The drama surrounding the possible closure of Elex and Gothic developers Piranha Bytes seems to be continuing a bit. At least there is a sign of life.
The shock was deep last week when it became known that Piranha Bytes, best known for Gothic, Risen and Elex, was probably in deep trouble. The company, which was founded in 2019 by Embracer subsidiary THQ Nordic, appears, according to various sources and reports, to be on the verge of collapse, which would not necessarily be surprising given the Embracer Group’s massive cost-cutting measures.
Piranha Bytes has a certain cult status in German-speaking countries, but the role-playing game developers haven’t really been able to celebrate a breakthrough internationally. And Elex 2 apparently fell short of expectations in terms of sales. There have been discussions about closure for a few months now and studio boss Björn Pankratz has apparently not been on board for a while.
But what happens next? Will the studio be closed completely, or will it be sold or possibly rescued with an investor? Well, at least the studio has now spoken out with a statement on social media, which, interestingly, is also being distributed by THQ Nordic.
It says: “Dear fans, yes, it’s true. We, Piranha Bytes, are in a difficult situation. Our answer to all the reports that are currently circulating is this: Don’t write us off yet! We are doing everything we can to keep worlds in the future to create things that you can lose yourself in. This is what our hearts have always beated for. We are still firmly convinced that we will succeed in this.
There is no shortage of ideas and creative minds! Rest assured that we stand together no matter what. We will now concentrate with all our strength on this goal and will do everything we can to find a partner for this project. As soon as there is something to report, we will get in touch. Thank you for your continued support! Your piranhas”
So it seems like hope is the last to die once again, at least the studio itself hasn’t written itself off yet. Time will tell what happens next. It would certainly be desirable to continue to exist, after all, the studio is one of the last few giants in the German development landscape, and has been since 1997. It is questionable, however, how many of the creative minds are still on board or whether it is already just a matter of Trademark rights go.
ELEX II has just been released and in this video we tell you what you need to know about the science fantasy role-playing game from Piranha Bytes.
