RuneScape developer Jagex has made its first outside studio acquisition, picking up Pipeworks Studios, a US-based developer responsible for work and service support on over 125 shipped titles.
While terms of the deal weren’t revealed, in a release on the acquisition, Jagex CEO Phil Mansell says that , “Pipeworks presents an incredible opportunity to bring onboard world-class game development talent. The studio brings elite-level game development expertise, specifically in AAA games-as-a-service, with an exemplary track record of collaborations with the world’s best game creators”.
With Jagex and RuneScape branching out recently, from announcing several tabletop games, including crowdfunding and the first RS miniatures, planning an open-world survival game set in the RuneScape universe, and an announced collaboration with Smite, this acquisition lines up with growth and expansion. The Smite collaboration will be RuneScape’s first, but given the various moves over the past year, we should probably expect more.
We are proud to share that @RuneScape and @OldSchoolRS are coming to SMITE later this year!A timeless classic no stranger to the toils of Gods, we can’t wait to share more with you down the road! pic.twitter.com/fyiyqA5Is5
— SMITE (@SMITEGame) June 8, 2022
On what role Pipeworks may play, it’s not entirely clear just yet, but there’s definitely something to be taken from nothing the studio’s work on games as a service, and Mansell’s statement goes on to say that “we look forward to working together to publish Pipeworks’ developed IP and accelerate its growth”. With work on that open world survival game taking place and, of course, RuneScape and Old School RuneScape continuing to be live services, there’s room for additional hands on keeping things running smoothly.
Jagex itself was acquired last year by Carlyle Europe Technology Partners, and that group’s Managing Director Michael Wand shed some light on some of these moves, including the new deal for Pipeworks. In the release announcing the deal, he says “Carlyle acquired Jagex to support the next phase of the company’s growth, including maintaining a focus on its core RuneScape franchise while further diversifying the business and its portfolio”. This also includes acquisitions.
