Mergers: Stronghold and IBC Form Indie Game Studios, Greater Than Games to Acquire Cheapass, Asmodee Also Buys Something

"I am delighted to join forces with Stronghold Games," said Travis Worthington, CEO of Indie Game Studios. "Stephen is a tremendous individual that has grown a loyal following over the past decade and we've had a long running relationship of working together over the years. Our skill sets are very complementary, and I look forward to even greater growth as we work together as one team in the future. The timing was critical for both our companies. As the industry consolidates around a few major corporate players, we needed to get bigger in order to compete as an independently owned creator of the world's best board games."

"We have entered a new era in the hobby board game industry," said Stephen M. Buonocore, President of Stronghold Games. "We cannot simply operate as we did 10 years ago. To grow our business, we must acquire 'mindshare' via increasing visibility of our brands, additional customer focus, and hiring new talent. This merger will do exactly this. Indie Game Studios will allow us to increase our global reach, better fulfill gamer needs, and enhance our product development efforts throughout all of our brands. Indie Game Studios is uniquely positioned as an independent entity, ready to battle the giant corporate owned conglomerates of the hobby board game industry."

Since 2013, when [Galápagos Jogos] started to market its first international games titles, the company had an increase of 800%.

With more than 60 lines of board and card games, the company's success follows the industry's global advancement, which is considered one of the fastest growing segments in the entertainment industry.

"Our purpose of bringing people together through a fantastic entertainment experience is strengthened even further now that we are part of Asmodee. The passion for telling incredible stories is the main factor that unites us. We are very proud to join such an experienced and capable team, "said Yuri Fang, president of Galápagos Jogos.

Interest in Brazil is part of the French group's strategy to consolidate its global presence. This will be its first operation in Latin America. Asmodee has offices in 14 countries: the United States, Canada, Spain, Germany, Italy, Belgium, France, the United Kingdom, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands and China. In addition, there are 13 game development studios around the world. Currently, the company distributes its products to more than 50 countries in the world.

The group, established in 1995, sells 34 million games a year, launches 300 new products, and recorded a turnover of €442 million in 2017.

"After five years of a successful partnership with Galápagos in the distribution of our games in Brazil, we are very happy to have them in the Asmodee family. We fully rely on the Galápagos team to further increase our presence in the market and build our platform in the country, "said Stéphane Carville, president of the Asmodee Group.