Black Forest Games has separated from THQ Nordic through a management buyout and co-founded an independent game studio group, Third Signal.
The Destroy All Humans studio will continue to develop and publish games under its own label and will also collaborate with THQ Nordic on ” game development tasks.”
Third Signal will support small development teams and provide resources, focusing on producing “premium games for PC and console.” Additional studios joining the group have yet to be announced.
“Some of the best games of the last decade came from teams of 50, not 500. Black Forest Games is one of them, and the right studio to launch Third Signal,” said Third Signal CEO Andreas Tobler.
Tobler previously served as VP of Plaion’s games portfolio and business development.
“Our vision is to build a developer-driven group and give teams the independence, resources and creative freedom to continue their creative legacy and bring their own ideas to life.”
“We are grateful to THQ Nordic and Embracer for nine good years and the games we made together. Now, we’re excited to shape our own future as owners again, to work on an exciting new project with a great team and strong partners behind us.”
Black Forest Games was acquired by THQ Nordic in 2017. The studio, known for the Destroy All Humans remakes, reportedly reduced its staff by half in 2024 following Embracer’s restructuring program.