14 DAY TRIAL // Paradox Interactive, the publisher and developer of such high profile titles as the Hearts of Iron series and the Europa Universalis franchise, has announced that it has acquired AGE Studio, which also includes developer AGEOD, creating a wargaming powerhouse that has access to some very strong intellectual properties.
Fredrik Wester, who is the Chief Executive Officer of Paradox Interactive, stated that “We have played and enjoyed AGEOD’s titles for years and greatly respect what they have achieved as a development studio. We see this acquisition as an opportunity to make AGEOD’s titles accessible to a wider audience on the global market.” Paradox is saying that the AGEOD team will not be changed in any way and that they are free to develop their games with the company offering support in publishing and in marketing.
Paradox Interactive believes that the first title to be a joint production is Rise of Prussia, set to arrive on the PC in the first quarter of 2010. Fredrik Wester revealed that his company had a very good 2009 and was keen on expanding its business during the next year. For the first time, it is set to publish a console title, called Lead and Gold, which will emphasize team work in a Wild West setting, while also continuing work on more traditional grand strategy games, with development going on Victoria 2.
AGEOD has created games like Birth of America and World War One but arguably its best work is Ageod's American Civil War, which arrived in 2007 and managed to simulate the complex military and political situation of XIX century United States. The company has developed the so-called Adaptive Game Engine that is perfectly scalable and can be used for a variety of strategy settings.
The most recent Paradox release is Heir to the Throne, the third expansion for Europa Universalis III, which I talked about a little elsewhere on Softpedia.