Newcastle game studio taken over by Swedish gaming ‘giant’ in boost for local economy

A Newcastle game studio is expected to create more than 20 new jobs as it is taken over by a Swedish company.

Silent Games, founded in 2018 by Sally Blake and Joseph Rogers, has been acquired by Amplifier Game invest (AB) for an undisclosed sum.

The acquisition is expected to boost Silent Games’ team from four employees to around 30.

Amplifier said that it views the UK as one of the world’s strongest hubs for game development, and Silent Games is its first acquisition in the country.

It’s part of the multinational Embracer group, which employs almost 4,500 staff globally and has 135 games under development.

Per-Arne Lundberg, CEO of Amplifier Game Invest described Silent Games as exactly the kind of company he likes to support because of the team’s creativity, its strong production background, its passion for engagement, and its close links with the local game development community.

Joseph Rogers, co-founder of Silent Games, commented: “It was a huge turning point for us as we have been a small team for over two years and our output has been limited to creative concepts with very little development work.

“Now, we are ramping up the team to 10 people immediately and looking to go up to 15 by the end of 2021.

“With Amplifier’s backing it not only means more jobs for regional developers, but a boost to the regional economy.”

The sale of Silent Games was completed by Durham law firm Swinburn Maddison LLP, with the transfer completed by Alex Wilby, a partner in the corporate and commercial team.

Alex added: “Joseph and Sally established the business only two years ago, so it was a marvellous opportunity to become part of a gaming giant like Amplifier.”