Remedy Acquires Full Rights To Control Franchise From Publisher 505 Games

Remedy Entertainment, which released Alan Wake 2 to critical acclaim in October, has acquired the full rights to the Control franchise from publisher 505 Games. Released in 2019, Remedy developed Control but it was published by 505 Games, which also had a stake in the franchise's rights at the time. Now, after a roughly $18.4 million purchase, the entirety of the Control franchise belongs to Remedy. 

This includes the original Control game, its in-development sequel Control 2, the multiplayer spin-off Project Condor, and all future Control products. 

"The Control franchise is in the core of Remedy," the studio writes in a statement released today. "Having acquired the full rights to Control, Condor, and Control 2, Remedy is now in a position to make the right product and business decisions focusing on long-term franchise growth." 

With this deal, all publishing agreements between 505 Games and Remedy in regards to the Control franchise are terminated immediately by mutual agreement. All publishing, distribution, marketing, and other rights licensed to 505 Games are reverted to Remedy with immediate effect, as well. However, the two companies have agreed that 505 Games will continue as the publisher of Control through a transition period ending December 31, 2024. 

After this transition period, "505 Games will have no future royalty or other rights to Control." 

As for the $18.4 million price, Remedy says it's equal to "the amount that 505 Games has paid for the development of codename Condor and Control 2 to date including a minor premium." 

"Remedy is entitled to set off certain receivables from the purchase price, and therefore, the cash flow effect from the transaction will be clearly less than the purchase price," the statement reads. "Remedy will pay the net purchase price in three cash installments during the next twelve months." 

This transaction arrives a few months after 505 Games parent company Digital Bros Group laid off 30 percent of its staff to align with "the new competitive market." Other 505 Games-published titles include Ghostrunner 2, Payday 2, and the PC version of Death Stranding, amongst others. 

For more, read Game Informer's Control review, and then check out the latest update from Remedy about Control 2 and its Max Payne remakes. After that, read about what to expect with the multiplayer Control spin-off Project Condor. 

Are you more excited for Control 2 or Project Condor? Let us know in the comments below!

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