Codemasters acquires Project Cars developer Slightly Mad Studios

British developer-publisher Codemasters has purchased Project Cars developer Slightly Mad Studios for a reported $30 million. 

The deal will see Codemasters, which already has a portfolio full of racing franchises such as Dirt, Grid, and Formula 1, hand over $25 million in cash and $5 million in stock.

Slightly Mad CEO and founder Ian Bell will continue to lead the studio under the Codemasters umbrella, while the entire dev team will also be kept on. 

Moving forward, the pair will collaborate on "new racing experiences," with Codemasters chief exec Frank Sagnier explaining the company wants to accelerate its growth ahead of the game streaming surge and the next generation of home consoles.

"We are delighted to bring such an incredible racing game developer to the Codemasters family, and this unequivocally establishes us as a global powerhouse in the development of racing titles," commented Sagnier in a press release.

"We share the same passion and vision and our new partnership will accelerate our growth. With more streaming services coming to market and the next generation of games consoles due in 2020, this is the perfect time for Codemasters to take its next step."