[Scarlett.]

The ballad of THQ’s bankrupcy continues to weave more and more entangled threads of intrigue. The Clearlake Capital Group was all set to outright buy all of the struggling publisher’s assets for $60 million, but a judge blocked the sale stating that the deal did not give other buyers enough time to enter in with a bid instead.

So now, rather than keeping THQ intact and letting them go at least partially about their business under the wing of a huge capital firm, they face the risk of being torn apart by an auction being held this January 22nd. All of their most valuable properties are up for grabs, including some high end titles like Darksiders, Company of Heroes, Saints Row, and Metro. Not a bad line-up considering the financial trouble they’ve stumbled upon.

Warner Bros. is amongst the nine companies who have approached THQ for at least a partial buyout of one of their properties. EA, who THQ turned over their UFC license to last year, is also in the hunt for a new franchise or two. Might as well pick them up for a bargain price.

The only way for THQ to make it out of this intact is if the bids from the buyers exceed the price offered by the Clearlake Capital Group. In the cutthroat world of business, I have no doubt that EA and Warner Bros. will be able to cooperatively strip THQ of its most valuable properties and leave a decent publisher out in the cold. January 22nd will be the day of reckoning for THQ, but things are not looking up at the moment.

Seems rather ironic that their last huge release starred Death, doesn’t it?

How about it? Let Volition, Relic, and Vigil games continue to work on their franchises with the limited resources, or do we let a huge entity like EA take them an possibly turn them into something for the better or for the worse? Should EA and Warner Bros. give jobs to the developers who made these brand names valuable in the first place?

http://www.technobuffalo.com/2013/01...ff-january-22/