Vivendi Acquires Secret Lair, Studio Ch'in

Following recent news of Vivendi Games' new mobile division picking up mobile developer Centerscore, the company today has revealed two more developer acquisitions meant to enhance its Sierra Online imprint. The two studios, Issaquah, WA developer Secret Lair Studios and Shanghai, China's Studio Ch'in, will, according to the company, position Vivendi Games' Sierra Online division as a key publisher of Xbox Live Arcade titles. As revealed in a recent investor presentation, Vivendi are working on a number of Xbox Live Arcade titles yet to be formally announced, including versions of Ultra Mini Golf, classic puzzler The Incredible Machine and a Battlestar Galactica title. This is in addition to the action title Assault Heroes, and tile-based board game Carcassonne, part of the German board game lineup revealed at Microsoft's recent Leipzig press conference. Precisely what titles the newly redubbed Sierra Online Seattle and Shanghai studios are creating for the service is yet unknown, but apart from Live Arcade titles, it has been known since last year that Secret Lair/Sierra Online Seattle -- founded by developers with experience at NCsoft, Microsoft, Blizzard, SOE, Monolith, Origin and Arena.net -- has also been working on their own original MMO. "I firmly believe in this business that great games come from great people. In joining the Sierra Online team, we become part of a tremendous group of people centered on quality game development," said Jason Robar, head of studios for Sierra Online Seattle and Shanghai. "It's an exciting time in the industry with the ongoing success of Xbox Live Arcade and the anticipation of Windows Vista which Microsoft has designed from the ground up for gaming. The combination of our current business relationships and development with Sierra Online's existing initiatives sets the highest standard for Xbox Live Arcade, mid-session and PC online titles."