Amplitude Studios, the maker behind 4X strategy games like Endless Legend and Humankind, is no longer under the gaming umbrella of Sega. In a financial update, Sega Europe today announced that a management buyout from staff has gone through, making the studio independent.
“The decision to part ways follows a period of close consultation between SEGA Europe and Amplitude," says Sega in a statement. "As an independent studio once more, Amplitude will focus on its in-development projects and growing its own franchises, while SEGA will continue to advance its strong and diverse stable of Japanese and Western IP."
The Paris, France-based developer was acquired by Sega in 2016. In the eight years since then, Amplitude has gone on to develop and launch Endless Space 2, Humankind, Endless Dungeon, and Dungeon of the Endless. The studio has not yet announced what are its plans for the future as an independent company, but it does plan to continue updating Humankind.
"Amplitude is backed by strong, meaningful franchises, and our team is committed to creating the best games possible," adds Amplitude studio director Romain de Waubert de Genlis. “This decision allows us to be more agile in our approach while continuing to shape the vision that we’ve had from the beginning, empowering us to push boundaries and be closer than ever to our community.”
Sega made a similar move in March of this year, with Relic Entertainment being sold off to be an independent studio. In recent years, the company has canceled major high-budget games, like Hyenas from Creative Assembly. It has had multiple waves of major layoffs amounting to 240 staff positions being cut across its studios. Sega says this latest move concludes its restructuring process in its Europe studios.