Eidos acquires Morpheme

Eidos is ramping up its mobile activity and is on the acquisition trail, having bought another highly regarded British codeshop Rockpool Games earlier this year. Morpheme is a longstanding partner of Eidos. It developed the mobile version of Hitman and many more.

For Morpheme, the deal brings stability and funds after a period in which it had to rely on its edgy wit to survive. The studio was previously owned by UK gaming giant Argonaut, but reverted to self-ownership after Argonaut imploded in 2004. For the last two years, in the shadow of giants like EA, Gameloft and others, Morpheme has carved a niche with cheeky product like Everything Explodes, Go To Hell and Balloon Headed Boy (pictured). It has also diversified into web-based gaming with the web site offthewrist.com.

“We’ve worked with Morpheme on a number of successful games already, so we know how well we work together,” commented Simon Protheroe, New Media and IT director at Eidos. “It’s great to have Matt and his team on board in a deal which fully complements our existing development resources.”

“This is a really exciting opportunity for both Morpheme and Eidos,” added Matt Spall, CEO Morpheme Wireless Limited. “It will allow us the opportunity to take our experience, talent and creativity and elevate it to the next level and to a much wider consumer audience.”