Larian Studios founder Swen Vincke says no to studio buyouts

[winb83]

Some of these folks don’t understand it’s not all about the money.

Company releases a great game and folks wondering when they’ll be bought.

It's all about the money. This is a capitalist society. I'm not saying the guy made the company with dreams of getting bought out like many people do but I guarantee there's a dollar amount that if he was approached with it he's selling that company in a heartbeat.

 

[MeachTheMonster]

yep, the value of the company is the people that work there (including Swen), not the IP's. they're a small studio from Belgium, and probably like family. if bought out, it would probably all fall apart

Lots of studios were small independent studios that valued their independence until……they weren’t.

I’m not saying this dude is lying. It might be a long time from now, but eventually the goal is to cash out. It’s why all of us do what we do.

 

[Diondon]

Bladur's Gate = The latest Xbot bytchfest

 

[gurf]

It's all about the money. This is a capitalist society. I'm not saying the guy made the company with dreams of getting bought out like many people do but I guarantee there's a dollar amount that if he was approached with it he's selling that company in a heartbeat.

Of course he wants money, and his studio is getting that through making well crafted games. That should be celebrated.

Go support instead of hoping they’ll be bought out by some super publisher to fill quota in Q3 or some shyt.

 

[Gizmo_Duck]

Of course he wants money, and his studio is getting that through making well crafted games. That should be celebrated.

Go support instead of hoping they’ll be bought out by some super publisher to fill quota in Q3 or some shyt.

Exactly, the fact that they were able to make this game the way they wanted to with that level of scope and people at Obsidian are saying they can’t should be proof that more money isn’t always the end goal for a lot of these game gcompanies.

 

[daze23]

in Belgium the top tax bracket is 50%, for anyone making over 42,370 EUR ($46,719). in the US it's 37%, for anyone making over $539,900

 

[Bathing Ape]

Mind you, Tencent owns 30% of Larian

Since it keeps getting ignored

 

[hex]

Mind you, Tencent owns 30% of Larian

Since it keeps getting ignored

Not sure how this is relevant in the context of the thread. They've owned 30% since 2021 and had nothing to do with "BG3".

His issue is an outside company having a majority stake in Larian (Ten Cent doesn't) and tampering with the games (Ten Cent didn't).

Fred.

 

[gurf]

Since it keeps getting ignored

Not ignored, they still only own 30%. Doubt they have much say in the actual creative process.

There's a difference between supporting and completely buying out a company.

 

[Bathing Ape]

My point is this thread was only made because Microsoft was eyeing them. There is no news to report. What studio has Microsoft messed with creatively in the last 5 years?

 

[Gizmo_Duck]

My point is this thread was only made because Microsoft was eyeing them. There is no news to report. What studio has Microsoft messed with creatively in the last 5 years?

That doesn’t mean it will stay that way. New leadership at microsoft could have a different mentality when it comes to managing studios and projects, thats the difference between ownership and partnership. They don’t want the guy that replaces Phil Spencer to tell them they gotta now work on the next call of duty game in 2026, or make something more like witcher

And yeah, tencent doesn’t have anymore authority over Larian than they do at the other 100 companies they have stake in like Epic or Fromsoft

 

[Bathing Ape]

That doesn’t mean it will stay that way. New leadership at microsoft could have a different mentality when it comes to managing studios and projects, thats the difference between ownership and partnership. They don’t want the guy that replaces Phil Spencer to tell them they gotta now work on the next call of duty game in 2026, or make something more like witcher

A bunch of what ifs are irrelevant currently

 

[Gizmo_Duck]

A bunch of what ifs are irrelevant currently

But what if’s about a 5 billion dollar bag being dropped in their lap is ok for discussion?

The fact is that them selling their company in the end will eventually result in less autonomy that never changes.

 

[gurf]

My point is this thread was only made because Microsoft was eyeing them. There is no news to report. What studio has Microsoft messed with creatively in the last 5 years?

It’s not about who’s buying them, it’s about this team betting on themselves and releasing one of the biggest games of the year. Doubt any of the big publishers would have let them cook for as long as they have on this game.

This is one of the biggest stories of the year

No matter what they say, any major publisher is going to push for a specific release date.

 

[Instant Classic]

It’s not about who’s buying them, it’s about this team betting on themselves and releasing one of the biggest games of the year. Doubt any of the big publishers would have let them cook for as long as they have on this game.

This is one of the biggest stories of the year

No matter what they say, any major publisher is going to push for a specific release date.

I think this is a major point. I don't see any publisher giving blockbuster type of budget for a CRPG especially with it being a risky genre on consoles. Larian has struck gold with BG3 because even console gamers are hyped for BG3. I don't think BG3 would've happened on a major publisher because the risk is too strong. Plus, as I said earlier in the thread there's no guarantee of keeping Swen and other key members if bought out, and Divinity isn't an IP you open the vault for.