A new company comprised of members from Annapurna is set to take over games and franchises that were previously owned by Private Division, a studio owned by Take-Two Interactive. The staff that are creating the team are those who resigned last summer after it was said that there was a significant power struggle that led to the staff resigning. Now, they are taking over the portfolio that belonged to Private Division.
At the moment, the company that will be inheriting the Private Division franchises doesn’t yet have a name, but it will gain access to the games and franchises created by Private Division.
The first information came from Take-Two Interactive in November 2024, where they announced that they had sold Private Division to an unnamed buyer for an undisclosed price. In the report from Bloomberg, it seems that private equity firm Haveli Investments was the “unnamed buyer” of the company, with Haveli then going on to make a deal with the Annapurna staff, which gave them the power to take care of the acquired franchises. According to the Bloomberg report, a spokesperson for Haveli was contacted, but they stated that “the firm did not immediately have comment.”
Private Division was responsible for creating franchises and games such as Kerbal Space Program, Tales of the Shire, No Rest for the Wicked, and the untitled action-adventure game made in collaboration with Game Freak, which is currently codenamed Project Bloom. No Rest for the Wicked has been confirmed to continue getting support and updates, despite the uncertainty of Private Division at current. Tales of the Shire is the next game to be released, with it set to release on March 25. This game is highly anticipated by many, as it combines the farming game genre with The Lord of the Rings franchise for a cozy experience.
As Haveli acquired the company, they also inherited approximately 20 employees who were working at Private Division. Unfortunately, some of the staff that they’ve inherited will be laid off as the company gets settled and rearranged. The specifics of this arrangement have not been finalized, and staff have been told to explore their options regarding employment and instability in the company.
Private Division was founded in 2017 as a publisher of mid-sized indie titles. They’ve published games such as The Outer Worlds, Hades, and Rollerdrome.
