Zugalu Entertainment Acquires Crimson Herring Studios

Calgary-based Zugalu Entertainment’s acquisition of Edmonton-based Crimson Herring Studios consolidates two Alberta independent developers while keeping their teams and expertise within the province. Crimson Herring founder Isaac Otway joins Zugalu as chief operating officer, bringing the studio responsible for the narrative RPG Sovereign Syndicate into a company whose projects include Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown. The transaction is notable as an acquisition occurring within Alberta’s own game-development ecosystem rather than a local studio being purchased by an organization outside the province. Combining the companies gives Zugalu additional narrative-development expertise and increases the scale of its development team while providing Crimson Herring with access to a larger organization. It demonstrates one potential path for Alberta independent studios to grow through consolidation, sharing development capacity and business resources while continuing to produce games from Calgary and Edmonton.