Jagex: We're not for sale

In an exclusive interview published today, Jagex CEO Mark Gerhard has explained that while it may have taken a hefty slab of American investment, it was never for sale, and it is still "staunchly British."

"Numerous people would like to have written the Jagex cheque if they had the opportunity to do so, and we dated very, very selectively," he told GamesIndustry.biz

And despite the number of acquisitions and mergers that have happened in the online space, a recent example being EA swooping for KlickNation, Jagex was never looking to cash in on the digital gaming boom.

"That's why we never did a big roadshow and as would be typical of other companies in the space to have a big 'for sale' sign outside our door because we never were for sale. And we don't see ourselves even for sale today."

He also revealed that the capital has allowed Jagex to expand its team, its office and its technological reach, so much so that it currently has four MMOs, Runescape, Eight Realms, Stellar Dawn and Transformers being worked on from its Cambridge office.

"We see ourselves as having brought on some very thoughtful, very smart, strategic investors and really wanting to become the Google for online games over the next couple of years."

As for the question of working with an American company and staying British, Gerhard had a simple analogy.

"Would you say Rolls Royce is any less British now than it was a few years ago?" he asked.

"When the truth is its majority shareholders are BMW. But I don't think we think of it... well I certainly don't, as a German company. I can pick any other almost British institution and that will be the case."

The full interview with Gerhard, can be read here.