THQ Files For Bankruptcy

[Cool King]

THQ files for bankruptcy
Has found a buyer. Game development to progress unhindered.


Saints Row and Darksiders publisher THQ has filed for a Chapter 11 bankruptcy today, the company announced.

THQ's four owned studios and games in development - Metro: Last Light, Company of Heroes 2, South Park: The Stick of Truth, and the Saints Row title formerly known as Enter the Dominatrix - are still moving forward under the new ownership of Clearlake Capital Group, a company that's buying out THQ's assets for $60 million.

The publisher will still operate under its new owners and THQ noted that it "does not intend to reduce its workforce as a result of the filing, and employees will continue to work their usual schedules and receive normal compensation and benefits, pending customary Court approval."

“The sale and filing are necessary next steps to complete THQ's transformation and position the company for the future, as we remain confident in our existing pipeline of games, the strength of our studios and THQ's deep bench of talent,” said THQ CEO Brian Farrell.

“We are grateful to our outstanding team of employees, partners and suppliers who have worked with us through this transition. We are pleased to have attracted a strong financial partner for our business, and we hope to complete the sale swiftly to make the process as seamless as possible.”

Former Naughty Dog producer and THQ president Jason Rubin added, “We have incredible, creative talent here at THQ. We look forward to partnering with experienced investors for a new start as we will continue to use our intellectual property assets to develop high-quality core games, create new franchise titles, and drive demand through both traditional and digital channels.”

THQ's NASDAQ listing is expected to expire in nine days, as is customary for Chapter 11 filings.

Prior to this the publisher raised over $5 million in a scant two weeks due to its ridiculously cheap THQ Humble bundle.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-12-19-thq-files-for-bankruptcy

[Big Vic]

Yes thank you, I do not like them.

[Dukelorange]

Oh well... I guess WWE 14 may be a no go...

[Extreme Angle]

Oh well... I guess WWE 14 may be a no go...

Could of sworn it was already said THQ wasn't going to be doing the next game... :?:

[Emperor Smeat]

:-\ not a huge surprise considering how bad of a financial shape they were in. Don't think they even had enough money to work on a single big project for next year.

After Darkjsiders II bombed in terms of revenue making, they literally were down to whatever WWE 13 made in money to fund everything else for next year. All other big projects either were delayed or cancelled because of money problems.

[ClockShot]

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http://secusphere.com/smf/Smileys/classic/smiley_salute.gif

[Kane Knight]

Fuck 'em. This is how business is supposed to work. You make shit games and shit decisions, and shit happens.

[Savio]

Fuck 'em. This is how business is supposed to work. You make shit games and shit decisions, and shit happens.Hated how they made the WWE games worse on the PS2 every year.

[Emperor Smeat]

According to the filing THQ sent, they owe the WWE $45 million and supposedly Vince is furious that there is good chance the WWE won't get that money back.

WWE also had to send a press release to reassure their own stockholders that THQ's mess won't affect their own finances. Also are currently considering other options should THQ not be able to make the next WWE game.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-12-19/thq-inc-files-for-bankruptcy-month-after-cfo-quit.html
http://www.cagesideseats.com/2012/12/20/3790288/bankrupt-thq-owes-wwe-45-million-vince-mcmahon-furious

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Oh god. Can you imagine if WWE demand a game to come out in 2013 and it's not from THQ? That would be spectacularly bad.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

If you buy out a company's assets you also inherit their debts. WWE should be able to get that money. At least I think they should. WWE had to pay off ECW's creditors to be able to use the name of the brand.

[Theo Dious]

Fuck 'em. This is how business is supposed to work. You make shit games and shit decisions, and shit happens.

Am I the only one who sees the irony here?

[Big Vic]

According to the filing THQ sent, they owe the WWE $45 million and supposedly Vince is furious that there is good chance the WWE won't get that money back.

Dirt Sheets: NUCLEAR HEAT on THQ

[Kane Knight]

If you buy out a company's assets you also inherit their debts. WWE should be able to get that money. At least I think they should. WWE had to pay off ECW's creditors to be able to use the name of the brand.

I don't know what happened with WWE/ECW, but there's a good chance WWE won't see that money.

Dirt Sheets: NUCLEAR HEAT on THQ

CM Punk still i ndog house.

[DAMN iNATOR]

Oh god. Can you imagine if WWE demand a game to come out in 2013 and it's not from THQ? That would be spectacularly bad.

Not if EA got the rights.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Not if EA got the rights.

lol

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Not if EA got the rights.

From the makers of WCW Backstage Assault.....

[DaveBrawl]

And NBA Live

[Emperor Smeat]

Regarding the THQ bankruptcy, WWE is claiming it is owed $45 million. That number is what the company would be own based on the length and terms of the contract and guarantees. They are not owed $45 million in back royalties at this point, although they are owed millions in back royalties for the current WWE 13 game. They also owe Yukes, the company that made the game, $17.8 million. Exactly what happens from here is unknown. It depends on a lot of factors. If WWE isn’t paid, they could declare it a breach of contract. It is known that Ubisoft is interested in purchasing THQ and does want to continue with the annual WWE game, but then they would have to work out something regarding at least the back royalties owed.

[Cool King]

Not if EA got the rights.

Yeah, I don't want EA anywhere near a WWE game.

Ever.

[Cool King]

Ubisoft, eh?

Interesting.

[Fignuts]

Love ubisoft.

[DaveBrawl]

Well if Ubisoft gets the rights, and WWE signs back JoMo, they have their next Assassin's Creed lead.

[Kane Knight]

Ubisoft is only rumoured to be interested and only in certain properties. I'm not sure anyone's likely to take over the full company in the future.

[Cool King]

According to WWEGaming.com, despite THQ filing for bankruptcy the studio will develop and release WWE '14 as planned. The company began development for the game back in October and in the filing papers that were submitted for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, their project development budget does have sufficient money allocated for development and release of the game.

Details on the game have not yet been released, including theme or release date.

http://www.411mania.com/wrestling/news/267683/WWE-News:-Update-on-WWE-%5C%5C14-Following-THQ-Bankruptcy,-Big-E.-Langston-Roster-Update.htm

[James Steele]

I imagine they will try and make it as awesome as possible since it will likely be THQ's swan song and a chance to make a splash with potential companies to hire them to continue the franchise instead of starting a new one.

[Fignuts]

Or they'll just go "fuck it", and reskin WCW Thunder.

[Emperor Smeat]

THQ sale to Clearlake Capital Group ended up getting blocked and none of the other rumored buyers are willing to purchase THQ like CCG was. Also means THQ is currently out of the $60 million they would have received had the deal been approved.

How did this happen? Well, according to Businessweek, a US trustee and a few THQ investors/creditors raised an object to the deal because the window given to place their bids on their desired assists was too short. So they took the case to court and they won. As a result, the sale is blocked (for now) and the bidding window has been increased by three weeks. However, judge Mary F. Walrath also ruled that there will be a second hearing on Monday and said, "In the meantime I think the parties need to talk."

In related news, Distressed Debt Investing reported (via a series of tweets) that Centerview Partners banker Sam Greene has testified that there are five buyers currently going through the proper due diligence to potentially buy the publisher’s rights to various franchises. One of the buyers is reported to be Warner Bros.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/thq%E2%80%99s-bankruptcy-sale-blocked-buyers-including-warner-bros-interested-thq-assists

[Kane Knight]

People were suspicious this might be an inside deal.

[whiteyford]

As long as we get Saints Row 4 I'll be happy.

[Emperor Smeat]

Auction set for January 22 after THQ settles with upset creditors/investors who caused the sale to Clearlake Capital Group to be blocked.

EA, Ubisoft, and Warner Bros expected to buy most of the IPs once the auction begins and EA still is the favorites for getting the WWE series.

http://www.giantbomb.com/news/looks-like-thqs-owned-properties-will-be-auctioned-off-anyway/4507/

[The Destroyer]

Let's have a whip round and buy one of their unloved franchises. There has to be one that no-one else could possibly want.

[Kane Knight]

As long as we get Saints Row 4 I'll be happy.

Saints Row 4 was already a given. You will be able to use superpowers to fight aliens or whatever.

[LoDownM]

I really hope EA doesn't end up with Saints Row...

[Kane Knight]

I really hope EA doesn't end up with Saints Row...

Lateral move.

[Cool King]

EA, Ubisoft, and Warner Bros expected to buy most of the IPs once the auction begins and EA still is the favorites for getting the WWE series.

http://www.giantbomb.com/news/looks-like-thqs-owned-properties-will-be-auctioned-off-anyway/4507/

I really hope EA doesn't get the WWE series. :(

Anyone but EA.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

I'd like a monkey wrench thrown in and have Rockstar try to buy the WWE license.

[Kane Knight]

I'd like a monkey wrench thrown in and have Rockstar try to buy the WWE license.

So it'd be five years between games and the controls would be horrible?

[whiteyford]

Saints Row 4 was already a given. You will be able to use superpowers to fight aliens or whatever.

Sold :shifty:

[XCaliber]

I'd be fine if EA Sports did it and they wouldn't even have to change the name of the series either as it goes along with all of their other franchises.

[Emperor Smeat]

The auction has some pretty weird rules in that if any bid for an IP is less than $60 million then the decision that blocked Clearlake Capital Group from buying THQ gets lifted.

If a bid goes over $60 million then that group also has the ability to buy THQ while CCG has to wait until after the auction and only if that group declined. Think CCG can even lower their $60 million offer since it would now be based on what THQ has left.

Saints Row 4 is the only IP being valued at over $60 million so whoever buys it has the chance to also own THQ. The WWE series is only worth around $30-$40 million or what THQ basically earns each year from sales.

[Kane Knight]

The auction has some pretty weird rules in that if any bid for an IP is less than $60 million then the decision that blocked Clearlake Capital Group from buying THQ gets lifted.

Because that was essentially a bid. That's not particularly weird or confusing. The problem is that the window for competing bids was small.

[Drakul]

THQ are done. Everything has been sold off to other people.

Today, THQ was officially sold and auctioned off. Within the next few weeks, the company will be no more.

The company's assets have been divided: Sega agreed to purchase Relic (Company of Heroes), Koch Media has agreed to purchase Volition (Saint's Row) and the Metro property, Crytek has agreed to buy Homefront, Take-Two will purchase the unannounced game Evolve, and Ubisoft will buy THQ Montreal and the South Park game.

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/DNE0sg1n8VE?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[Emperor Smeat]

The South Park game (Stick of Truth) is only for publishing rights since South Park Studios filed a complaint saying THQ doesn't actually own the IP.


WWE/THQ update is


Well, nothing official. Officially, nothing was said publicly, for a variety of reasons regarding the WWE video game license, although it will be very soon.

There is a deal in place but all the paperwork hasn't been completed. It is not with EA.

...

The WWE license was not part of the auction but is a separate entity and all information requiring its sale has been kept within very few in the company.

[Cool King]

It's a sad day that THQ are officially dead now.

I'm glad though that it's not EA that has a deal in place for the WWE license. It just leaves me curious as to who has the deal.

[ClockShot]

Giantbomb has been updating as the news as it comes out. They just got the figures on who paid for what.

$500k Homefront (Crytek) Highway robbery.
$26M for Relic (Sega)
$2.5M for THQ Montreal (Ubisoft)
$3.2M for South Park (Ubisoft)
$11M for Evolve (Take-Two)
$22.3M for Volition (Koch Media)
$5.8M for Metro (Koch Media)

[Savio]

thats a lot of money

[Cool King]

A letter got sent out to all THQ employees today.

January 23, 2013

To All THQ Employees:

We now have the answers we've been seeking through our financial restructuring and Chapter 11 case. While much will be written, here are the facts of the bids and auction that occurred :

Yesterday morning, we received a competing bid for the operating business, along with Clearlake's offer, and numerous offers for separate assets.

During an auction process that lasted over 22 hours, the final conclusion was that the separate-asset bids would net more than a single buyer for the majority of the company.

Shortly, we will, present the results to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, which must concur with our assessment.

The proposed sales of multiple assets is as follows :

Sega agreed to purchase Relic

Koch Media agreed to purchase Volition and Metro

Crytek agreed to purchase Homefront

Take 2 agreed purchase Evolve and

Ubisoft agreed to purchase Montreal and South Park

We expect these sales to close this week.

Some assets, including our publishing businesses and Vigil, along with some other intellectual properties are not included in the sale agreements. They will remain part of the Chapter 11 case. We will make every effort to find appropriate buyers, if possible.

What this means for employees

We expect that most employees of the entities included in the sale will be offered employment by the new owners. However, we cannot say what these owners may intend, and there will likely be some positions that will not be needed under the new ownership. You should receive notice this week or early next week if the new owners intend to extend employment to you. Please note that the terms of your new employment, including pay and benefits, may be different from the current terms of your employment with THQ.

If you are an employee of an entity that is not included in the sale, we regret that your position will end. A small number of our headquarters staff will continue to be employed by THQ beyond January 25 to assist with the transition. THQ has sufficient resources to pay these employees for work going forward, and we will be contacting these employees immediately to ensure their continued employment during this transition period. We are requesting the ability to offer certain severance pay to minimize disruption for employees of non-included entities as they determine the next steps in their careers.

We know you will have many questions about this news. We'll be meeting tomorrow when we return to talk through this announcement and to answer any questions you have. You will receive a benefits fact sheet and FAQs with answers to some questions that may be on your mind. Please review these materials closely.

A personal note

The work that you all have done as part of the THQ family is imaginative, creative, artistic and highly valued by our loyal gamers. We are proud of what we have accomplished despite today's outcome.

It has been our privilege to work alongside the entire THQ team. While the company will cease to exist, we are heartened that the majority of our studios and games will continue under new ownership. We were hoping that the entire company would remain intact, but we expect to hear good news from each of the separate entities that will be operating as part of new organizations.

For those THQ employees who are part of entities that are not included in the sale, we are confident that the talent you have displayed as part of THQ will be recognized as you take the next steps in your career.

Thank you all for your dedication and for sharing your talent with the THQ team. We wish you the best of luck and hope you will keep in touch.

Sincerely,

Brian Farrell

Chief Executive Officer

Jason Rubin

President

[Kane Knight]

It's a sad day that THQ are officially dead now.

I hate when shit companies go out of business for bad business moves.

[Kane Knight]

A letter got sent out to all THQ employees today.

It's only a rumours.

[Xero]

Apparently Take Two may be taking over the WWE license.

[LoDownM]

Dunno why Crytek would want Homefront. Unless they are really going to try and be like "CryEngine 3 will make Homefront 100 times better than it was with Unreal."

[Emperor Smeat]

Apparently Take Two may be taking over the WWE license.

According to IGN, 2k Games would be in charge of the series since they asked Take Two to make the bid. Might end up keeping Yukes if they don't use one of their own studios to develop the game.

[The Destroyer]

Think Relic and Sega will be a good fit.

[Kane Knight]

Nobody bid on Darksiders/Vigil.

lol

[Emperor Smeat]

Platinum Games said they would be willing since nobody bothered but only if it was cheap since they barely have any money as well.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/head-platinum-games-interested-buying-darksiders-right-price

[Emperor Smeat]

Another auction is planned to happen a few weeks from now for all the smaller IPs, studios, and anything that wasn't purchased in the first auction from THQ.

The de Blob, Red Faction, Destroy All Humans!, and Darksiders series are some of the bigger names left for sale.
http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/01/24/thq-back-catalog-to-be-sold-separately

[Sepholio]

cant believe no one picked up vigil.

[Drakul]

I hope someone good buys Destroy All Humans and actually does something fun with it. I enjoyed the original but I hear everything after that was just awful.

The series has a lot of potential for fun.

[Kane Knight]

cant believe no one picked up vigil.

Considering Darksiders was one of their big franchises and the second one sold damn well (albeit " below THQ's expectations"), I'm surprised, too.

I hope someone good buys Destroy All Humans and actually does something fun with it. I enjoyed the original but I hear everything after that was just awful.

The series has a lot of potential for fun.

I remember renting the original and enjoying it. I'd love to play something in that style and if someone were to resurrect the series, I'd definitely give it a spin. Kinda wished I'd actually owned the original, though.

[The Rogerer]

Is the WWE purchase still a rumours?

[Kane Knight]

purchased***

[DAMN iNATOR]

http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/c0.0.600.286.83274021352/p843x403/36531_10151460681148185_808232608_n.jpg
:'(

[Cool King]

So with THQ being dead now, I guess this game will never see the light of day.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/DPognHUmF4c" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[Cool King]

That is, unless Take-Two/2K pick it up, which is highly doubtful.

[James Steele]

I just don't see the market for an exclusive WWE "Mortal Kombat" fighting game. I think it'd be cool as an extra mode or something, but a wrestling game is already a fighting game, so why would people buy 2 WWE games. The novelty of fighting John Cena in a post-apocalyptic subway station isn't enough to drop $59.99 on.

[James Steele]

WWE should try and do a Kingdom Hearts type collaboration with an RPG series.

"Universe of Pain: Legend of the 7 Slams"

[DAMN iNATOR]

So with THQ being dead now, I guess this game will never see the light of day.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/DPognHUmF4c" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Nor will
http://media.ign.com/games/image/object/142/14244393/Crush-Hour-2_TRY2boxart_160w.jpg
:(:shifty:

[Cool King]

Take-Two to Take Over Development of WWE Games From THQ

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. agreed to take over development and production of World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. video games from bankrupt THQ Inc.

THQ’s agreement reached with the maker of the “Grand Theft Auto” video-game franchise, WWE and Yuke’s Co., a Japanese- based game-developer that was contracted by THQ to help produce the wrestling video games, will save the company millions by reducing claims against the bankrupt video-game maker, according to court documents filed yesterday.

“By working together to transition development of WWE games going forward the parties have minimized the harm to WWE and Yuke’s, which have, in turn, agreed to substantial reductions of their claims” against THQ, lawyers for the company said in court papers. The lawyers said without the agreement, WWE and Yuke’s claims “would certainly exceed $30 million and might exceed $60 million.”

THQ, the maker of the “Saints Row” and “Company of Heroes” video games, failed in its effort to survive the bankruptcy reorganization intact as individual titles and studios were gobbled up by competitors at an auction last month. Most of its assets were sold at the auction, bringing in about $72 million. The remaining assets at the company, including the “Darksiders” franchise, are worth about $29 million, according to THQ attorney Jeffrey C. Krause.

New Agreements

Under the accord, the WWE and Yuke’s contracts will be terminated and the companies will be allowed to enter into new agreements with Take-Two, which will hire THQ’s employees that work on the wrestling games, according to court documents.

The deal will also “eliminate very large damage claims” that would have otherwise materialized from terminating the contracts, according to the court filing.

WWE agreed to waive its pre-bankruptcy claims of about $45 million and any claims for annual royalty advances of about $7.5 million for the licensing contract that would have run through 2017. THQ will pay WWE $650,000 in royalty payments for the WWE games sold while under bankruptcy protection.

THQ owns about 14 percent of Yuke’s equity and has agreed to give the Japanese developer the 1,552,000 shares, about $4.5 million in value, in exchange for a release of Yuke’s pre- bankruptcy claims of about $15 million to $20 million. Yuke’s will also get a $250,000 royalty payment.

‘UDraw’ Losses

The Agoura Hills, California-based video-game maker said it was forced to seek bankruptcy protection after sustaining losses for the past five fiscal years. The company listed assets of $204.8 million and debt of $248.1 million when it sought court protection on Dec. 19.

The company was devastated by recent losses tied to the “uDraw” peripheral device for video-game consoles. While the device that lets users reproduce their drawings on their television had early success on Nintendo Co.’s Wii console, the versions for Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox 360 struggled to gain traction and “fell far short of expectations,” according to court documents.

The case is In re THQ Inc., 12-13398, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Delaware (Wilmington).

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-02-13/take-two-to-take-over-development-of-wwe-games-from-thq.html

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

This means that the port of WrestleFest is cancelled too. :(

[Ultra Mantis]

Oddly, you can buy WWF Wrestlefest DLC on PSN but not the actual game.

[James Steele]

Damn, I can't believe WWE is willing to eat those losses.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

They'll make it all back and then some with a great producer like Take Two.

[The Rogerer]

They don't have a choice about eating those losses, unless the choice is not having any more games.

[Savio]

Acclaim should take WWE back :shifty:

[Kane Knight]

They don't have a choice about eating those losses, unless the choice is not having any more games.

Business is hard to understand, man.

[Cool King]

2K and WWE announce exclusive multi-year agreement for WWE video game series

http://www.wwe.com/f/wysiwyg/image/2013/02/20130214_WWE14_LIGHT_HOMEPAGE.jpg

NEW YORK — 2K and WWE today announced that they have entered into an exclusive multi-year agreement granting 2K the exclusive worldwide rights to publish the critically acclaimed WWE video game franchise across all major platforms and distribution channels. The series, which will continue to be developed by Yukes in Japan, will combine the studio’s signature gameplay with 2K’s commitment to authenticity in WWE ’14, the latest iteration of the popular, long-running series. With the addition of the WWE franchise, 2K will continue a highly successful, 15-year tradition established by past WWE titles. Financial terms were not disclosed.

“The WWE series is a great addition to our stable of triple-A titles, and we’re very happy with this exclusive agreement with our new partners,” said David Ismailer, Chief Operating Officer for 2K. “We look forward to capturing the excitement of WWE and marrying it with the same commitment to authenticity and entertainment that we give to our NBA 2K and MLB 2K franchises.”

2K has a strong history in growing premier sports simulation titles, evidenced by the incredible commercial success of the NBA 2K series, with more than 15 million units of NBA 2K11, NBA 2K12 and NBA 2K13 sold to-date worldwide. This year, in the first week of its release, NBA 2K13 sold 49 percent more copies in the same time frame than the franchise’s previous record-holder, NBA 2K11.

“2K’s reputation for outstanding quality and dedication to authenticity are a perfect fit for WWE,” said Casey Collins, Executive Vice President, Consumer Products for WWE. “This new partnership will ensure that WWE continues to be one of the leading video game brands in the world and we look forward to continuing the franchise with the benefit of their expertise across a variety of platforms.”

“The development work on the WWE franchise is impressive, and we’re excited to combine our background in developing the NBA 2K series with theirs in this new partnership,” said Greg Thomas, Executive Vice President of 2K Sports. “Fans can expect the most authentic WWE experience on game consoles this fall.”

Developed by Yukes, WWE ’14 is not yet rated by the ESRB and will be available for consoles in fall 2013.

For more information on 2K, visit www.2K.com.

http://www.wwe.com/inside/thq/wwe-13/2k-and-wwe-announce-exclusive-multi-year-agreement-for-wwe-video-game-series-26090727/

[Emperor Smeat]

2nd auction will occur in April and last from the 1st till the 15th.

Everything that wasn't purchased or unavailable from the 1st auction will be on sale with Homeworld, Destroy All Humans, Red Faction, and Darksiders as the big IPs left.

Also being auctioned off is the publishing rights to Marvel Super Hero Squad, Supreme Commander, and Worms.

http://www.screwattack.com/news/thq-auction-remaining-assets-april

[Kane Knight]

Don't forget uDraw.