The purchase of Jagex comes after a period of rapid expansion for the business. After five years of record games-as-a-service sales, several third-party publishing agreements, and its highest-ever RuneScape membership numbers, the firm has managed to establish itself as a leader in community-driven games. In a press release, Jagex CEO Phil Mansell stated the following: The Eugene, Oregon-based firm Pipeworks Studios is best recognized for co-development. Since it was in charge of porting Terraria to several consoles, the developer has experience delivering games to new platforms. It’s unclear at this time just what role Pipeworks Studios will play. But this is a major acquisition for a business like Jagex. Before this, it was estimated that Jagex employed 350 people. With the addition of Pipeworks Studios, there will be 550 employees, a rise in the staff of about 60%. Along with the acquisition, Jagex also previously disclosed that it is developing a brand-new, unidentified IP. All that is known about the game so far is that it is an Unreal Engine 5 open-world survival game. Additionally, it intends to enlarge the Runescape world.
