Rising Star Games acquired by Swedish outfit Thunderful AB

UK-based publisher Rising Star Games has been acquired by Swedish games outfit Thunderful AB.

Thunderful was founded in December 2017 to be a parent company to game development studios Image & Form International AB and Zoink AB, two studios base in Gothenburg, Sweden with significant pedigree.

Since then it has expanded somewhat, and this expansion has led to the acquisition of Rising Star Games, best known for its work bringing hit Japanese games to a western audience, from parent company Bergsala Holding. Bergsala Holding currently owns 50 per cent of Thunderful.

Former Nintendo bod Ed Valiante will be taking the reins at Rising Star Games as Managing Director, while former boss Martin Defries is departing the company.

Thunderful already has its own publishing division, Thunderful Publishing, which also has Valiante serving as MD, where he will juggle the responsibilities of both roles.

"Once he knew what we were planning, getting Ed hooked on the idea was easy," said Thunderful CEO Brjann Sigurgeirsson about tempting the Nintendo exec in a blog post.

"It’s the first time we recruited from outside Sweden, so it’s been a good exercise in dealing with Swedish red tape, housing and what have you. Having him on board is absolutely delightful."

Valiante added: "“The team at RSG is very competent. We look forward to bringing in quality titles for us all to work with.”