Zeus acted as financial adviser to Devolver Digital on its acquisition of System Era

Zeus is delighted to have acted as financial adviser to Devolver Digital on its acquisition of System Era for consideration of up to $40m.

Established in 2014, System Era is an award-winning, multi-platform video game developer based in Seattle, United States. The company has a strong track record of developing innovative content and IP, driven by a quality team with significant experience in the live-operations space.

System Era is the developer behind Astroneer, a highly successful, space-exploration themed, multiplayer sandbox adventure game, of which it owns 100 per cent of the intellectual property. To date Astroneer has generated over $87 million of gross revenues and been played by over 13 million people, with the game is currently available on Steam, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch. Astroneer is entering its eighth successive year, with 2022 being its most successful year in terms of both units sold and revenue generated since release.

The acquisition represents a strategic opportunity for Devolver to expand outside of its core strength of premium indie titles, leveraging System Era’s knowledge of Expandable Game style development, as well as its live operations technology and existing IP.  Devolver is confident that the team will build on the success of Astroneer and provide meaningful future contribution to the Group.

Having acted as sole financial advisor to Devolver on its IPO in November 2021 and provided a continued role as NOMAD and broker to the Group, Zeus is pleased to have been able to support the Group on this first major acquisition on market. The acquisition represents a clear opportunity for the Group to realise synergistic benefits from the development of future Games as a Service-based game titles, alongside benefitting fully from any future titles System Era develops.

This transaction is latest in a series of completed M&A transactions in which Zeus have supported their existing client base in executing against their respective M&A strategies.

Zeus Team

Nick Cowles, Alexander Craig, Jake Walker and Kieran Russell

Douglas Morin

Chief Executive Officer of Devolver Digital

I am thrilled about System Era’s alignment with Devolver in culture and strategy. With their expertise and successful game Astroneer entering its eighth year, we anticipate new opportunities for growth through their mastery in Expandable Games development. We eagerly await introducing exciting and innovative experiences to a broader audience, and we look forward to welcoming the team to Devolver soon. Devolver would like to thank the Zeus team for their unwavering support since IPO and importantly for their advice and expertise throughout the process.

Alexander Craig

Associate Director, Investment Banking at Zeus

It has been a pleasure helping guide Devolver through their first major on market acquisition, having supported them through their IPO in 2021. With System Era’s exceptional development capabilities, experienced executive team, and a strong cultural alignment between the two businesses, it is clear there is a promising future ahead.

Contact

If you would like further information, please get in touch with our team.

Nick Cowles CEO+44 (0) 161 393 1977+44 (0) 7881 672 405LinkedIn Scan with your phone camera to add to contacts Download vCard

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