Epic Games acquires parent company of Fall Guys developer Mediatonic

Cal Jeffrey

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Why it matters: Tonic Games has just merged with Epic Games. The holding company owns Fall Guys developer Mediatonic. Fall Guys has seen more than 11 million downloads on Steam alone since its August 2020 launch. It was also the most downloaded freebie in PlayStation Plus history. The mutually beneficial deal gives Epic another potential cash cow, while giving Tonic the resources and freedom to expand and build. It's a win-win.

On Tuesday, Mediatonic received word that its runaway hit Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout has been nominated for five BAFTA awards. Coincidentally, the news came at right about the same time that Epic Games announced the completion of a deal to pick up the studio's parent company Tonic Games Group. The acquisition also brings studio Fortitude Games and publisher Irregular Corporation under the Epic umbrella.

Epic insists that the Fall Guys gameplay will not be changing as a result of the merger. However, in a separate blog post, Mediatonic says it wants to implement some elements from Fortnite and Rocket League into its battle-royale style obstacle course. It mentions account systems, cross-play, and squad versus squad as features it hopes to bring to Fall Guys.

Tonic Games leadership seemed enthusiastic about the merger in the press release.

"At Tonic Games Group we often say that 'everyone deserves a game that feels like it was made for them.' With Epic, we feel like we have found a home that was made for us," said Tonic Games Group CEO and Co-Founder Dave Bailey.

"Beyond the shared vision among our teams, we see tremendous potential in combining forces with Epic," said Chief Games Officer and Co-Founder Paul Croft. "Whether it's about making our own games the best they can be or empowering other game developers to take their content from a kernel of an idea to commercial success, we know that together we will be able to reach greater heights."

Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout launched last August and recently announced its fourth season in a teaser with a definite 1980s VHS vibe (above).

Since starting, the Fall Guys team has grown from 35 to more than 150 employees. With Epic's backing, the team should be able to keep churning out content season after season, just as Fortnite has for several years now.

Fall Guys is currently out on PlayStation 4|5 and PC via Steam. Nintendo Switch and Xbox ports are coming this summer, and presumably, it will soon be available on Epic's storefront.

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Dear Epic! Please, PLEASE release Jazz Jackrabbit 1&2 for the PS4 and 5! I don't even want better graphics, it's perfect as it is, just do it please! I'm willing to pay up to $30 for it, even.
 
Makes sense: getting a dev that hasn't gotten too big means they can make probably a low ball offer and get their hands on a property that's still viable but is also on the way down in terms of popularity. Perfect time to pick them up: they're not outright irrelevant, but they're willing to take offers or be bought because they need something to either finish a follow up, another game or make Fall Guys pick up.

Epic games really does mean epic money for marketing: They can probably force Fall Guys back into number 1 game (Well, #2 after Fortnite of course since they won't cannibalize) by just suddenly getting all kinds of cool stuff like Disney properties and such as costumes, etc.
 
Makes sense: getting a dev that hasn't gotten too big means they can make probably a low ball offer and get their hands on a property that's still viable but is also on the way down in terms of popularity. Perfect time to pick them up: they're not outright irrelevant, but they're willing to take offers or be bought because they need something to either finish a follow up, another game or make Fall Guys pick up.

Epic games really does mean epic money for marketing: They can probably force Fall Guys back into number 1 game (Well, #2 after Fortnite of course since they won't cannibalize) by just suddenly getting all kinds of cool stuff like Disney properties and such as costumes, etc.
They didn't buy the dev they bought the parent company which included the dev n other studios. It wasnt cheap as when buying a company you are also paying for the future and Fall Guys is huge right now with no signs falling off. Also they don't need for them to make anything but content. Just like Fortnite doesn't need another version, just keep adding content n kids will spend millions.
 
Dear Epic! Please, PLEASE release Jazz Jackrabbit 1&2 for the PS4 and 5! I don't even want better graphics, it's perfect as it is, just do it please! I'm willing to pay up to $30 for it, even.
Shame on you. You should be willing to pay 60$ or more for the first part of the games, + another 60 to 120$ for episodes 2 and 3.
 
Shame on you. You should be willing to pay 60$ or more for the first part of the games, + another 60 to 120$ for episodes 2 and 3.
And $70 on next-gen consoles even though it it the exact same game with only minor tweaks to assets.
 
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