Codemasters acquires Project Cars developer Slightly Mad Studios

(Image credit: Slightly Mad Studios)

Racing publisher Codemasters has picked up Project Cars developer Slightly Mad Studios in a £23 million/$30 million deal that will see the entire 150-person studio join the company.

Codemasters has been developing and publishing games for more than 30 years and continues to churn out racers, from the annual F1 series to the off-road Dirt Rally 2.0. Slightly Mad Studios, meanwhile, released its first game, Need for Speed: Shift in 2009, eventually starting its own racing series, Project Cars, in 2015.

Its last game, Project Cars 2, is the "apex of apex-hitting sims," according to Phil Iwaniuk's Project Cars 2 review, "but leaves casuals behind." Though it might take racing so seriously that it puts off novice racers, Phil still found it a very convincing sim and gave it an 89.

The deal includes Project Cars and an "unannounced Hollywood blockbuster," according to the announcement. Slightly Mad Studios was already working on the third Project Cars game and is also developing a mobile spin-off, Project Cars Go.

The biggest racing publisher acquiring one of the best racing developers around sounds like pretty good news, especially if it means more Project Cars. The Hollywood blockbuster is likely Fast & Furious, which CEO Ian Bell teased in a livestream with SpotTheOzzie.

Fraser is the UK online editor and has actually met The Internet in person. With over a decade of experience, he's been around the block a few times, serving as a freelancer, news editor and prolific reviewer. Strategy games have been a 30-year-long obsession, from tiny RTSs to sprawling political sims, and he never turns down the chance to rave about Total War or Crusader Kings. He's also been known to set up shop in the latest MMO and likes to wind down with an endlessly deep, systemic RPG. These days, when he's not editing, he can usually be found writing features that are 1,000 words too long or talking about his dog.