Thanks to the success of its indie game LIMBO, Danish developer Playdead has made enough money to buy itself back from investors. The game was released on Xbox Live Arcade, followed by the PC and PlayStation Network. Limbo's development was funded out-of-pocket by Playdead founders Arnt Jensen and Dino Patti, along with some grant money from the Danish government. Later investors were brought in to get the money needed to get the games across various platforms. By buying the company back, Playdead's founders no longer need to worry about outside influences affecting their future direction.
That's good news for the company, who recently revealed in an Edge interview that their next game - which they describe as much more ambitious than LIMBO - is three years away from being complete. While having a clean balance sheet allows for freedom to developer whatever kinds of games they want, paying back your debts speaks volumes too - especially if the need ever arises to borrow money again..
On a related note, technology investment bank GP Bullhound advised company shareholders that the sale of the company back to its founders and management was a good idea. This is GP Bullhound's fourteenth transaction in the Digital Media sector since 2009.
Source: GamePro
