Nordic Games Rebrands to THQ Nordic, Has 13 Unannounced Titles in Development

ffronw

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Oct 24, 2013
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Nordic Games Rebrands to THQ Nordic, Has 13 Unannounced Titles in Development

//cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/1342/1342452.jpgTHQ has returned to the world of gaming thanks to Nordic Games rebranding itself.

When THQ went bankrupt, it seemed like the end of a long-lived, well-known publisher. But apparently it wasn't, as THQ has risen from the ashes. Well, sort of.

Back in 2013, Nordic Games bought almost all of THQ's IP at the now-defunct company's bankruptcy auction for a cool $4.9 million. About the only titles that Nordic didn't end up with were Homeworld (went to Gearbox) and Drawn to Life (went to 505 Games). Nordic acquired over 150 individual titles with its successful bid. A little over a year later, Nordic acquired the THQ trademark as well, which allowed them to publish games under the THQ name.

Today, the company has gone a step further, completely reincorporating itself as THQ Nordic. In the press release announcing the move, the company explained why it was made.

"Whilst we take great pride in our Swedish roots and accomplished a great deal under the Nordic Games masthead, we decided it was time to incorporate the THQ name. Those key brands will continue to shape our business in a meaningful way going forward, and THQ Nordic represents a core approach of doing much more than "owning" a highly competitive portfolio of IPs. We cherish them, and align them with the very best development resources to expand upon them with the level of experience that communities and established fan bases expect and deserve."

THQ Nordic says it has 23 game projects currently in development, of which 13 have not been publicly announced. It also says that "The majority of these projects are based on former THQ owned IPs and franchises." The company has already re-released some former THQ titles, including Darksiders 2 Deathinitive Edition and the Red Faction Collection.

THQ Nordic will be exhibiting at Gamescom next week, but there's no word on whether or not any of those unannounced IPs will be shown off there.

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RJ 17

The Sound of Silence
Nov 27, 2011
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Well that's...interesting? I don't really know what to think about this. Certainly nothing wrong with it, though personally I would have gone with Nordic THQ, as the other way around gives THQ top billing and makes it seem like they're the ones that bought Nordic. :3
 

Micah Weil

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Mar 16, 2009
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Well, THQ had a good name, for the most part. Nordic Games produces great games.
I'm interested to see how this goes. So long as they don't produce any tablet accessories, it should go well.

At the very least, THQ is back...in POG form.
 

Dornedas

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Oct 9, 2014
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I don't really understand this step. I mean it's not like THQ had some rabid fanbase or was known for Top-Quality 100% must pre-order games.

But thain again people have kept the Atari name alive and I never understood that as well. Maybe that's why I'm just a failed university student and not a businessman.

RJ 17 said:
Well that's...interesting? I don't really know what to think about this. Certainly nothing wrong with it, though personally I would have gone with Nordic THQ, as the other way around gives THQ top billing and makes it seem like they're the ones that bought Nordic. :3
Yeah this way it sounds like they are the subsector of THQ in Nordistan or in Nordic City.
But on the other hand Nordic THQ sounds a bit like Naughty THQ.
 

Level 7 Dragon

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Mar 29, 2011
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Micah Weil said:
Well, THQ had a good name, for the most part. Nordic Games produces great games.
I'm interested to see how this goes. So long as they don't produce any tablet accessories, it should go well.

At the very least, THQ is back...in POG form.
I just imagined THQ regenerating Dr. Who style.
 

DemomanHusband

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Sep 17, 2014
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On one hand, this seems like an unnecessary step. On the other hand, maybe they feel that pushing out a bunch of games based on THQ's IPs would be odd if they didn't at least acknowledge the previous owner. I have to admit that it would be a rather odd way to 'keep the memory alive' or something similar.

Hey, at least they're making games!
 

Neurotic Void Melody

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Jul 15, 2013
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They had better be working on Darksiders 3 and Red Faction: Not a sequel to Armageddon but Guerrilla instead. Geo Mod technology in a sandbox space setting is getting me all rather moist just thinking about it currently. Screw it, just put Geo Mod in everything! Even your coffee!
 

gigastar

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Sep 13, 2010
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So chances are there is a Darksiders 3 and a proper Red Faction sequel coming.

And lets hope they dont continue the THQ tradition of movie tie in shovelware and the kind of shit that sank THQ in the first place.
 

The Jovian

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Dec 21, 2012
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Am I the only one who's picturing a zombie hand rising from THQ's grave? Because that's what I'm seeing in my mind when I try to picture THQ Nordic.
 

Tireseas_v1legacy

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Sep 28, 2009
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*Crosses fingers for Darksiders 3 and 4*
The Jovian said:
Am I the only one who's picturing a zombie hand rising from THQ's grave? Because that's what I'm seeing in my mind when I try to picture THQ Nordic.
Nah... It's a draugr's hand...
 

Bedinsis

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So is this like when Enix bought competitor Squaresoft, and renamed their company Square Enix?

I must second the comment questioning this decision; THQ was never a beloved company, though they had some beloved* games; why remind people of a company they have no love for? Perhaps it's a matter of making people more willing to invest in them; in the stock market THQ might be a more recognized name.

*at least somewhat.
 

Jacked Assassin

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Jun 4, 2010
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ffronw said:
About the only titles that Nordic didn't end up with were Homeworld (went to Gearbox) and Drawn to Life (went to 505 Games).
Some other games are missing from that list, like Saints Row.
 

Qvar

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Aug 25, 2013
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THQ games might not have been must-preorder games, but they consistently did deliver an enjoyable experience, and spawned a lot of good franchises: Darksiders, Red faction, Saints row, Dawn of war, Metro, STALKER, Supreme Commander... Maybe they're not MGSV, Skyrim, XCOM or CK2, but they are great games in their own right.

At least in my case, every time I saw the THQ logo I knew I was in for a good ride, and I'm quite hyped to hear that they might have a couple of unfinished THQ projects in their hands.
 

Shoggoth2588

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Aug 31, 2009
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Hmm...what's this about a Red Faction collection? It's good to hear that THQ isn't gone since, as other people have said, they have made some really solid games in the past. Hopefully the next Saint's Row they release won't try to take itself too seriously (though I think a reboot is inevitable) and hopefully we have a new Red Faction that uses Geomod. Honestly, I think a marriage between Saint's Row and the Red Faction series would be pretty great...erect a brand new city on Mars in a slightly better future for that planet...then give us the means to blow it to Hell with music-based guns and anatomy-based melee weapons.
 

ctuncks

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008Zulu said:
I got seven of my fingers crossed for a sequel to Space Marine.
Afraid you're out of luck (at least from THQ Nordic) Relic and the 40K IP license went to Sega.
 

Mirrorknight

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Jul 23, 2009
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Hey, they can hang out with "Atari" and make a support group for game companies that wear the skins of dead famous game companies like suits.
 

Arnoxthe1

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Dec 25, 2010
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Please say, "We're making a new Red Faction." Please. Full-scale destruction needs to make a comeback, and the Geo-Mod engine was masterful.

And while we're dreaming, I'd like that with a big slice of cheesecake and a Halo that doesn't totally suck all kinds of fucking ass.
 

Leonardo Huizar

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Jul 1, 2012
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Im not super familiar with Nordic games but i have been keeping an eye on Elex since it showed up on AmazonDOTcom. It looks like a sort of dual fantasy Science future & Medieval past open world game. So im asking if Nordic are consistently good with their releases.