Flying Wild Hog game will be first to launch under Jagex Partners publishing division
Jagex has announced the first title to be launched under its third-party publishing division.
The Cambridge Science Park-based company said it had considered “hundreds of titles” before signing a deal with Flying Wild Hog, a leading Polish studio.
The as-yet unnamed game will be launched in 2021 on Jagex Partners, the publishing platform launched back in August 2018.
The aim of the division is to leverage the skills for which Jagex is renowned, thanks to its $1billion Runescape franchise, to deliver live game publishing and operational services tailored to third-party studios.
Phil Mansell, Jagex CEO, said: “When we set out to build Jagex into the home of a portfolio of living games – experiences like the RuneScape franchise which have the ability to last for 20 years or more – we were absolutely confident that we would be able to find games of huge potential.
“In Flying Wild Hog, we’ve found a partner that fully appreciates the importance of evergreen and evolving design, meaningful social interaction, player empowerment, and long-term commercial opportunity.
“It’s a team with a rare combination of passion, vision, focus and skill. Together with Jagex, this is a potent combination and we’re really excited to get our teeth into this partnership and to work as one international team.”
Flying Wild Hog, which was founded in 2009, has more than 250 staff in Warsaw, Cracow and Rzeszów, and is best known for Hard Reset and the Shadow Warrior series.
Private equity firm Supernova Capital LLP, founded by former Splash Damage CEO Paul Wedgwood, acquired the company last year.
Its new multi-format game will be built using Unreal Engine 4 and promises a “rich, deep, connected and customisable multiplayer action-RPG gaming experience of high adventure and explosive action set in a sci-fi universe”.
Open and closed beta phases are planned to allow players into the game ahead of release.
Jagex Partners will offer a suite of services, including user acquisition, digital marketing, analytic and audience insight systems, monetisation design, and community leadership, designed to suit what the company calls ‘living games’ which, like Runescape, are constantly updated and evolving.
Flying Wild Hog CEO Michal Szustak said: “In Jagex, we’ve found the ideal publishing partner for a game that our talented development team can’t wait to show the world.
“What’s been clear since the very first conversation we had with Jagex Partners is that they completely understand independent development, the resources and best practice in building and maintaining a live game service, and crucially how to delight and engage players.”
Jeff Pabst, VP third party and partnerships at Jagex, said: “We’ve looked at hundreds of games since we launched Jagex Partners because we always knew that we wanted to find the absolute best for our first deal – and that takes time to find.
“We have found a great game and a great partner in FWH and we can’t wait to start building something special for a new community of players.”
Jagex was acquired in April by US-based global asset management company Macarthur Fortune Holding LLC for $530million from Shanghai Hongtou Network Technology, part of Chinese games firm Fukong Interactive Entertainment.
Paul Wedgwood, founder of Supernova Capital LLP, added: “When we fused the talent at Flying Wild Hog with Supernova’s proven leadership, we knew we could create something very special together.
“And now we’re delighted to count Jagex as a fellow adventurer on this journey, a partner that understands the passion of development, has deep publishing knowledge and experience, and has a clear business strategy and vision to make what lies ahead a huge success.”
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