THQ bankrupt, WWE games bought by 2K Sports

Lord TSC

http://www.gamechup.com/thq-owes-45-million-to-wwe-unsecured-creditor-vince-mcmahon-apparently-furious/

Uh oh, it looks like the Chairman and CEO of WWE, Vince McMahon, is in a bad mood again.


It has been revealed via THQ’s bankruptcy filings that the company owes $45 million to WWE. The license was something THQ could never take proper advantage of, churning out games running on the same old engine which were neither a critical nor a commercial success.

Upon hearing the THQ news, WWE have sent out a statement revealing that they were listed as an unsecured creditor, which means, they probably will not get the $45 million THQ owes them.

Their stockholders are understandably skeptical of the whole thing, and this statement tries to cool things down a bit.

WWE (NYSE:WWE) is listed in THQ, Inc.’s recent bankruptcy filing as an unsecured creditor holding a claim of approximately $45 million reflecting the entirety of the existing multi-year agreement.

Any impairment of a current THQ account receivable would be immaterial to WWE’s financial statements. Even if the impact of THQ’s bankruptcy were detrimental to WWE, the Company does not believe that the ultimate economic impact for financial statement purposes would materially and adversely affect the results of operations or financial position of WWE in light of the strength of the WWE brand and the historical performance of WWE’s video game business.

It is also being said that that Vince is extremely furious (via Dave Meltzer) about the whole thing because they are likely looking at a $45 million loss here. They are trying to salvage as much money as they can from THQ.

dlofnep

So no more WWE games?

Lord TSC

dlofnep wrote: »

So no more WWE games?

More likely just new developers....which could be good or bad news...

Penn

Teamshadowclan wrote: »

More likely just new developers....which could be good or bad news...

There'll almost certainly be no WWE'14. Even if they got a new developer next week there wouldn't be enough time for them to build a new game engine, character models etc etc in time

GTR63

Penn wrote: »

There'll almost certainly be no WWE'14. Even if they got a new developer next week there wouldn't be enough time for them to build a new game engine, character models etc etc in time

Hopefully this means a game every 2 years like Fight Night or the new EA UFC game.

srm23

its a shame in a way, they were on the right track finally!
they got the gameplay down after many crap years imo.

if they would have just made a good story mode/improved storylines in universe would have been great!

but we'll prob go back to square one, or could end up with games in the style of all stars

the groutch

Teamshadowclan wrote: »

More likely just new developers....which could be good or bad news...

just don't let EA near it :rolleyes:

jaykhunter

the groutch wrote: »

just don't let EA near it :rolleyes:

I hear this a lot. What's with the EA hate? Yes they do tons of sports games - massively selling, laudable games, which pays for them taking chances - like they did with Dead Space, Mirror's Edge etc. Or is it a big corporation hate? We already got new WWE iterations every year for the last decade, and their MMA game was great! What's the problem

GTR63

EA MMA was great as are the Fight Night games and Madden and NHL. Didn't care for this years FIFA though, most of the additions were broken tbh.
Dead Space is great DS3 looks ass though. I doubt EA would take on WWE though, it needs a lot of work to get it off the ground.

Arawn

GTR63 wrote: »

EA MMA was great as are the Fight Night games and Madden and NHL. Didn't care for this years FIFA though, most of the additions were broken tbh.
Dead Space is great DS3 looks ass though. I doubt EA would take on WWE though, it needs a lot of work to get it off the ground.

It appears that Ubisoft appear to be the company attempting to buy thq

Professey Chin

EA have only gotten to make 2 (licensed) wrestling games with WCW Mayhem & Backstage Assault but they were both pretty crap. Def Jam: Vendetta was a pretty good attempt though using the AKI engine

The Great Chinholio

The Great Chinholio wrote: »

EA have only gotten to make 2 (licensed) wrestling games with WCW Mayhem & Backstage Assault but they were both pretty crap. Def Jam: Vendetta was a pretty good attempt though using the AKI engine

I know I'm in the minority but I liked Mayhem.

Backstage assault on the other hand was an absolute disgrace. Who needs a wrestling ring in a wrestling game :rolleyes:

Beefy78

Penn wrote: »

There'll almost certainly be no WWE'14. Even if they got a new developer next week there wouldn't be enough time for them to build a new game engine, character models etc etc in time

Am I missing something? Isn't it Yukes who own the engine, have the character models and develop the game? THQ just publish and have some creative input.

Mr.Saturn

Beefy78 wrote: »

Am I missing something? Isn't it Yukes who own the engine, have the character models and develop the game? THQ just publish and have some creative input.

Yup, that's pretty much it. I mean, if, by some happenstance, THQ don't get a buyer in time, and all falls through, nothing is stopping another publisher from getting the 'E license and just drafting in Yukes. Which'd save a lot of dough, considering they've already got the engine and pretty much all the work done.

The actual 'E license is a tidy little earner. It's not up there with the sales of a lot of those yearly releases, but as of last count, WWE '12 pulled in just under 2 million sales, which is a sweet, bankable profit for publishers to jump on, and is an easy sell to investors.

Mind, if by some miracle, syn Sophia/Aki getting rostered to crack out a new 'rasslin title, with some fan-loving publisher footing the initial bill, I imagine the amount of hardcore-gushing will form a crack in the space-time continuum, and we'll all be hoisted back to '99-'06, when the announcement of new 'rasslin games was a cause for curiosity and celebration, instead of the jaded sighs we've become familiar with.

Mr.Saturn

And they're gone completely, IPs to be sold off title-by-title.

Deano7788 wrote: »

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/thq-ip-to-be-sold-title-by-tile-ea-confirmed-as-interested-party/0108919

THQ's IPs are to be sold off at an auction on the 22nd. Creditors blocked its sale to Clearwater.

GTR63

WWE's licence could go for a snip they need a new engine badly with next gen upcoming and to do so they have to more or less start over. Fingers crossed South Park:tsot is picked up ASAP.

takamichinoku

Do WWE have no say over who buys the license now?

gnfnrhead

takamichinoku wrote: »

Do WWE have no say over who buys the license now?

If its an auction, I doubt it. Highest bidder wins.

Mr.Saturn

http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/08/thq-auction-details/

THQ confirmed this morning the details of yesterday's reported bankruptcy proceedings and noted the a la carte purchasing of the company's assets will only occur if individual offers exceed a whole buyout.

"Today's ruling provides a clear path. We will now know definitively by January 23 where we stand," stated THQ CEO Brian Farrell. "We appreciate the support of our employees, partners, and suppliers now more than ever."

As things stand now, we know that private equity firm Clearlake Capital Group has offered "$60 million, including a new $10 million note for the benefit of the company's creditors." What this means is that anybody offering more for the whole of the company can take THQ from the cushy speed agreement made between THQ executives and Clearlake.

There's also the very real possibility that Electronic Arts, along with Warner Bros and other bidders, could collaboratively purchase THQ's intellectual property (Saints Row, Darksiders, Metro) and studios (Volition, Relic, Vigil). If those bids exceed Clearlake's total (and Saints Row is definitely getting any player most of the way there) that's it for THQ.

Bids are due January 22, 2013, by 9AM Eastern. The auction will be held at 3PM. Hearing on the sale will be held at 9:30AM the following day, with the closing on January 24.

From what I can gather, there's a chance it'll still remain as THQ, though under new ownership, and delisted from NASDAQ, now a private company.

D2D

THQ has been dissolved

Kotaku has obtained a letter from THQ CEO Brian Farrell and president Jason Rubin sent to all THQ employees.

The full text is as follows:

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 eam. We wish you the best of luck and hope you will keep in touch.

Sincerely,

Brian Farrell Chief Executive Officer

Jason Rubin President

Assets including Darksiders studio Vigil and have not been acquired. The future home of the WWE franchise has yet to be disclosed.

Arawn

Dare_2_defy wrote: »

THQ has been dissolved

Kotaku has obtained a letter from THQ CEO Brian Farrell and president Jason Rubin sent to all THQ employees.

The full text is as follows:



Assets including Darksiders studio Vigil and have not been acquired. The future home of the WWE franchise has yet to be disclosed.

I'd be amazed if darksiders isnt picked up

MitchKoobski

No mention of the WWE licence at all there. Must have been bought already coughEASPORTScough.

Professey Chin

MitchKoobski wrote: »

No mention of the WWE licence at all there. Must have been bought already coughEASPORTScough.

I doubt its theirs to sell off. The license would belong to WWE so probably fell back to them to aution them themselves with the bankruptcy.

MitchKoobski

Chinpool wrote: »

I doubt its theirs to sell off. The license would belong to WWE so probably fell back to them to aution them themselves with the bankruptcy.

They don't own it entirely though, its basically a 50/50 venture between THQ and WWE, except THQ owed Vince a bunch of money that WWE have already put into the series.

They didn't entirely own the South Park licence (South Park Studios kicked up a fuss yesterday, can't find the link atm) either and that was successfully sold it seems.

The teaser for this year's game usually comes out around Wrestlemania so they would want to move quick.

MitchKoobski

Didn't see this coming.

WWE licence has gone to Take Two Interactive apparently.

http://ie.ign.com/articles/2013/01/23/wwe-video-game-license-to-be-acquired-by-take-two

2K Sports to be precise. Games you'll know include NHL and MLB games.

Take-Two own 2K's different companies and Rockstar's.

Edit: Kept saying 2K Games. Should have said 2K Sports.

Professey Chin

2k Sports maybe?

Professey Chin

Wonder if EA already having so many licenses played a part.

MitchKoobski

Chinpool wrote: »

Wonder if EA already having so many licenses played a part.

Possibly, but they don't seem like they kind of company to look at a franchise that sells and think "Nah, we're good for now."

Reebrock

Chinpool wrote: »

EA have only gotten to make 2 (licensed) wrestling games with WCW Mayhem & Backstage Assault but they were both pretty crap. Def Jam: Vendetta was a pretty good attempt though using the AKI engine

Two of the worst games ever!

RobbingBandit

Anyone know what this means for WWE13,will there be any more dlc released by 2k now they own the publishing writes or is this it what we have now?

jaykhunter

I don't think it's fair to judge EA on games they made over a decade ago and dismissing the highly-rated, high-selling multiple games (sports and non-sports) they've been publishing for many years now.

A moot point as Take Two/2K Sports swooped in. It depends on what they do with the developers, Yukes. I'm sure they were working on WWE '14 since before WWE '13 came out but 2K will probably get a different developer/engine so that'd means the rest of WWE '13 DLC is canned, WWE '14 isn't coming out, and we'd get a fresh WWE 2K15. I hope they get a proper wrestling game together starting with scanning the wrestlers in. Creating blurry cartoon-like graphics from 2005 that gets smoked by TNA's effort is embarrassing!

Liam O

The NBA games have utterly amazing player models so hopefully they can bring that level to this but I'd say a lot of the Yukes lads will be kept on and the same crap brought out.

GTR63

Liam O wrote: »

The NBA games have utterly amazing player models so hopefully they can bring that level to this but I'd say a lot of the Yukes lads will be kept on and the same crap brought out.

The crowds too are AMAZING as is the commentary which adjusts on the fly. If they give two craps this is a big positive imo. I mentioned a while ago that i`d like this deal to happen too.

gnfnrhead

GTR63 wrote: »

The crowds too are AMAZING as is the commentary which adjusts on the fly. If they give two craps this is a big positive imo. I mentioned a while ago that i`d like this deal to happen too.

You really trying to claim there is better commentary than the WWE games?

"well King, tonight..... The Superstar.... goes one..."

-Tombstone finisher hits-

"Rock Bottom!"

-makes cover-

"This match could go all night!"

-bell rings-

"And there you have it!"

:pac:

Reebrock

Liam O wrote: »

The NBA games have utterly amazing player models so hopefully they can bring that level to this but I'd say a lot of the Yukes lads will be kept on and the same crap brought out.

It would be harder to animate wrestlers though, due to how crisp the interactions need to look. There is a lot more going on than in basketball.