Funcom has become majority stakeholder in the Swedish game developer studio The Outsiders and are looking to expand in Stockholm

Oslo/Stockholm – June 30, 2021 – Norwegian game publisher Funcom and Swedish game developer The Outsiders have been working closely together for a while, with the upcoming rhythm FPS Metal: Hellsinger being developed by The Outsiders and published by Funcom. Now the bonds are strengthened further by Funcom’s acquisition of the Stockholm based studio.

The Outsiders consists of veterans from companies such as DICE, Avalanche, King, Rovio, Fatshark, and Guerilla Games. Funcom CEO Rui Casais is thrilled that the two companies have now secured a long-term relationship. “The Swedish gaming industry is remarkable, even in global terms. That a country with a population of just over 10 million people has been able to develop blockbusters such as Minecraft, Battlefield, Tom Clancy’s The Division, and many, many more, is staggering and an inspiration for the rest of the Nordic gaming industry. The Outsiders is the embodiment of the creativity, talent and originality that is needed to produce such memorable games,” he says.

“We are very excited to be part of their journey going forward. This partnership will also allow Funcom to tap into the immense talent pool in Sweden. Their main focus will still be Metal: Hellsinger, but the new arrangement will make it easier for our teams support each other’s projects,” Casais adds.

David Goldfarb is Creative Director and co-founder of The Outsiders, having previously had leading roles in the development of games such as Payday 2 and Battlefield Bad Company 2. He recalls meeting with Rui Casais at the Game Developers Conference a few years ago to discuss the prospect of working on Metal: Helllsinger together, and is delighted with the way things have gone since.

“We’ve had a really remarkable partnership with Funcom since that fateful GDC meeting. It’s definitely rare in the game industry to work with partners who are as level-headed, honest, and open as they have been with us throughout the development of Metal: Hellsinger. We feel really lucky to be able to join Funcom and deepen this already great connection while continuing to grow The Outsiders in new and exciting directions,” Goldfarb says.

The leadership at The Outsiders will remain the same, but as a result of the acquisition, the Stockholm based company are now looking to add more people to their crew. This will directly benefit the development of Metal: Hellsinger, as well as other future projects. For more information about the studio and to see the available vacancies, please visit their website www.theoutsiders.se or see www.funcom.com/careers.

Funcom is an Oslo-based developer and publisher of online games for PC and consoles. It was founded in 1993 and is most famous for games such as Conan Exiles, Secret World Legends, Age of Conan and Anarchy Online. In early 2019, Funcom acquired the rights to produce video games based on Frank Herbert’s best-selling science-fiction novel Dune. An open-world survival game based on Dune is currently in development and has been labeled as Funcom’s most ambitious game to date.

Today Funcom also announced the plans to open up a new office in Bucharest (Romania), as the new headquarters for quality assurance. From before, Funcom has offices in Oslo (Norway), Lisbon (Portugal) and Raleigh (USA).

About Funcom

Funcom is a developer and publisher of online games for PC and consoles. Funcom has provided outstanding entertainment since 1993 and continues to expand its track-record of more than twenty released games. Titles include ‘Conan Exiles‘, ‘Secret World Legends, ‘Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures’, ‘The Longest Journey’, ‘Anarchy Online’, ‘The Park’, and ‘Dreamfall: The Longest Journey’. For corporate information please visit www.funcom.com. 

About The Outsiders

The Outsiders is an independent game studio based in Stockholm, Sweden, consisting of ~30 creative people and two dogs. The Outsiders creates original games at high quality – specializing in first person games with unique gameplay mechanics and AAA-visuals. The team consists of industry veterans from DICE, Avalanche, King, Rovio, Fatshark, Starbreeze, Arrowhead, Goodbye Kansas, Machine Games, Guerilla Games, and many others – a good mix of the best talent from the many fantastic game development schools in Sweden. “We love games and we love making them. We hope that you will enjoy playing our creations!”