror game.[17]Private Division would later end up cancelling the publishing deal with Bloober Team in May 2024.[18]

In March 2023, an unspecified number of Private Division employees were affected by layoffs as part of parent company Take-Two's effort to save $50 million.[19]In May, Private Division announced a partnership withPokémondeveloperGame Freakfor an untitled action-adventure game, codenamedProject Bloom.[20]The game is scheduled to release duringTake-Two Interactive's 2026 fiscal year.[20]During aNintendo Directin June,Penny's Big Breakawaywas unveiled and subsequently released on February 21, 2024.[21][22]

In April 2024, Take-Two Interactive stated their intent to cut 5% of the workforce by the end of 2024.GamesIndustry.bizreported that this lead to a "vast majority" of Private Division's staff across their offices in Seattle, New York, Las Vegas, and Munich being let go in May, including shuttering Roll7 and Intercept Games.[23][24]IGNwould go on to report that Take-Two is planning to shut down Private Division.[25]

Games published[edit]

Year Title Developer(s) Platform(s)
2018 Kerbal Space Program: Enhanced Edition BlitWorks,Squad PlayStation 4,PlayStation 5,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S
2019 Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey Panache Digital Games PlayStation 4,Windows,Xbox One
The Outer Worlds Obsidian Entertainment Nintendo Switch,PlayStation 4, Windows, Xbox One
2020 Disintegration V1 Interactive PlayStation 4, Windows, Xbox One
2021 Hades[a] Supergiant Games PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
2022 OlliOlli World Roll7 Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
Rollerdrome PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox Series X/S
2023 After Us Piccolo Studio PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox Series X/S
Saltsea Chronicles[b] Die Gute Fabrik Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows
Kerbal Space Program 2 Star Theory Games,Intercept Games PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
2024 Penny's Big Breakaway Evening Star Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox Series X/S
Tales of the Shire Wētā Workshop Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox Series X/S
TBA Eternal Strands[b] Yellow Brick Games PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox Series X/S
No Rest for the Wicked Moon Studios PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox Series X/S
Untitledaction-adventuregame (codenamedProject Bloom) Game Freak TBA

Notes[edit]

  1. ^Physical copy distribution only.
  2. ^abFunding only.

References[edit]

  1. ^"Take-Two's Private Division: 'Triple-I' indie ambitions 'eclipse crowdfunding' | MCV UK".Archived fromthe originalon January 26, 2018.RetrievedDecember 24,2017.
  2. ^Makuch, Eddie (December 14, 2017)."GTA Company Will Publish New Games From Assassin's Creed, Halo, Fallout Developers".GameSpot.RetrievedDecember 14,2017.
  3. ^"Take-Two launches high-end indie label Private Division".PCGamer.RetrievedDecember 14,2017.
  4. ^Calvin, Alex (April 10, 2019).""We see ourselves in some ways as risk-takers": Where Private Division fits into Take-Two's games strategy ".PC Games Insider.RetrievedApril 12,2019.
  5. ^abcBertz, Matt (December 14, 2017)."The Inside Story Of Take-Two's New Publishing Label, Private Division".Game Informer.RetrievedDecember 14,2017.
  6. ^Handrahan, Matthew (December 14, 2017)."With Private Division, Take-Two wants to empower a new breed of indie developer".GamesIndustry.biz.RetrievedDecember 14,2017.
  7. ^Makuch, Eddie (July 15, 2019)."GTA Parent Company's Indie Label Ends Publishing Deal For New Game From Battlefield Dev".GameSpot.RetrievedJuly 15,2019.
  8. ^Robinson, Andy (February 20, 2020)."Take-Two forms new studio for KSP2, with original developer's role unclear".Video Games Chronicle.RetrievedFebruary 20,2020.
  9. ^Schreier, Jason(June 3, 2020)."Game Publisher Cancels Contract With Developer, Then Tries to Poach Its Entire Team".Bloomberg News.RetrievedJune 3,2020.
  10. ^Valentine, Rebekah (July 29, 2020)."Private Division signs publishing deals with Moon Studios, League of Geeks, and Roll7".GamesIndustry.biz.RetrievedJuly 29,2020.
  11. ^Bolding, Jonathan (August 4, 2020)."Take-Two's Private Division to publish games from the makers of Ori, Armello, and OlliOlli".PC Gamer.RetrievedJanuary 28,2024.
  12. ^Makuch, Eddie (November 15, 2021)."GTA Parent Company's Private Division Buys OlliOlli Dev".GameSpot.RetrievedNovember 15,2021.
  13. ^Ryan, Jack (December 6, 2023)."League of Geeks games studio lays off half its workforce, 'indefinitely pauses' production on Jumplight Odyssey".ABC.com.RetrievedJanuary 26,2024.
  14. ^"Private Division pivots vision with smaller additions".
  15. ^"Private Division to publish Weta Workshop's Lord of the Rings game".
  16. ^"Welcome Home, Hobbit! Private Division and Wētā Workshop Announce Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of the Rings Game | Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc".www.take2games.com.RetrievedMay 31,2024.
  17. ^"Private Division pivots vision with smaller additions".
  18. ^Editor-in-chief, James Batchelor (May 31, 2024)."Private Division reportedly drops publishing deal with Bloober Team".GamesIndustry.biz.RetrievedMay 31,2024.{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help)
  19. ^Chalk, Andy (March 7, 2023)."Take-Two confirms layoffs following 'exponential growth in recent years'".PC Gamer.RetrievedMarch 2,2024.
  20. ^abRomano, Sal (May 9, 2023)."Private Division announces publishing partnership with Game Freak for action adventure title 'Project Bloom'".Gematsu.RetrievedMay 9,2023.Due out in fiscal year 2026.
  21. ^Romano, Sal (June 21, 2023)."Kinetic 3D platformer Penny's Big Breakaway announced for PS5, Xbox Series, Switch, and PC".Gematsu.RetrievedJune 21,2023.
  22. ^Reynolds, Ollie (February 21, 2024)."Surprise! Penny's Big Breakaway Is Available To Download Right Now".Nintendo Life.Archived fromthe originalon February 26, 2024.RetrievedFebruary 26,2024.
  23. ^Batchelor, James (May 2, 2024)."Take-Two reportedly shuts down Roll7 and Intercept Games, Private Division suffers layoffs".GamesIndustry.biz.RetrievedMay 2,2024.
  24. ^Schreier, Jason (May 1, 2024)."Take-Two Interactive Shuts Down Two Game Studios".Bloomberg.com.RetrievedMay 2,2024.
  25. ^Valentine, Rebekah (May 31, 2024)."Take-Two Is Quietly Killing Private Division".IGN.RetrievedMay 31,2024.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Private_Division&oldid=1228048728"