Randy Pitchford Discusses Embracer Acquisition of Gearbox

Gearbox studio founder Randy Pitchford is discussing Embracer’s recent acquisition of the studio responsible for popular titles such as Borderlands.

Pitchford says that the acquisition will give Gearbox the opportunity to take more risks.

“We have so many new IP concepts that are in our incubator, that are ready to explode,” Pitchford said, in an interview with GamesBeat.

“We could wait for the right publishing partner who’s willing to make a bet, rather than only take a risk on something they know Gearbox has already done before. Those publishers that have taken risks on us for what we want to see next have always been rewarded. But for some reason they can’t be comfortable with that kind of risk. Now we get to take that risk.

“We don’t have to burn the boats to do it. When Epic did their deal, they ended up selling Gears of War to Microsoft. They burned the boats to show they could do something you’d never expect from Epic before, and [gaming] got Fortnite out of that. We don’t have to do that. We can maximally deliver on the IP we have and pursue new IP as a consequence of this relationship. That’s incredibly exciting for me. I feel like we’re just getting started.”