Tim Willits, the chief creative officer of Saber Interactive, has publicly stated that the company essentially no longer conducts any substantial game development within North America. While the corporate headquarters and the publishing division remain on U.S. soil, the actual creation of games now takes place across a network of fifteen studios scattered around the globe.
These locations include Serbia, Armenia, Georgia, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Argentina, and Australia, among others, reflecting a deliberate shift toward a more internationally distributed development model. Historically, before Saber broke away from its former parent Embracer Group in 2024, the organization oversaw a number of North‑American subsidiaries.
Notably, it owned Aspyr in Texas, Demiurge Studios in Boston, Tripwire Interactive in Georgia, and Shiver Entertainment in Florida. When the split occurred, Aspyr, Demiurge, and Tripwire stayed with Embracer, while Shiver was sold to Nintendo in May 2024.
Another Embracer‑retained studio, Beamdog in Canada, also remained outside Saber’s new structure. Despite the broader retreat from North‑American development, Saber still retains ownership of New World Interactive, which maintains offices in Denver, Colorado, and Calgary, Alberta. New World is best known for the 2018 tactical shooter *Insurgency: Sandstorm*, a title that received a significant post‑launch update in May.
The studio experienced a wave of layoffs in 2023 as Saber prepared for its eventual separation from Embracer, illustrating the turbulence that can accompany such corporate realignments. In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Will Willits explained the philosophy behind Saber’s new geographic strategy.
He argued that modern game publishers must be “smart about where you make your game,” and that the company is open to establishing studios wherever talent can be found. “We are not afraid of any territories,” he said. “Some publishers shy away from markets they don’t understand, but we think, ‘let’s go, let’s locate skilled people, give them the tools they need, and create something great.’ You don’t need to be based in California to be a brilliant programmer, artist, or animator.” Willits also used the interview to critique the industry’s tendency toward bloated budgets for flagship titles.
He cited an unnamed high‑budget game as an example of squandered resources, noting that the development cost for *Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2* was roughly one‑third of the budget for a recent major release from a large North‑American studio, yet the latter sold 11 million more copies. “You don’t need to spend $150 million to make a billion‑dollar franchise,” he asserted. He went on to break down the economics of a typical large studio in California.
“Big North‑American development studios burn through $2 million or more each month,” Willits explained. “SnowRunner, which has generated hundreds of millions in revenue, cost us about $6 million to develop—that’s essentially three months of California‑level payroll.” He then performed a simple calculation: a five‑year development cycle translates to 60 months, which at $2 million per month equals $120 million solely in salaries. When marketing, publishing, and other ancillary expenses are added, the total can easily exceed $150 million, while the profit per unit sold might only be around $25.
“The math just doesn’t work,” he concluded. “You have to sell an enormous volume just to break even, and that’s the core problem.” Willits’ comments highlight a broader industry trend: the migration of development talent to lower‑cost regions without sacrificing quality.
By leveraging studios in countries with competitive labor markets, Saber aims to keep production budgets manageable while still delivering high‑caliber experiences. This approach also aligns with the increasing accessibility of remote collaboration tools, which make it feasible to coordinate teams spread across multiple time zones. The full interview with GamesIndustry.biz provides additional context on Saber’s strategic outlook, including how the company plans to nurture new studios, the types of projects it hopes to pursue, and its perspective on the future of global game development. The interview can be accessed through the original publication link.