Halo, Call Of Duty Co-Developer Sold At “Most Difficult Time” In Gaming

Certain Affinity, a developer known for its co-development projects on major franchises and games like Call of Duty, Halo, and Hogwarts Legacy, has been sold to Keywords Studios. You might not have heard of the Dublin-based Keywords, but the company is gigantic–it owns 50 companies around the world, many of which are connected to the video game industry in one way or another.

Keywords paid an undisclosed sum for Certain Affinity, and as part of the buyout, CEO Max Hoberman and president Paul Sams will stay on with the company. Keywords said it’s excited about Certain Affinity’s future, which includes a “strong pipeline of high-quality projects.” One of these is the game Exodus, which features Oscar-winner Matthew McConaughey. Certain Affinity is a co-developer on the game with Archetype Entertainment, which itself is a division of Wizards of the Coast.

Keywords CEO Bertrand Bodson said the company has “enormous respect” for Certain Affinity, while Hoberman said he was “thrilled” to sell to Keywords “at this most difficult time in the market.” He said selling to Keywords gives Certain Affinity and its 180+ employees “stability and a supportive home.”

The video game industry has faced a tough stretch in the past few years regarding mass layoffs. Former PlayStation boss Shawn Layden gave a speech recently where he called for a “hard reset” of the video game industry’s business models, warning that the current state of the industry might be a “death sentence.”

Certain Affinity is Keywords’ second major buyout in 2024, following its deal to acquire Wushu Studios in August.

Keywords also owns Heavy Iron Studios (Marvel’s Avengers), D3T (The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt), and Tantalus Media (Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD), along with PR and creative service agencies like Fortyseven Communications and Big Farmer. According to IGN, Keywords bought at least four companies per year between 2016 and 2023 and had more than 13,000 employees at the end of 2023.

As for Certain Affinity, the studio was founded in 2006 by Hoberman and other former Bungie developers. In addition to supporting other developer’s projects, Certain Affinity made its first original game, Age of Booty, in 2008. More recently, Certain Affinity was in the news when it came to light that the studio was working on a battle royale mode for Halo Infinite until it was canceled.

In March 2024, Certain Affinity laid off about 25 employees, its first round of significant cuts in nearly two decades of operation.