Vigil Games is no more, the future of Darksiders in Limbo
Many of you have no doubt heard about the demise of THQ. THQ has sold off most of its assets which includes Volition (Developer of Red Faction and Saints Row), Relic (Company of Heroes), and a host of other studios. Unfortunately Vigil Games, developers of Darksiders, were not auctioned off in the proceedings and have been forced to shut down, leaving nothing more than a dream to see the third installment of the franchise. It’s extremely sad to see a franchise like Homefront picked up over Darksiders, however it helps us peer into the current state of the gaming industry, a barren wasteland where creatively dies at the hands of poor management.
Below you can view who acquired what studios.
[quote]
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 t:
- 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
[/quote]
We wish all the former employees at Vigil the best of luck in their job searches, and I know I can speak for the rest of the staff when I say we are deeply saddened by this news.
[signoff1]
Daniel Flatt
January 24, 2013 @ 5:12 am
I am really taken aback and saddened by this.
Vigil was a great group of guys from the interviews I’ve read and they make Darksiders which is easily my favorite series of this generation.
Michael Foy
January 24, 2013 @ 5:29 am
Capcom is next.
Brad Lida
February 9, 2013 @ 10:50 am
all we can do is pray.
Taylor Parolini
January 24, 2013 @ 9:00 am
I’m sorry Vigil. I will never sell my copies of Darksiders.
bleachorange
January 24, 2013 @ 3:10 pm
I’m glad SEGA got Relic, as I seem to recall they also publish the Total War series? They know what to do with an RTS developer.
Daniel Flatt
January 24, 2013 @ 5:47 pm
You know what’s funny about this? THQ really didn’t make that terrible of games. Sure they had some really bad releases, but if you look at them by the large they had a hell of a year coming up. They just released the fantastic Darksiders 2 and next year would have seen a bunch more games like Stick of Truth that would have really helped to turn things around.
Honestly this is just a really crappy deal, especially for the insanely talented Vigil Games.
Charles Kheng
January 24, 2013 @ 9:58 pm
Stick of Truth release date is March 5th 2013.
Taylor Parolini
January 25, 2013 @ 9:28 am
That stupid tablet killed them. Whoever came up with that idea and pushed it through to production, killed THQ.
Charles Kheng
January 25, 2013 @ 8:21 pm
The uDraw. Should be renamed weBankrupt.
Charles Kheng
January 28, 2013 @ 10:36 pm
There’s an update about this.
Crytek opened a new studio in Austin which will be lead by David Adams, Vigil’s co-founder.
His team of 35 developers at the Crytek studio in Austin are formerly Vigil’s developers as well.