Tim Willits, the chief creative officer of Saber Interactive, recently disclosed that the company has essentially ceased any substantial development activity on the North American continent. While the firm’s corporate headquarters and its publishing division remain situated in the United States, the actual creation of games now occurs across a network of fifteen studios scattered around the globe. These studios are located in a diverse set of countries, including Serbia, Armenia, Georgia, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Argentina, and Australia, among others.
Prior to its separation from Embracer Group in 2024, Saber Interactive oversaw several North‑American subsidiaries: Aspyr in Texas, Demiurge Studios in Boston, Tripwire Interactive in Georgia, and Shiver Entertainment in Florida. When the split took place, Aspyr, Demiurge, and Tripwire stayed under Embracer’s umbrella, while Shiver was acquired by Nintendo in May 2024. Another Embracer‑retained entity, Beamdog, continues to operate out of Canada.
Saber still retains ownership of New World Interactive, a studio that maintains offices in Denver, Colorado, and Calgary, Alberta. New World is best known for the 2018 tactical shooter Insurgency: Sandstorm, which received a substantial content update in May. The studio experienced a round of layoffs in 2023 as part of Saber’s preparation for the corporate separation. In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Will Willits emphasized that modern game publishers must be “smart about where you make your game.” He explained that Saber is willing to establish development hubs wherever talent can be found, rather than insisting on a presence in traditional industry centers.
“We are not afraid of any territories,” he said. “Some publishers shy away from regions 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 took the opportunity to critique the extravagant spending habits that often accompany big‑budget titles. He recounted playing a recent high‑profile release—without naming it—where he could almost see money “falling out of the monitor.” He compared the development cost of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, which he said was roughly one‑third the budget of another major game released only a few months earlier by a large North‑American studio, yet it sold 11 million more copies.
“You don’t need to spend $150 million to make a billion,” he asserted. He went on to illustrate the cost disparity with a concrete example: “Big North‑American development studios can burn $2 million or more each month. SnowRunner, a title that has generated hundreds of millions in revenue, cost us about $6 million to produce – essentially three months of work in California.” He then ran the numbers: a five‑year development cycle equals 60 months, which at $2 million per month totals $120 million in salaries alone. Adding marketing, publishing, and other overhead can easily push total expenditures to $150 million, while the profit margin on each sold copy may be as low as $25.
“The math just doesn’t work,” he lamented. “You have to sell a massive volume to break even, and that’s the problem.” Willits’ comments highlight a broader industry shift toward distributed development models that leverage lower‑cost talent pools without sacrificing quality. By spreading its studios across multiple continents, Saber can tap into regional expertise, benefit from varied cost structures, and avoid the concentration risks associated with a single geographic hub.
This strategy also aligns with the growing acceptance of remote collaboration tools, cloud‑based asset pipelines, and cross‑border project management practices that have become commonplace after the pandemic. The interview also touched on Saber’s future outlook. Willits indicated that the company remains open to forming new partnerships and establishing additional studios wherever promising developers emerge. He stressed that cultural and linguistic differences are not barriers but opportunities for innovation.
“If you find a group of people who are passionate and have the right skill set, we’ll give them the support they need and let them create something amazing,” he said. In summary, Saber Interactive’s current operational footprint is truly global, with development activities now centered in a mosaic of studios outside North America. While the corporate and publishing functions stay in the United States, the creative engine that powers Saber’s games runs on six continents. Tim Willits’ remarks underscore the importance of strategic location decisions, cost‑effective production, and the willingness to embrace talent wherever it may be found, all of which he believes are essential for sustainable success in today’s competitive gaming landscape.