Thunderful acquires Bridge Constructor publisher Headup in €11m deal
German publisher and developer currently working on unannounced game based on "world-renowned IP"
Thunderful Group has acquired Germany-based developer and publisher Headup.
The Nordic group will pay €5 million in cash up front, with earnouts of up to €6 million to follow based on Headup's performance for the next three years.
€2.5 million of the earnout consideration will be newly issued shares in Thunderful, with the other €3.5 million comprised of a mix of cash and shares.
The acquisition is expected to be completed by March 31. The company will continue to operate as an independent publisher and developer.
Founded in 2009, Headup is best known for the variety of games it has published, including the Bridge Constructor series, adventure game Trüberbrook, and Epic MegaGrant-funded action game Pumpkin Jack.
All 14 employees will be retained, with Headup CEO Dieter Schoeller taking on a new role as head of publishing at Thunderful Games, handling publishing operations in Sweden and Germany.
In addition to the publishing and production projects it is already working on, Headup is currently developing an unannounced game based on a "world-renowned IP."
Legal advisors on the deal were Setterwalls Advokatbyrå and German law firm Fieldfisher, with EY advising on financial and tax due diligence.
This is the fourth acquisition for Thunderful in just over a year.
The company took over Swedish studio Guru Games back in January 2020, followed by UK studio Coatsink Software in October and Swedish developer Station Interactive in November.
Thunderful Group followed these acquisitions with plans for an IPO.
In December, we spoke to CEO Brjann Sigurgeirsson about both the IPO and its ongoing acquisition strategy.