The well-connected games journalist Stephen Totilo recently had the opportunity to talk with Saber CEO Matt Karch about what has been happening behind the scenes at the Embracer Group. A now-defunct cult studio took particularly hard criticism.
What did Matt Karch reveal? The former interim Chief Operating Officer of the Embracer Group and current CEO of Saber Interactive (Space Marine 2) welcomed Stephen Totilo into his private jet and had so much to say that the games journalist released several interview specials.
In the third part (via gamefile.news), among other things, it was about the studio Volition, which was bought by the Swedish media company Embracer during numerous acquisitions, only to be closed later in 2024.
Volition was founded in 1996 and made a name for itself specifically with Red Faction and Saints Row. Since Saints Row from 2022 fell short of expectations, it was only a matter of time for Matt Karch before Embracer had to react.
The Saints Row team rightly is gone. They were too expensive for what they were. They didn’t know what they wanted to build. They had no real direction. That’s not how you survive. So the question is, who would have financed their next game after this disaster?
Matt Karch in an interview with gamefile.news
The CEO further explains that we are currently in a world where ruthless efficiency is required if one wants to run a large company. Layoffs are inevitable, according to Karch.
Saints Row from 2022 was supposed to represent a reboot for the anarchic series:
Behind the failed deal is indeed Saudi Arabia
What does the CEO say about Embracer? It has been known that the Swedish media company had to undergo extensive restructuring and cost-saving measures due to a last-minute failed billion-dollar deal.
At that time, various insiders suspected that the Saudi Arabian Savvy Games Group was behind the deal. Matt Karch confirmed exactly that during the interview. However, the CEO defends the responsible Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors:
They made mistakes. Lars is a very, very trusting person. He is a good person… when [the Saudi deal] didn’t happen, he fell on his own sword in such a harsh way.
Matt Karch in an interview with gamefile.news
Wingefors, however, remains CEO, while Volition and several other studios have been closed. When asked why no high-ranking executives were laid off, Karch was astonished: Embracer has no structure, no bosses. No one became rich there. It’s worth mentioning: The interview took place in the CEO’s private jet. Fun fact: Wingefors’ former pilot was probably at the controls.
This kind of alternative perception of reality also came to light in an interview with Lars Wingefors himself. He explained in 2024 that the growth plan of Embracer didn’t pan out only because unpredictable external factors torpedoed the endeavor: The corporation miscalculated, has to lay off 1,400 employees, and who is to blame? The war and Covid
