Playstack, publisher of some of the most acclaimed indie games in recent years—games like Balatro, Abiotic Factor, and The Case of the Golden Idol—is likely to find itself under new ownership in a proposed sale that would see it land in the same investment portfolio as Fandom and GameSpot (via Game Developer).
Playstack’s current owner, investment group TruFin, is encouraging its shareholders to approve a proposed agreement to sell its 84.5% stake in the publisher for approximately $151 million to Integrated Media Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of private equity firm TPG that—in addition to Fandom and GameSpot—also owns entertainment brands like Curse and TV Guide.
In TruFin’s announcement of the proposed sale on May 21, CEO James van den Bergh called Playstack’s “disposal,” a term the UK investment world seems content to use for this scale of transaction despite the unsavory overtones, “represents a milestone for TruFin and a clear demonstration of our disciplined approach to capital allocation and value creation.”
Evidently, despite releasing a report in March saying Playstack has an over 85% hit rate on releasing games that generate revenue exceeding their development costs and has grossed over $100 million in Steam revenue, TruFin thinks its capital discipline would be better allocated elsewhere.
If you’ve watched the exodus of community-driven wikis for Minecraft, RuneScape, Warcraft, Monster Hunter, and others departing Fandom hosting over prolonged frustrations with the platform, the idea of Playstack being beholden to IMC’s shareholder interests might not inspire confidence. In a brief statement, however, Playstack founder and CEO Harvey Elliott said the seemingly all-but-finalized sale hasn’t yet impacted its operations.
“In practical terms, this is a change in ownership rather than a change in who we are. Our team, our strategy, and our commitment to publishing premium indie games remain exactly the same,” Elliott said. “For now, it’s business as usual. I sincerely thank TruFin for being an invaluable partner over the past seven years, helping us reach this exciting next step.”