Black Forest Games separates from THQ Nordic after nearly ten years of partnership

Now the studio's management expects to independently determine its further development.

German studio Black Forest Games has announced its departure from THQ Nordic after nearly a decade under the publisher’s management. The change came as a result of a management buyout, after which the parties intend to focus on their own business priorities.

Along with gaining independence, Black Forest Games joined the newly formed Third Signal group as one of its founders and co-owners. This alliance of independent game studios focuses on creating premium games.

Third Signal founder and CEO Andreas Tobler stated that the industry needs independent teams provided with the necessary resources and creative freedom. According to him, many of the best games of the past decade were created by teams of 50 people rather than massive teams of 500 developers.

Black Forest Games co-founder and CEO Adrian Goersch thanked THQ Nordic and Embracer for nine years of working together and the games created during that time.

Goersch also noted that the team is already looking forward to working on an exciting new project with the support of strong partners.

Black Forest Games was acquired by THQ Nordic in August 2017. During this time, the studio managed to work on Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams, Fade to Silence, the Destroy All Humans! series, and several other games. Despite the split, THQ Nordic and Black Forest Games will continue to collaborate on selected projects.