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jbob_1986
8/14/2019 2:44am
8/14/2019 2:44am
Edited Date/Time
8/15/2019 4:25am
Some big news for motocross gamers here,thq and Koch media have bought Milestone srl! What does this mean for future mx and sx games and also Moto GP games! We will finally get a ultimate mx experience based game which will involve mxgp and ama seasons on one game?!
Milan, August 14, 2019 - Koch Media GmbH, a subsidiary of THQ Nordic AB, signed an agreement today to acquire Milestone srl, a leading developer and publisher in the racing genre, based in Milan, which boasts successful titles such as MotoGP and Supercross.
The acquisition includes the development study and all intellectual property rights.
"Joining the Koch Media family is an important step for our studio. Having been managed as a family-run company, built on the enthusiasm of its team members and specialized in racing games, we are pleased to bring our experience and knowledge to the company group, committing ourselves to acquiring it even outside our main DNA . We are sure that the combination of our experiences will strengthen our position in our market segment and will help us to offer increasingly exciting games for our fans, extending the frontiers of the racing genre in the gaming sector, "said Luisa Bixio Vice President of Milestone Ltd.
Dr. Klemens Kundratitz, CEO at Koch Media GmbH added: "We are happy to welcome the Milestone team to our company. After a long collaboration in the distribution field in some selected Koch territories, I am sure that by combining the knowledge of our companies, new and extraordinary opportunities will open up in a key market of the videogame industry. I am more than convinced that the motivation and passion that drive the Milestone team and its strong value within the racing segment are a solid foundation for future projects. The experience in titles with official licenses like MotoGP and the one in the publication and development of own IPs as RIDE, constitute an important legacy in the racing genre, which will help us to expand our portfolio and will strengthen us for the future. "
Milan, August 14, 2019 - Koch Media GmbH, a subsidiary of THQ Nordic AB, signed an agreement today to acquire Milestone srl, a leading developer and publisher in the racing genre, based in Milan, which boasts successful titles such as MotoGP and Supercross.
The acquisition includes the development study and all intellectual property rights.
"Joining the Koch Media family is an important step for our studio. Having been managed as a family-run company, built on the enthusiasm of its team members and specialized in racing games, we are pleased to bring our experience and knowledge to the company group, committing ourselves to acquiring it even outside our main DNA . We are sure that the combination of our experiences will strengthen our position in our market segment and will help us to offer increasingly exciting games for our fans, extending the frontiers of the racing genre in the gaming sector, "said Luisa Bixio Vice President of Milestone Ltd.
Dr. Klemens Kundratitz, CEO at Koch Media GmbH added: "We are happy to welcome the Milestone team to our company. After a long collaboration in the distribution field in some selected Koch territories, I am sure that by combining the knowledge of our companies, new and extraordinary opportunities will open up in a key market of the videogame industry. I am more than convinced that the motivation and passion that drive the Milestone team and its strong value within the racing segment are a solid foundation for future projects. The experience in titles with official licenses like MotoGP and the one in the publication and development of own IPs as RIDE, constitute an important legacy in the racing genre, which will help us to expand our portfolio and will strengthen us for the future. "
https://gamingtoday.it/news/thq-nordic-koch-media-acquisisce-milestone/
Monster Energy Supercross, licensed by Feld, is the most important motorcycle sport in the United States. With the two previously published chapters, the franchise sold 1 million copies and Supercross 3 has a launch planned for 2020. It will be the first Milestone game to land on Google Stadia.
The Shop
THQ Nordic has acquired Milestone Interactive in a €44.9 million cash deal, but the value could almost double in value if the Italian racing specialist meets its earnout targets.
The deal is for 100% of shares in Milestone, the Milan-based developer of MotoGP, MXGP and Ride among others.
According to THQ Nordic CEO Lars WIngefors, Milestone's games have sold eight million units since 2013, and it has five projects currently in development.
THQ Nordic estimates that the company earns revenue in the range of €27.5 million to €32.25 million, and EBITDA of between €15.5 million and €18 million.
If Milestone reaches adjusted EBIT of €39.6 million before the end of fiscal year 2022, then THQ Nordic will pay a further €28.9 million in cash and stock. If it reaches €51.5 million adjusted EBIT, THQ will pay a further €37.6 million.
THQ Nordic has acquired numerous game developers in recent years, but this is the first studio that specialises in the racing genre.
Milestone games are fun due to the incredible graphics, but the physics don’t feel free enough. All Out physics feel better, but the controls themselves don’t feel natural in regards to how the bike moves...it seems wonky, or just not as intuitive, at least to me. And it’s cool that you can throw big whips, but it doesn’t seem like you can really scrub jumps like you could in Reflex to save time. If you scrubbed something right in Reflex, it was really noticeable as to how low you would go. When I see people try to scrub in All Out, it just looks like a whip that starts early on the face of the jump, but it stills springs them into the air.
All that said, I hope this acquisition means good things for moto games in the future!
Combine that with Milestone having the SX license and we have the potential for an annual release with real SX and MX tracks.
If handled correctly we could have a Madden-type game covering all aspects of the sport with an annual update.
A couple things that concern me:
1. THQ has always made more of an arcade-style game whereas Milestone has aimed for a realistic simulation—hopefully THQ can sustain the realism that MXGP and Supercross have provided us with.
2. The two companies have had differing a outlook when it comes to updating games and the lifespan of each release. THQ has relied very heavily on providing DLC available for purchase in-game whereas Milestone has focused on delivering new games every year. DLC is great, but I hope that THQ wont provide new games at the same pace they have since Reflex. In the past 10 years THQ has only released 3 games: Alive, Supercross and All Out. Most recently they went nearly 5 years in between games and 3 years before that.
Regardless of my opinion or anyone else’s however, it’s simply cool to see a smaller American company thrive like this. Especially one with close ties to our sport.
Congrats to THQ Nordic on the acquisition.
Pit Row
I think a lot of the reflex nostalgia is just people remembering it being better than it was. I have a 360 and play it often still, the bike slides around everywhere like crazy
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