Embracer stock price falls following Saints Row reviews
Hug it out.
Disappointing Saints Row reviews have hit publisher Embracer's stock price.
Today's launch of the Saints Row reboot has been seen as the first big test for Embracer's AAA studio talent, following the company's enormous and still-ongoing spree of acquisitions over the past couple of years.
But yesterday's Saints Row embargo lift was met with a lacklustre response from many outlets. Eurogamer's own review stated the game "won't set the world alight", but noted that it still holds some "pleasant surprises".
Embracer shares fell around seven percent overnight, Axios noted, down to a four-month low.
A more straight-faced reboot of the wacky Saints Row open world action franchise, questions had been asked about the game's direction ever since its shaky reveal a year ago. Originally set for launch in February, the game was later delayed by six months, to ultimately arrive this week.
In the past, Embracer has stated that its strategy of having so many projects in the pipeline helps insulate itself against any single, costly project failing.
It has also benefited from picking up various companies and franchises at comparatively low prices.
Last week, Embracer announced it intended to purchase the rights to make video games based on Tolkien's Middle-earth, including The Lord of the Rings, for what many saw as a surprisingly low amount.
Prior to that, it also picked up Tomb Raider and Deus Ex developers Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Monteal from Square Enix for a bargain $300m.
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But clearly Embracer is still concerned by the quality level of its projects. Just today, it was reported that the publisher had indeed moved its struggling Knights of the Old Republic remake to another internal studio following production problems.